Brain Ponderings podcast with Dr. Mark Mattson

Psychologist Richard Petty has been investigating the determinants of people's attitudes, and the situational and individual difference factors responsible for changes in beliefs, attitudes and behaviors. In this episode I talk with Professor Petty about the factors contributing to the recent spike in anti-science attitudes with a focus on identity politics and internet information bubbles. We als...

The neural cells in the retina of the eye capture and processes two-dimensional images of our world and send impulses via the optic nerve to the visual cortex where perception of the images occurs. Jeremy Nathans of Johns Hopkins University identified the genes encoding the light-sensitive proteins (opsins) in rod and cone photoreceptors and the molecular basis of color vision. He has made major c...

Among the more than 8 million species of animals one kills upwards of 600,000 people every year, most of which are children. By transferring an infectious agent into a human's blood female Anopheles gambiae mosquitos cause malaria. Here Chris Potter at Johns Hopkins University talks about his research that is revealing how the nervous system of mosquitos senses the presence of a human and decides...

The structure of neuronal networks is remarkably complex and dynamic. Professor Shelley Halpain has been at the forefront of research aimed at understanding how the brain's "neuroarchitecture" is established during development and changes in response to synaptic activity (neuroplasticity). Here she talks about the 'cytoskeleton' of neurons which consists of dynamic protein polymers of actin (micro...

Not only are obesity, insulin resistance, and chronic stress bad for peripheral organ systems but they can also wreak havoc on neuronal networks in the brain.   Here Professor Larry Reagan talks about research showing that insulin acts directly on neurons in the brain and thereby plays important roles in synaptic plasticity and learning and memory. Neurons become unresponsive to insulin in obesity...

Marten Scheffer is a Dutch mathematician and ecologist who has made major contributions to modeling of complex systems. While he is best known for his work on catastrophic shifts in ecosystems and climate, he has more recently been applying dynamical systems theory to major brain-based problems of individual brains (e.g., belief traps and mental illness) and societies (e.g., inequality and fragili...

Despite many advances in neuroscience the fundamental question of how brains make computations is as yet unanswered.   Progress has been hindered by the inabilities to monitor activities of large numbers of neurons during natural behaviors and to determine the structures and synaptic connections of all neurons involved in circuits mediating computations. Recent progress towards overcoming these hu...

Olfaction, the most primitive of our senses, enables our brains to perceive thousands of different airborne chemicals. But it is not known how the outside olfactory world is coded in neuronal networks in the brain nor how those codes are evaluated in ways that result in behavioral responses to specific odors. Professor Bob Datta's laboratory at Harvard is developing and using cutting-edge technolo...

In 2011 and 2014 Tony Wyss-Coray and his lab members published high-profile papers in which they used a procedure called parabiosis and blood transfusions to show that blood plasma from young animals can rejuvenate the brains of old mice and vice-versa. Moreover, they found that young plasma restores cognitive function in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. Since then many other labs have confir...

The environment and experiences of caregivers can affect the development of social skills in the infants they care for in ways that can result in enduring changes in behavior patterns. In this episode neuroscientist Maya Opendak at Johns Hopkins University talks about her research using experimental models of deprivation and adversity which is shedding light on the brain circuits altered by depriv...

Professor Cynthia Moss has been studying the neurobiology of bat echolocation for more than three decades. Psychologist Daniel Kish became blind during the first year of his life and learned use echolocation to guide himself as he walks or rides a bike. Daniel is the founder of World Access For Blind and has devoted his life to enabling people with blindness excel in all aspects of life. In this e...

Jean Lud Cadet is a neurologist and neuroscientist at the National Institute on Drug Abuse whose research is revealing why some people become addicted to methamphetamine while others do not, and how methamphetamine can damage and kill neurons resulting in long-lasting or even permanent impairments of learning and memory. His recent findings suggest that methamphetamine can cause enduring alteratio...

