News tagged with nervous system

Scientists cultivate human brain's most ubiquitous cell in lab dish

Pity the lowly astrocyte, the most common cell in the human nervous system.

Biology / Biotechnology

created May 22, 2011 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (10) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Zombie ants have fungus on the brain

Tropical carpenter ants (Camponotus leonardi) live high up in the rainforest canopy. When infected by a parasitic fungus (Ophiocordyceps unilateralis) the behaviour of the ants is dramatically changed. They ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 09, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (6) | comments 4 | with audio podcast

Scientists build Parkinson's disease in a dish to study cells' death

Until now, there have been no witnesses to the death of brain cells in people with Parkinson's disease. And like any murder mystery, this has slowed the search for the killer.

Medicine & Health / Medical research

created Apr 05, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 0

'Green' nanoparticles, that may enhance medication delivery and improve MRI performance

Researchers at Harvard-affiliated McLean Hospital have shown a new category of "green" nanoparticles comprised of a non-toxic, protein-based nanotechnology that can non-invasively cross the blood brain barrier and is capable ...

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

created May 02, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Locked down, RNA editing yields odd fly behavior

Because a function of RNA is to be translated as the genetic instructions for the protein-making machinery of cells, RNA editing is the body's way of fine-tuning the proteins it produces, allowing us to adapt. The enzyme ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Apr 24, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Researchers replicate slime mold with brainless amoeboid robot that can move toward an attractant

(PhysOrg.com) -- Takuya Umedachi has been working for several years to build a robot that can replicate the simple actions of the common slime mold, an organism that can move towards something it desires without ...

Electronics / Robotics

created Mar 14, 2012 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (3) | comments 4 | with audio podcast weblog

Neurons from stem cells could replace mice in botulinum test

(PhysOrg.com) -- Using lab-grown human neurons, researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison have devised an effective assay for detecting botulinum neurotoxin, the agent widely used to cosmetically smooth the wrinkles ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Feb 06, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Carbon dioxide affecting fish brains: study

Rising human carbon dioxide emissions may be affecting the brains and central nervous systems of sea fish, with serious consequences for their survival, according to new research.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jan 16, 2012 | popularity 4.1 / 5 (15) | comments 15

Breakthrough model reveals evolution of ancient nervous systems through seashell colors

Determining the evolution of pigmentation patterns on mollusk seashells—which could aid in the understanding of ancient nervous systems—has proved to be a challenging feat for researchers. Now, however, through ...

Biology / Evolution

created Jan 12, 2012 | popularity 3 / 5 (1) | comments 3 | with audio podcast

Scientists uncover new role for gene in maintaining steady weight

Against the backdrop of the growing epidemic of obesity in the United States, scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have made an important new discovery regarding a specific gene that plays ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 23, 2011 | popularity 4.2 / 5 (6) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Optimal modulation of ion channels rescues neurons associated with epilepsy

New research successfully reverses epilepsy-associated pathology by using a sophisticated single-cell modeling paradigm to examine abnormal cell behavior and identify the optimal modulation of channel activity. The study, ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Oct 18, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Glucosamine-like supplement suppresses multiple sclerosis attacks

A glucosamine-like dietary supplement suppresses the damaging autoimmune response seen in multiple sclerosis, according to a UC Irvine study.

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Sep 30, 2011 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (6) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Sea smarts: Scientists studying mollusks discover there is more than one way to make a brain

(PhysOrg.com) -- Seemingly simple animals such as the snail and squid have ransacked the genetic toolkit over the last half billion years to find different ways to build complex brains, nervous systems and shells, according ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Sep 15, 2011 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (9) | comments 4 | with audio podcast

Solar industry responsible for lead emissions in developing countries

Solar power is not all sunshine. It has a dark side -- particularly in developing countries, according to a new study by a University of Tennessee, Knoxville, engineering professor.

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Aug 31, 2011 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (3) | comments 10 | with audio podcast

MS research: Myelin influences how brain cells send signals

The development of a new cell-culture system that mimics how specific nerve cell fibers in the brain become coated with protective myelin opens up new avenues of research about multiple sclerosis. Initial findings suggest ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Jul 21, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Nervous system

The nervous system is a network of specialized cells that communicate information about an organism's surroundings and itself. It processes this information and causes reactions in other parts of the body. It is composed of neurons and other specialized cells called glial cells,(plural form glia), that aid in the function of the neurons. The nervous system is divided broadly into two categories: the peripheral nervous system and the central nervous system. Neurons generate and conduct impulses between and within the two systems. The peripheral nervous system is composed of sensory neurons and the neurons that connect them to the nerve cord, spinal cord and brain, which make up the central nervous system. In response to stimuli, sensory neurons generate and propagate signals to the central nervous system which then processes and conducts signals back to the muscles and glands. The neurons of the nervous systems of animals are interconnected in complex arrangements and use electrochemical signals and neurotransmitters to transmit impulses from one neuron to the next. The interaction of the different neurons form neural circuits regulate an organism's perception of the world and what is going on with its body, thus regulating its behavior. Nervous systems are found in many multicellular animals but differ greatly in complexity between species.

For more information about Nervous system, read the full article at Wikipedia.
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