Lifeboat Foundation

Summary: Researchers achieved a groundbreaking feat by creating the first complete cell atlas of a mammalian brain, specifically a mouse. This comprehensive map details over 32 million cells, their types, locations, molecular information, and connectivity.

The atlas offers an in-depth look into the mouse brain, a crucial model in neuroscience, and lays the groundwork for advanced treatments for mental and neurological disorders. It encompasses structural, transcriptomic, and epigenetic data, providing a blueprint for brain circuit operations and functioning.

Australians develop a supercomputer capable of simulating networks at the scale of the human brain.

The world’s first supercomputer capable of simulating networks at the scale of the human brain has been announced by researchers at Western Sydney University.

Tiny made from human windpipe cells encouraged damaged neural tissue to repair itself in a lab experiment — potentially foreshadowing a future in which creations like this patrol our bodies, healing damage, delivering drugs, and more.

The background: In a study published in 2020, researchers at Tufts University and the University of Vermont (UVM) harvested and incubated skin cells from frog embryos until they were tiny balls.

Continue reading “Tiny biobots surprise their creators by healing wound” »

A study has found that every 1% decrease in deep sleep annually in individuals over 60 years old is associated with a 27% higher risk of dementia. This research indicates that improving or preserving deep sleep, known as slow-wave sleep, in later life may help prevent dementia.

The study, led by Associate Professor Matthew Pase, from the Monash School of Psychological Sciences and the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health in Melbourne, Australia, and published in JAMA Neurology, looked at 346 participants, over 60 years of age, enrolled in the Framingham Heart Study who completed two overnight sleep studies in the time periods 1995 to 1998 and 2001 to 2003, with an average of five years between the two studies.

Researchers at Western Sydney University in Australia have teamed up with tech giants Intel and Dell to build a massive supercomputer intended to simulate neural networks at the scale of the human brain.

They say the computer, dubbed DeepSouth, is capable of emulating networks of spiking neurons at a mind-melting 228 trillion synaptic operations per second, putting it on par with the estimated rate at which the human brain completes operations.

The project was announced at this week’s NeuroEng Workshop hosted by Western Sydney’s International Centre for Neuromorphic Systems (ICNS), a forum for luminaries in the field of computational neuroscience.

This brain implant can reverse paralysis.

His brain implant made headlines in 2016. Now, he’s fighting for everyone to afford one.

The first cellular map of a mammalian brain is here.

High-resolution atlas charts neural neighborhoods for more than 5,300 cell types.

A stroke happens when blood flow is lost to part of the brain. Your brain cells cannot get the oxygen and nutrients they need from blood, and they start to die in a few minutes. This can cause lasting brain damage, long-term disability, or even death.

A stroke can occur when an obstruction such as a blood clot travels from another part of the body and lodges inside an artery in the brain.

When an arterial wall becomes damaged, various types of emboli, or obstructions, can form. Emboli can be made up of various substances such as platelets, elements in the blood that help it clot, blood clots that form elsewhere and pass to the damaged area, cholesterol, or a combination of things.

Continue reading “Stroke — Health Video: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia” »

Headquartered in Oxford, UK, MitoRx is working on orally delivered mitochondrial protective therapeutics targeting mitochondrial dysfunction linked to the progression of conditions such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy and Huntington’s disease, along with other neurodegenerative diseases. The company says the new funding will be allocated towards its preclinical work in Huntington’s disease, activating its first neurodegenerative disease program, and exploring research collaborations and partnerships.

MitoRx anticipates delivering preclinical results in Duchenne muscular dystrophy, Huntington’s disease, and COPD next year.

“Interim results in our Duchenne program demonstrate that our muscle-penetrative lead asset preserves strength in oxidative muscle, and confirms mitochondrial modulation,” said Dr Christine Charman, Chief Development Officer at MitoRx. “These results will be presented at the Muscular Dystrophy Association Clinical and Scientific Conference in Orlando during March 2024.”