Flexibility is good except when it isn ’t: Study finds how scientists can reach different conclusions analyzing the same brain scans
Neuroimaging: Many Analysts, Differing Results (Dana Foundation):
For decades, both the research and medical communities have relied on neuroimaging tools like functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to give them a window into the living human brain. Such scans have provided unprecedented insights into the brain’s structure and function – and the field, as a whole, has used this technique to better understand how the brain gives rise to thoughts, emotions, and actions. But as neuroimaging technology has advanced, so have the different analysis tools and the number of ways one can evaluate the resulting data. Now, ...
Source: SharpBrains - August 4, 2020 Category: Neuroscience Authors: SharpBrains Tags: Cognitive Neuroscience Health & Wellness Technology brain scans Brain-Imaging cognitive-neuroscientist flexibility fMRI functional magnetic resonance imaging Imaging Techniques NARPS neuroimaging scientific method Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, July 27th 2020
In this study, we applied a well studied prediction model developed on data from five CpG sites, to increase the practicability of these tests.
We have determined the biological age of the heart, specifically of the right atrium (RA) and left atrium (LA), and of peripheral blood leucocytes, by measuring the mitotic telomere length (TL) and the non-mitotic epigenetic age (DNAmAge). We found that DNAmAge, of both atrial tissues (RA and LA), was younger in respect to the chronological age (-12 years). Furthermore, no significant difference existed between RA and LA, suggesting that, although anatomically diverse and ex...
Source: Fight Aging! - July 26, 2020 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment Improves Cerebral Blood Flow in a Small Clinical Trial
In the study noted here, researchers provide evidence for a few months of hyperbaric oxygen treatment to increase blood flow to the brain, perhaps in large part by spurring greater growth of small blood vessels in brain tissue. In older patients this produced improvements in measures of cognitive function. There is a good deal of evidence in the literature to suggests that changes in blood flow to the brain cause altered cognitive function. Consider that exercise improves memory function, for example, both immediately following exercise, and then over the long term. Further, it is the case that capillary networks decline i...
Source: Fight Aging! - July 24, 2020 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs
Helium: An Abundant History and a Shortage Threatening Scientific Tools
Most of us know helium as the gas that makes balloons float, but the second element on the periodic table does much more than that. Helium pressurizes the fuel tanks in rockets, helps test space suits for leaks, and is important in producing components of electronic devices. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines that take images of our internal organs can’t function without helium. And neither can nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometers that researchers use to determine the structures of proteins—information that’s important in the development of medications and other uses.
Helium’s many uses i...
Source: Biomedical Beat Blog - National Institute of General Medical Sciences - May 27, 2020 Category: Research Authors: Chrissa Chverchko Tags: Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmacology Tools and Techniques Cool Tools/Techniques Scientific Process Source Type: blogs
White matter matters —Gf and white matter connectivity
A neuromarker of individual general fluid intelligence from the white-matter functional connectome. Link.Jiao Li1, Bharat B. Biswal, Yao Meng, Siqi Yang, Xujun Duan, Qian Cui, Huafu Chen, and Wei LiaoAbstractNeuroimaging studies have uncovered the neural roots of individual differences in human general fluid intelligence (Gf). Gf is characterized by the function of specific neural circuits in brain gray-matter; however, the association between Gf and neural function in brain white-matter (WM) remains unclear. Given reliable detection of blood-oxygen-level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging (BOLD-fMRI) sig...
Source: Intelligent Insights on Intelligence Theories and Tests (aka IQ's Corner) - May 22, 2020 Category: Neuroscience Tags: Gf white matter Source Type: blogs
Synaptive Evry, an MRI for Any Space, Cleared by FDA
Synaptive Medical is reporting that its Evry MRI scanner has won FDA clearance. The device is designed to make magnetic resonance imaging of the head more accessible, cheaper, and easier to manage than many current systems that require specially-built facilities, safety procedures, and costly regular helium refills.
The Evry is a medium power (0.5 Tesla) scanner that doesn’t need cranes and rigging to be installed, no special floor or cryogen pipe, nor are there annual cryogen refills to pay for. Also, unlike most other MRIs, the superconducting magnet of this unit can be turned on and off within fifteen minutes.
...
Source: Medgadget - April 30, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Medgadget Editors Tags: Diagnostics Emergency Medicine Neurology Oncology Radiology Source Type: blogs
Investigation to assess myocardial metabolism – MCQ
Investigation to assess myocardial metabolism – MCQ
Investigation used to assess myocardial metabolism:
a) Computed tomography (CT)
b) Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
c) Positron emission tomography (PET)
d) Single photon emission tomography (SPECT)
Post your answer as a comment below (Source: Cardiophile MD)
Source: Cardiophile MD - April 1, 2020 Category: Cardiology Authors: Prof. Dr. Johnson Francis Tags: Medicine MCQ - CVS Source Type: blogs
Study: Moderate lifetime drinking may lead to lower Alzheimer-related beta amyloid deposits in the brain
Conclusions: In this study, we observed in middle- and old-aged individuals with neither dementia nor alcohol-related disorders that moderate lifetime alcohol intake was associated with lower cerebral AB deposition compared to a lifetime history of not drinking. Moderate lifetime alcohol intake may have a beneficial influence on AD by reducing pathological amyloid deposition rather than amyloid-independent neurodegeneration or cerebrovascular injury.