Approximately 30% of people who are infected with COVID will experience long-lasting symptoms of impaired brain function including reduced ability to concentrate, impaired memory, confusion, depression and chronic fatigue.   These problems often last for many months beyond the time at which the SARS-CoV2 virus is no longer detectable in their nasal passages or blood. In this podcast Professor Dani...

Harvard neuroscientist Michael Ferguson's research is revealing the brain's neuronal networks that mediate religious experiences and spirituality.   In this podcast he talks about his findings from functional brain imaging studies of devout Mormons and of people who exhibited profound changes in religiosity after having a brain injury resulting from surgery or accident.   I talk with him about the...

Most of us have a clear sense of morality. We can distinguish behaviors that are right or appropriate from those that are wrong or inappropriate. We feel empathy for people in distress and feel guilt and remorse when our actions hurt others. However, research in psychiatry and psychology has shown approximately 1 in every 100 adults exhibit pathological immoral behaviors – a.k.a. "Psychopathy".  ...

Approximately one in every fifty children is affected by autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and will require extra help from parents, teachers, and health professionals to reach their full potential.   Professor Matthew State, a psychiatrist and geneticist at the University of California San Francisco has made major contributions to the current understanding of the factors that determine whether or no...

Language pervades our lives. The ability to speak has allowed our species to pass knowledge between generations, articulate complex ideas, and build societies. How did brains evolve to enable this remarkable means of communication? Professor Erich Jarvis at Rockefeller University is using cutting edge technologies in neuroscience and genetics to provide answers to this question. In this podcast he...

Professors Steve Roper and Nirupa Chaudhari at the University of Miami School of Medicine are pioneers in research on taste buds and the neurobiology of taste. The sense of taste evolved in ways that maximized the consumption of high energy foods while minimizing the consumption of potentially toxic chemicals in plants. Foods contain chemicals that interact with certain receptor proteins on the su...

Links: Lecture by Professor Herbison: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ooMDuS6MDk Review articles:. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4785901/pdf/rstb20150115.pdf https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.proxy1.library.jhu.edu/doi/pdf/10.1111/jne.13024 Recent original research articles. https://www.cell.com/action/showPdf?pii=S2211-1247%2822%2901813-7 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PM...

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the most common type of motoneuron disease and is characterized by progressive weakness and wasting of muscles. Most people with ALS will die within 3 years of the onset of symptoms. Professor Kevin Talbot of Oxford University has devoted his career to advancing an understanding of what goes wrong in ALS with the goal of discovering how it might be prevented...

Approximately one in every 4 Americans suffer from insufficient sleep which not only results in daytime tiredness and suboptimal brain function and an increased risk for depression, cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer's disease.  In this episode Professor Ted Abel, Director of the Iowa Neurosciences Institute, talks about the adverse effects of sleep deprivation on neuronal circuits in the hippoca...

Klaus Miczek was born in Germany during World War II and grew up in Berlin where carnage from bombings were seen every day. Perhaps because of this profound example of the violence of the human species he became a neuroscientist whose research was aimed at understanding the neurobiology of aggression and violence with a goal of developing ways to reduce violent behaviors. Dr. Miczek is an endowed...

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common autoimmune neurological disorder currently afflicting more than 1 million Americans. The disease begins early in life and typically manifests as intermittent periods of remission and relapse. Symptoms of MS - numbness, weakness, and vision problems – result  from loss of insulation of the axons of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. In this episode...

Professor Ann Mckee has spent untold hours looking at the brains of former NFL players under the microscope.  She has found that nearly all of them exhibit abnormalities characterized by the presence of multiple islands of degenerating neurons surrounding small blood vessels. The affected neurons contain an abnormal (hyperphosphorylated) form of the protein Tau. The severity of the brain pathology...

Neuronal networks in the prefrontal cortex mediate our thoughts and control our actions and emotions.  Professor Amy Arnsten of Yale University talks about the research that has established the normal functions of prefrontal cortex neuronal circuits and how dysregulation of those neuronal circuits can result in depression, schizophrenia or Alzheimer's disease.  The conversation revolves around a p...