Valerie J. Marallano, PhD Valerie J. Marallano, PhD

Oxygen: We Need It, But Cancer Doesn’t!?

Most of our cells require oxygen to function. Cancer cells have found a way around this. How do they do it, and could we weaponize oxygen against them?

Read More
Megha Padubidri Megha Padubidri

Sleepy Days & Sleepless Nights

In the book ‘The Mysterious Benedict Society’ by Trenton L. Stewart, the very mysterious Mr. Benedict suffers from a condition called narcolepsy. He can fall asleep at any time – while walking down stairs, making an omelet, and even while shaving – and he cannot control when he falls asleep! In the book, Mr. Benedict tells us that these sleep attacks are sometimes caused by strong emotions – either good or bad. What do neuroscientists know about narcolepsy?

Read More
Chinonso Nwakama Chinonso Nwakama

Buying Us Time: The Search for Neuro Biomarkers

If we do unfortunately happen to fall sick, doctors need to be able to determine how serious our illness is. Biomarkers do this by serving as a window into our bodies. For a complex organ like our brain, searching for biomarkers can improve the treatment potential and diagnosis of neurological diseases.

Read More
Maya Ramachandran Maya Ramachandran

Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, ‘Mind Matters’

We all know what an orchestra looks like. There is a conductor who coordinates instruments from different families to produce a symphony. If our brain is like an orchestra, each cell is a different instrument, and the music is a thought or emotion. So who conducts the brain’s orchestra?

Read More
Emma Hays Emma Hays

5 Women of Color Who Changed How We Think About the Brain

Close your eyes and picture a scientist. Are you imagining an older white man with crazy hair in a lab coat, something like Albert Einstein? Well, there certainly have been scientists that look like him, but there have also been many brilliant female scientists and medical professionals of color whose discoveries and work are just as important.

Read More
Trevonn Gyles Trevonn Gyles

Protect your Noggin!

Helmets serve as crucial safeguards for our brains, shielding them from concussions and traumatic brain injuries (TBI). While the idea of not wearing a helmet might seem tempting at times, especially when you're in a rush or want to feel the wind in your hair, the risks far outweigh any momentary convenience or thrill. Without a helmet, you're exposing yourself to significant danger. A single fall or collision could result in a traumatic brain injury or even death. The consequences of such an injury can be life-altering, affecting not only your physical health but also your cognitive abilities, emotions, and quality of life.

Read More
Ananya Parthasarathy Ananya Parthasarathy

The Immune System Protects the Brain by Staying Away

The human immune system has many different cell types that patrol our bodies constantly and keep us healthy. The brain is a particularly important organ for human functioning - does this mean there are thousands of immune cells monitoring every nook and cranny of our wrinkly brains? Not exactly.

Read More
Emilie Castranio Emilie Castranio

Should you get genetic testing for your APOE isoform?

Genetic testing is becoming more widely available, and certain commercially available at-home kits offer to test for the APOE gene, which influences your risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Here we discuss what is APOE, its role in AD and whether you should also consider getting tested to know your APOE isoform.

Read More
Michelle Kim Michelle Kim

The unsung heroes of neuroscience research

So many discoveries about the brain have been found in animals like mice, rats, and monkeys. Why do neuroscientists work with animals, and what kinds of questions about the brain can animals help us answer?

Read More
Swathi Suresh Swathi Suresh

Synesthesia - What does blue taste like to you?

Synesthesia is a blending of sensory perception, like ‘tasting’ color, or ‘seeing’ sound. Since its discovery in the 1800’s, about sixty types of visual, auditory, or other synesthesia have been discovered. This blog post explores what synesthesia is, and some brain mechanisms to explain this strange phenomenon.

Read More
Emma Hays Emma Hays

Check your pipes: the sewage system of the brain

Your brain is full of trash—and I don’t mean the details of every episode of the new season of Love is Blind or the latest trend on TikTok. More like the debris from dead cells and broken-down proteins. How do our bodies clear it out so that our brains don’t end up looking like New York City sidewalks? Turns out, a sophisticated network of channels helps to extract and drain waste from brain tissue, almost like pipes in a sewer system.

Read More