Tag: Mice

Gut bacteria play key role in anti-seizure effects of ketogenic diet

UCLA scientists have identified specific gut bacteria that play an essential role in the anti-seizure effects of the high-fat, low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet. The study, published today in the journal Cell, is the first to establish a causal link between seizure susceptibility and the gut microbiota — the 100 trillion or so bacteria and other microbes

Scientists uncover brain circuits behind putting up a fight or freezing in place: Study may provide clues to disorders including anxiety and phobias

In a study of mice, National Institutes of Health-funded researchers describe a new circuit involved in fine-tuning the brain’s decision either to hide or confront threats. The study, published in Nature, was partially funded by the NIH’s Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative. “Being able to manipulate specific circuits can uncover surprising relationships

Discovery of differences in the brains of rats classified as workers vs. slackers: Discoveries reveal the brain mechanisms involved in decision-making

A team of researchers led by Dr. Catharine Winstanley at the University of British Columbia have uncovered a network of regions in the brain that are involved in determining the choice of working harder to get a bigger reward, or putting in a lesser effort and receiving a smaller reward. Understanding how the brain makes

Emojis used to develop a modern face scale for product testing

A recent study by sensory researchers at Kansas State University’s Olathe campus finds that emojis are a viable alternative to words when it comes to accurately measuring how kids feel about food, products and other experiences. The results appear in the study, “The emoji scale: A facial scale for the 21st century,” which was published

Fasting boosts stem cells’ regenerative capacity: A drug treatment that mimics fasting can also provide the same benefit, study finds

As people age, their intestinal stem cells begin to lose their ability to regenerate. These stem cells are the source for all new intestinal cells, so this decline can make it more difficult to recover from gastrointestinal infections or other conditions that affect the intestine. This age-related loss of stem cell function can be reversed

Gene variant increases empathy-driven fear in mice

Researchers at the Center for Cognition and Sociality, within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS), have just published in Neuron about a genetic variant that controls and increases empathy-driven fear in mice. As empathy is evolutionarily conserved from rodents to humans, this finding might contribute to clarify individual variability in neuropsychiatric conditions characterized by empathic

How mice are hardwired for parenting

For the first time, scientists have deconstructed the brain circuits that orchestrate parenting behavior in mice. The team, led by Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator Catherine Dulac, has discovered that more than 20 different parts of the brain are integrated into this circuitry. Distinct sets of cells within a parenting-control hub trigger the motivational, behavioral,

Eating less enables lemurs to live longer

Chronic caloric restriction consists in eating a reduced but balanced diet from early adult life onward. Previous research, into macaques in particular (which have an average lifespan of forty years), had already demonstrated its beneficial effect on the incidence of age-related pathologies. However, its positive effect on the lifespan of primates remained controversial. To study