(Medical Xpress) — Using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), an international team led by French researchers from the Centre de Recherche de l’Institut du Cerveau (CNRS) has succeeded in enhancing the visual abilities of a group of healthy subjects. Following stimulation of an area of the brain’s right hemisphere involved in perceptual awareness and in orienting spatial attention, the subjects appeared more likely to perceive a target appearing on a screen. This work, published in the journal PLoS ONE, could lead to the development of novel rehabilitation techniques for certain visual disorders. In addition, it could help improve the performance of individuals whose tasks require very high precision.
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Post-stroke depression linked to functional brain impairment
Researchers studying stroke patients have found a strong association between impairments in a network of the brain involved in emotional regulation and the severity of post-stroke depression. Results of the study are published online in the journal Radiology.
Study finds little cognitive benefit from soy supplements for older women
In a new study of the effects of soy supplements for postmenopausal women, researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the USC Keck School of Medicine found no significant differences positive or negative in overall mental abilities between those who took supplements and those who didn’t.
Hands-on research: Neuroscientists show how brain responds to sensual caress
A nuzzle of the neck, a stroke of the wrist, a brush of the kneethese caresses often signal a loving touch, but can also feel highly aversive, depending on who is delivering the touch, and to whom. Interested in how the brain makes connections between touch and emotion, neuroscientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have discovered that the association begins in the brain’s primary somatosensory cortex, a region that, until now, was thought only to respond to basic touch, not to its emotional quality.
Musical study challenges long-held view of left brain-right brain split
(Medical Xpress) — Ever been stuck in traffic when a feel-good song comes on the radio and suddenly your mood lightens?