The Study in Context:
Report: 35% of worldwide dementia cases could be prevented by modifying these 9 modifiable risk factors
Study: Drinking up to 5–8 glasses of wine or ...
Source: SharpBrains - March 27, 2020 Category: Neuroscience Authors: SharpBrains Tags: Cognitive Neuroscience Health & Wellness Alzheimer-disease Alzheimers beer beta amyloid deposits brain protein dementia hard liquor mental acuity moderate drinking MRI neurodegeneration PET wine Source Type: blogs
Artificial Intelligence Discovers Unusual Associations in Medicine
Artificial intelligence does wonders in healthcare. The technology helped issue the first COVID-19 warning before the WHO and CDC did so. It can slash the phenomenon of alarm fatigue. IBM’s Watson Health leverages the power of A.I. to bring drugs to the market faster. And it does so while cutting costs by over 50%.
Speaking of IBM Watson, while the algorithm got its name from the company’s founder Thomas J. Watson, there’s another pop culture figure attached to that name. It’s elementary; we’re talking about none other than Sherlock Holmes’ sidekick, Dr. Watson. It seems like real-world A. I. is taking after...
Source: The Medical Futurist - March 26, 2020 Category: Information Technology Authors: Prans Tags: Artificial Intelligence AI digital health Healthcare Medicine technology Source Type: blogs
NeuroPace RNS System for Epilepsy Gets FDA Approval for MRI Labeling
Mountain View-based NeuroPace today announced it has received FDA approval for MRI labeling for its RNS System, a closed-loop brain-responsive neurostimulation system designed to prevent seizures in adults refractory to antiseizure medications. The approval applies specifically to the RNS-320 model of the RNS neurostimulator.
Because
MRI scans are often used to monitor patients with brain anomalies that may
contribute to seizures, incompatibility with the imaging modality may have
precluded some patients from receiving treatment with the RNS System. In
addition, patients who require regular MRI scans for non-brain condi...
Source: Medgadget - March 10, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Cici Zhou Tags: Neurology Neurosurgery Radiology Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, March 2nd 2020
In conclusion, the recently demonstrated protective effects of NMN treatment on neurovascular function can be attributed to multifaceted sirtuin-mediated anti-aging changes in the neurovascular transcriptome. Our present findings taken together with the results of recent studies using mitochondria-targeted interventions suggest that mitochondrial rejuvenation is a critical mechanism to restore neurovascular health and improve cerebral blood flow in aging.
Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling as a Point of Intervention to Spur Greater Neural Regeneration
https://www.fightaging.org/archives/2020/02/wnt-%ce%b2-catenin-signal...
Source: Fight Aging! - March 1, 2020 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
Stretchy Coils to Make MRI Imaging Easier on Patients
When undergoing MRI scanning, many patients have to have the body parts being imaged strapped into rigid radio-frequency (RF) coils. These can be uncomfortable, as they’re not custom-sized for every patient, and since many MRI exams can take a half hour or more to perform, the scanning process can be difficult for many to undergo.
Researchers at Purdue University have now developed RF coils that can be flexed and stretched, and that may one day be used within wearable garments that would be worn during MRI exams. “Imagine going for an imaging session and they strap on a comfortable fabric with the coils embedded...
Source: Medgadget - February 26, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Medgadget Editors Tags: Materials Radiology Source Type: blogs
Evidence for Better Blood Supply to the Hippocampus to Slow Cognitive Decline
As outlined in the research reported here, the variable physiology of the hippocampus allows for an interesting natural experiment to determine the degree to which blood supply is important in the aging of the brain. It is known that capillary density declines with age throughout the body, and this affects the supply of oxygen and nutrients to tissues. The brain is a particularly energy hungry organ, and reduced supply produces consequences. It isn't just capillary density that is important in aging, however, but also the general decline in physical fitness and ability of the heart to pump blood uphill to the brain. This l...
Source: Fight Aging! - February 24, 2020 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs
Using a Plant Virus to Create a Contrast Medium
Researchers at the University of Texas Dallas (UTD) are playing with alchemy by transforming a virus into an organic radical contrast agent (ORCA), an alternative to gadolinium-based contrast agents to be used in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) procedures. ORCA molecules had been previously considered too dim for scanning and were easily eradicated by vitamin C in the body. UTD researchers found that by connecting the molecules to a tobacco mosaic virus, a virus that attacks plant cells and disrupts cell activity, they were able to eliminate those issues and make the ORCA an effective agent. Once the ORCA was attached...
Source: radRounds - February 21, 2020 Category: Radiology Authors: Julie Morse Source Type: blogs
Scientists Make Organs Transparent
Whole organs are difficult to study in minute detail, as they have to be sliced into extremely thin sections to map out their interior. CT and magnetic resonance imaging help to an extent, but researchers at the Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, and Technical University of Munich in Germany have managed to make entire organs, including a human kidney, eye, thyroid, and pig pancreas, transparent and easy to study using a special microscope optimized for the task.
Details of the vasculature and glomeruli in the human kidney. ©Helmholtz Zentrum München / Ertürk lab
Described in journal...
Source: Medgadget - February 18, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Medgadget Editors Tags: Materials News Radiology Surgery Source Type: blogs
