Inducing seizures to stop seizures

Cortical stimulation-induced seizures have the potential to guide epilepsy surgery, significantly reducing hospital stays

Surgery is the only way to stop seizures in 30 per cent of patients with focal drug-resistant epilepsy. A new study finds that inducing seizures before surgery may be a convenient and cost-effective way to determine the brain region where seizures are coming from.

Neuro researchers receive early-career grants

Adrien Peyrache and Stuart Trenholm will study epilepsy and vision

Using sleep disorder to predict Parkinson’s disease

Large international study will help select and categorize patients for better clinical trials

A large multi-centre study of more than 1,200 patients provides important predictors of Parkinson’s disease progression, which will allow better candidate selection for clinical trials and more effective therapy development.

The unexpected creates reward when listening to music

Scientists prove difference between expected/actual outcomes cause reward response

If you love it when a musician strikes that unexpected but perfect chord, you are not alone. New research shows the musically unexpected activates the reward centre of our brains, and makes us learn about the music as we listen.

The Neuro gets Canada’s first whole-body 7T MRI

Scanner will deliver clear images of the nervous system in exceptional detail

Scientists will see the human nervous system in microscopic detail thanks to the installation of Canada’s first 7-Tesla whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner on Feb. 5.

Dopamine and reward responses to music causally linked

A new study published in the prestigious Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, reveals a causal link between the neurotransmitter dopamine and the reward responses to music. The study was conducted by an international team including researchers from the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital of McGill University, the University of Barcelona, and the Hospital de Sant Pau of Barcelona.

Gut hormone increases response to food

Ghrelin promotes conditioning to food-related odours

Stigma impairs cognition in men living with HIV

Reducing stigma may address cognitive impairment in this population

A new study has drawn a direct link between the amount of stigma men with HIV report experiencing and their scores on cognitive tests, measuring abilities such as memory and attention.

ALS researcher receives important grant

A researcher from the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital (The Neuro) is one of eight scientists to receive a grant this year from the ALS Society of Canada.

Brain tumour awareness week

Providing excellent care and the latest research to help patients

The Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada estimates that 27 Canadians a day are diagnosed with a brain tumour and 55,000 are living with one. This Brain Tumour Awareness Week we recognize the toll this disease takes on patients and the work being done to improve their quality of life.

Brain cancer fundraiser leads to important discovery

Brain cancer begins in stem cells, targeting them may prevent tumour growth

Researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital (The Neuro) have found an exciting new way of treating brain cancer.

Late stage brain cancer cells are heterogeneous — they differ down to the molecular level. This makes developing treatments at this stage difficult, because a drug that may be effective against one cell may not be effective against another.

Disease causing mutation found in French-Canadians

Carriers at higher risk of developing neurodegenerative disease

A team of Canadian scientists, including researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital (The Neuro) has discovered the first French-Canadian founder mutation gene linked to synucleinopathies, a group of neurodegenerative diseases that includes Parkinson’s disease (PD), dementia with Lewy-Bodies (DLB) and multiple system atrophy (MSA).

New insight into aging

Plasticity is enhanced but dysregulated in the aging brain

They say you can’t teach old dogs new tricks, but new research shows you can teach an old rat new sounds, even if the lesson doesn’t stick very long.

The link between obesity, the brain, and genetics

When it comes to weight gain, the problem may be mostly in our heads, and our genes

Clinicians should consider how the way we think can make us vulnerable to obesity, and how obesity is genetically intertwined with brain structure and mental performance, according to new research.

Happy Birthday Brenda!

Scientist Brenda Milner, born in 1918, pioneered memory research

Pioneering neuropsychologist Brenda Milner turns 100 today. Milner made groundbreaking discoveries in the field of human memory.