Topic description and stories

Neuroscience has transformed our understanding of the brain and promises treatments for devastating disorders that affect millions.

Charts map rapid growth and slow decline of brains

06 April 2022

An international team of researchers has created a series of brain charts spanning our entire lifespan – from a 15 week old fetus to 100 year old adult – that show how our brains expand rapidly in early life and slowly shrink as we age. 

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Neural Connections In the Human Brain

Presence or absence of early language delay alters anatomy of the brain in autism

23 Sep 2014

Individual differences in early language development, and in later language functioning, are associated with changes in the anatomy of the brain in...

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Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding linked to lower risk of postnatal depression

20 Aug 2014

A new study of over 10,000 mothers has shown that women who breastfed their babies were at significantly lower risk of postnatal depression than...

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Depression

Mind and body: Scientists identify immune system link to mental illness

13 Aug 2014

Children with high everyday levels of a protein released into the blood in response to infection are at greater risk of developing depression and...

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Artist's representation of schizophrenia

Antipsychotic drugs linked to slight decrease in brain volume

18 Jul 2014

A study published today has confirmed a link between antipsychotic medication and a slight, but measureable, decrease in brain volume in patients...

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Lego ordered into compartments

Males and females with autism show an extreme of the typical male mind

16 Jul 2014

̽»¨Ö±²¥largest ever psychological study of sex differences in adults with autism has found that both males and females with autism on average show an...

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Browsing the internet

Brain activity in sex addiction mirrors that of drug addiction

11 Jul 2014

Pornography triggers brain activity in people with compulsive sexual behaviour – known commonly as sex addiction – similar to that triggered by drugs...

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Depression

Adults with Asperger Syndrome at greater risk of suicidal thoughts

25 Jun 2014

Adults with the autism spectrum condition known as Asperger Syndrome are significantly more likely to experience suicidal thoughts than people from...

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Boy with autism

Children with autism have elevated levels of steroid hormones in the womb

03 Jun 2014

Children who later develop autism are exposed to elevated levels of steroid hormones (for example testosterone, progesterone and cortisol) in the...

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Inside

New headway in battle against neurodegenerative diseases

15 May 2014

Conditions which may accelerate the spread of Parkinson’s disease, and a potential means of enhancing naturally-occurring defences against...

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Kings Down

Scientists identify part of brain linked to gambling addiction

08 Apr 2014

New research reveals that brain damage affecting the insula – an area with a key role in emotions – disrupts errors of thinking linked to gambling...

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From Mexican wave to retinal wave: why sharing data is good for science

07 Apr 2014

From the way we learn, to how our memories are made and stored, the workings of our brains depend on connections forged between billions of neurons...

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Self Portrait 6

Out of mind, out of sight: suppressing unwanted memories reduces their unconscious influence on behaviour

18 Mar 2014

New research shows that, contrary to what was previously assumed, suppressing unwanted memories reduces their influence on behaviour, and sheds light...

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