Posts published in “Neuroscience & Neurology”

In humans, vision is the major channel for receiving information about the world. The same applies to the majority of animals, even those that are nocturnal and have to rely more heavily on the inputs from other senses. There are,…

Addictive behavior is a major global health concern. Addiction is commonly defined as the repetitive use of substances or a repetitive pattern of behaviors that are harmful. It is believed that addiction is a brain disorder, meaning that it is…

Cancer is one of the top leading causes of mortality globally. The growing prevalence of the disease has to do with both our changing environment and longer lifespan. It is said that if all humans lived for 200 years, most…

Falling Through the Cracks in Pain Management Pain and Opioids Chronic pain is debilitating, and it can cause patients to “fall through the cracks”. Health care institutions struggle to find ways to create “nets” and catch these patients. Pain medications…

Color vision is the ability to distinguish different wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation. Color vision relies on a brain perception mechanism that treats light with different wavelengths as different visual stimuli (e.g., colors). Usual color insensitive photoreceptors (the rods in human…

Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin—what unites these three exceptional individuals? It is widely accepted that all three were geniuses, but there is something else. These days, neuroscientists believe that all three suffered from a specific neurological disorder called Asperger’s…

Dyslexia is rather common: it is estimated that around 5-10% of individuals are dyslexic. Despite an apparent disability, some are famous, like Tom Cruise or Richard Branson. Obviously, they do not suffer from a lack of intelligence and are, in…

We all know that the weather can strongly influence our mood and productivity. Many people feel better when the weather is nice and sunny. It is thus not surprising that people more often feel unhappy and depressed in winter. There…

A clear association between depression, especially the major depressive disorder, oxidative stress, and accelerated aging is supported by research. Depression, major depressive disorder more specifically, is one of the most striking problems of modern society. Millions of people worldwide suffer…

Acupuncture is one of the oldest systems of traditional medicine. With roots in China, this medical system is more than 2000 years old. It differs from various other medical systems as it does not involve taking any herbs or substances.…

Although early experiences are important for personal development and future life, as adults we recall nothing or very little of those early formative events, such as making first steps or learning first words. In fact, when adults are asked about…

Chemical weapons keep making headlines these days, be it the use of sarin in Syria or Novichok in the UK. An interesting fact hardly ever covered by the media is that the chemical structure of these compounds is relatively simple.…

Every year, thousands of children are born with neurodevelopmental issues. This is not just about lagging intellectual growth or autism: in fact, many of the psychiatric illnesses in later life have been blamed on neurodevelopmental problems. These conditions are more…

The human brain depends on a constant energy supply, which is needed for proper functioning. Energy supply impairments can jeopardize brain function and even lead to the pathogenesis or progression of neurodegenerative diseases. Chronic disruption of energy causes degradation of cellular…

Have you ever wondered about how an alien’s brain works? What kind of information-processing system they may have and how it may differ from ours? There is no need to look any further. The answers to these questions can be…

Can plants think? We would have confidently said “No!” just a few decades back. But now we know that even plants have specific information-processing abilities, and this comes in the absence of any neurons at all. In fact, some scientific…

Omega fatty acids are well known to be important for the normal functioning of our body. These fatty acids are essential for the formation of the cell membrane. They play a critical role in brain health. In addition, they are…

Too much of anything can be dangerous, and social media is no exception. Today many of us spend more time on internet-enabled devices than even sleeping. Due to this overindulgence in social media and the internet, we may become socially…

A fortunate knock of luck is always welcomed by scientists and researchers, yet any treatment modalities should be novel by design rather than by serendipity. Antidepressants were discovered by chance in the 1950s, and it seems that they suffer from…