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the brain

neurons. Illustration: depositphotos.com

The genetic phenomenon that worsens the signs of autism

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bipolar disorder. Illustration: depositphotos.com

With a simple blood test it is possible to identify people dealing with bipolar disorder and whether they will respond to lithium treatment

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One of the most common treatments for bipolar disorder today is the drug lithium - a drug to which only about a third of patients respond. The research aims to understand what causes this
Credit - the research group of Prof. Aviv Metzer and Dr. Tal Shahar

MRI scans can provide information about the iron balance in the brain to help monitor and diagnose various diseases, in a non-invasive manner

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This new measurement method, developed by PhD student Shir Filo and Prof. Metzer, will allow the extraction of precise biological values ​​on the brain, so that it will be possible to derive from an MRI test similar indicators to those obtained from a blood test or from a brain biopsy
The molecule that carries with it a message of regeneration You are here Homepage > Publications > Science news in a friendly language > There is something new under the nerve Share tags Michael Feinzilbermike Feinzilber molecular neurobiology biomolecular sciences nervous system nerve cells communication between nerve cells Like geckos regrowing their tails, the nerve cell extensions in the peripheral nervous system also know how to regenerate after an injury. Unfortunately, the nerve cells of the central nervous system, i.e. the brain and spinal cord, have a much more limited ability to regenerate. Accordingly, diseases that lead to the degeneration and death of nerve cells in the brain, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and ALS, are irreversible and incurable. What exactly gives the peripheral system - the one that connects the brain and the spinal cord to the body's organs - an increased capacity for regeneration? A new study by Weizmann Institute of Science scientists reveals that a protein, which until now has only been observed during embryonic development, has a key role in the regeneration of mature nerve cells of the peripheral nervous system. When embryonic cells differentiate into adult cells, the composition of the proteins they produce changes. In the case of nerve cells, it was common to think that a decrease in the levels of a protein called PTBP1 in embryonic cells is a key part of their transformation into mature cells of the nervous system. Previous studies have even shown that upon completion of the differentiation process and the transformation of the embryonic cells into mature nerve cells of the central nervous system, the production of the protein stops altogether. In recent years, these findings have led research groups to try to reproduce this process in the laboratory: to lower the PTBP1 protein levels in cells that are not nerve cells and thus produce mature nerve cells from them. The hope was that it would be possible to apply this method to patients with neurodegenerative diseases and to produce new nerve cells for them. From the right: Dr. Rinat Nebo, Dr. Natalya Okladnikov, Dr. Agustina Di Physio, Philip Freund, Dr. Ida Rischel, Prof. Michael (Mike) Feinzilber and Pierluigi Di Matteo However, in a new study, led by the researcher PhD candidate Dr. Stephanie Alber and doctoral student Pierluigi Di Matteo from the research group of Prof. Michael (Mike) Feinzylver in the Departments of Biomolecular Sciences and Molecular Neurobiology at the institute, it was surprisingly discovered that the PTBP1 protein is expressed not only in embryonic cells that have not yet undergone differentiation, but also in mature nerve cells - although not nerve cells of the central nervous system, but yes of the peripheral one. The researchers discovered this completely by accident, while studying processes in the sciatic nerve of mice, nerves that leave the spine and reach the foot. The original experiment carried out by the researchers was aimed at finding molecules that regulate the rate of production of another protein called KPNB1 - "postcarriage" - responsible for carrying most of the messages transmitted from the distant extensions of the nerve cells to the cell nucleus. Among its other functions, the KPNB1 protein is responsible for signaling to the cell nucleus that a nerve branch is injured, so that the cell can regenerate it. However, before the mail car can set off and carry messages from the branches to the nucleus, the cell is required to launch messenger RNA molecules that contain the "recipe" for the production of the mail car in the opposite path (from the nucleus to the branches). On the way or when arriving at the destination, other molecules may bind to the messenger, delaying or speeding it up and thus controlling the rate of production of the mail car. The surprising discovery in the new study was that not only was PTBP1 present in the mature cells, but it also bound tightly to the messenger RNA of the mail car. But does and how does it affect its production and the regeneration of nerve cells? "Tens of millions of people around the world suffer from diseases that lead to the degeneration and death of nerve cells in the brain. In order to understand why the central nervous system fails in its attempt to regenerate after an injury, we must first understand how the peripheral nervous system succeeds in doing so." To answer this question, the scientists followed the nerve cells' response to the injury and noticed that after three days the levels of PTBP1 in the cell began to rise and within A week they reached record levels. With the increase in PTBP1 levels, the researchers noticed that the nerve cell extensions begin to regenerate. Sequencing the messenger RNA molecules that bound to PTBP1 after the injury revealed that the protein binds not only to the messenger RNA molecules of the mail car, but also to other proteins that play a role in nerve regeneration. Dr. Stephanie Alber To continue investigating the activity of PTBP1 in adult cells, the researchers removed it from the cells through genetic engineering, and showed that as a result, the regeneration of nerve cells of the "alarm receptor" type - cells whose role is to transmit a sensation of pain in response to a harmful stimulus that could damage the tissue - was impaired. The scientists also examined whether silencing the gene had additional effects and discovered that it increased the sensitivity to mechanical stimuli and heat. In an attempt to deepen the understanding of how PTBP1 affects the regeneration of nerve cells, the researchers examined whether it also affects another protein, RHOA - an important "control switch" in the process of differentiation and regeneration of nerve cells. When the RHOA protein is produced at high levels, it acts as a sort of off switch that inhibits cell growth. The researchers discovered that PTBP1 suppresses the production of the control switch in the extensions of the nerve cells, thus enabling their growth and regeneration. These findings strengthen the possibility that the production of PTBP1 in peripheral nerve cells is what enables their efficient regeneration, unlike in the central nervous system. Sensory neurons of the peripheral nervous system in culture.

There is a new one under the sadness

The molecule that carries with it a message of regeneration
Brain stimulation using electrodes. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Electrical recording from deep within the brain

Abnormal electrical activity in the brain triggers OCD and Parkinson's symptoms
Prof. Stephen Hawking and the computer he used for his mouth. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Read melodies from the brain with Pink Floyed

A new study, published in mid-August in the prestigious journal PLOS Biology, reveals a way to decipher the songs playing inside the brain. In doing so, he also provides an explanation about the way in which different areas of the brain perceive and respond to acoustic elements
social anxiety. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Those suffering from social anxiety are prone to depression

Dr. Reot Tsbag, a graduate of the psychology department at Bar Ilan researches the relationship between social anxiety and depression as part of a post-doctorate at Yale University in the USA
Damage to the motor nerves in Duchenne patients. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Improving the function of the heart muscle in Duchenne patients

Producing heart cells from skin cells made it possible to discover defects that lead to heart failure
A parent in a messy house with children around him

What do today's parents need but psychologists struggle to provide?

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In June, the first international congress on evidence-based support in parenting ended. And this is an excellent opportunity to reflect on the thing that parents need the most, in order to be good parents - parental space.
Smoking rehab. Illustration: depositphotos.com

at the top of their concerns

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Significant progress towards personalized medicine in the field of psychiatry, with the help of a helmet that induces electromagnetic stimulation of the brain.
An oligodendrocyte-type cell with many of its branches (in yellow) in a mouse brain section. Reacts to stress quite differently in males and females

Exposure to chronic stress activates different cells in the brains of females and males

From depression and anxiety to diabetes - health conditions resulting from chronic stress affect women and men differently. New study in mice maps at the single-cell level molecular differences in the stress response in the brains of females and males, and may pave the way for personalized treatments
Fetal Development. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Accelerated development of neurons even in the embryonic stage can be the one that affects the development of autism

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After the accelerated development, a rapid deterioration of the neurons was noted, which was manifested, among other things, in low connectivity. The study found the recurrence of the phenomenon in children with autism originating from four different types of genetic mutations
Left: cells with a mutant FUS protein that causes accumulations (in green) and leads to ALS disease. Right: the cells with the protein/chaferon (in pink) that manages to prevent the accumulations

fight degenerative diseases

The proteins and mechanisms required to fight the protein accumulations that lead to neurodegenerative diseases have been identified
Opioid and cannabinoid receptors are involved in pain sensation, mood, appetite and memory. Agonists are strong pain relievers: endorphin (red) and tetrahydrocannabinol (green). Illustration: depositphotos.com

New research reveals a brain component that regulates the urge to consume opiates

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Research from the Hebrew University reveals the identity of an area of ​​the brain that can moderate and balance the urge to consume the drug, and therefore may contribute to reducing addiction. The study provides a glimmer of hope that the ongoing battle with opioid addiction can be won

חולטה-השולל בהישולל בהישורים, the true reason for ליירירי הדיור ושיטה הגאוניט ההופקת את מעציעה השולל לעבדים מודריםים

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Chapter nine from the book: "The Free Man - Evolutionary Psychology, Brain Research and Understanding the Mind"

Human services are collapsing: can artificial intelligence be the lifeline?

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Any public service of human help, such as mental health care or care for the elderly collapses. The artificial intelligence that will take over many jobs will leave us with the thing that is perhaps most important to us, the value we find in human effort for the sake of others.
Microglial cells (in green) in the hippocampus region of the brain of an adult mouse, forming contact points with a new neuron (in red)

The biology of depression

Degeneration of the cells of the immune system in the brain may be the biological cause of depression, and there may be substances that can restore these cells - and be antidepressants
Robot brain. Illustration: depositphotos.com

are you a robot A linguistic anthropologist explains how humans are like ChatGPT - they both recycle language

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Epilepsy in children. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Innovative gene therapy may help a severe and fatal developmental epilepsy syndrome that affects children

The research team hopes that the tools developed in this study will pave the way for the development of similar treatments for other rare diseases
Joy to Id. Created using DALEE 2. Definitions - Avi Blizovsky

Things that people know: why are we happy for Eid?

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The proverb "There is no joy like the joy of Eid" arouses the curiosity of Moshe who asks "Really?"
Prof. Hermona Sorek (right). Photo: Yosef Edst, courtesy of the Hebrew University

Breakthrough in Alzheimer's research among women

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Professor Hermona Sorek, one of the world's leading researchers of gene expression in the brain, was able to find, in collaboration with her research colleagues, a molecular mechanism that occurs in the brains of Alzheimer's patients, which does not occur in men and which explains the acceleration of cognitive deterioration in Alzheimer's patients
The theory of queues. Illustration using AI software. Definitions: Avi Blizovsky

All those waiting in line are equal, but some are more equal

At the entrance to the club, on the road and in the emergency room, sometimes the right strategy is to direct some of the waiting people to the fast track
Clusters of microglial cells (in green) and T cells (in red) in the brain of a mouse with MS-like disease (left: general view, right: close-up)

Deaf people with sclerosis

The scientists of the institute have identified the cells in the brain that are responsible for the grace periods of the multiple sclerosis patients. The findings may pave the way for new treatments
Balfour protested. Photo: Avi Blizovsky

Research at Tel Aviv University: The legal revolution creates trauma for its opponents

The first study of its kind in Israel examined the impact of the legal revolution on the mental health of Israeli citizens
oxytocin. Illustration: depositphotos.com

The biology that enables social behavior

Following the oxytocin infusion, men's desire to compete increased more than women's desire to do so
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