Neurology

Molecule produced during exercise boosts brain health
Research has shown that exercise is good for the brain. Now investigators have identified a molecule called irisin that is produced in the brain during endurance exercise and has neuroprotective effects. Researchers were able to artificially increase the levels of irisin in the blood to activate genes involved in learning and memory. The findings, published online October 10 in the Cell Press journal Cell Metabolism, may be useful for designing drugs that utilize this exercise-induced molecule to guard against neurodegenerative diseases and improve cognition in the aging population. MedicalXpress See also: PubMed for irisin

EEG Can Tell One Type of ADHD From Another (CME/CE)
Brain wave patterns from an electroencephalogram (EEG) were able to differentiate between two subtypes of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), researchers found.

Teens ages 12 to 17 were asked to perform tasks on a computer that involved perceiving a visual stimulus that would then trigger brain regions involved in decision making, which in turn led to physical action -- pressing a button, according to Ali Mazaheri, PhD, an assistant professor at the Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, and colleagues at the University of California Davis, who published the study online in the journal Biological Psychiatry. MedPage Today

A silent epidemic: Minor traumatic brain injury
In the United States, approximately 1.4 million people suffer a traumatic brain injury (TBI) each year. Of those injuries, three out of four are minor TBI (mTBI)—a head injury that causes a temporary change in mental status including confusion, an altered level of consciousness, or perceptual or behavioral impairments.

According to a literature review appearing in the October 2013 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS), falls and motor vehicle accidents are responsible for most cases of mTBI and also are a common cause of bone and joint injuries. "Musculoskeletal injuries are often seen concurrently with some studies estimating that 50 percent of patients with orthopaedic injuries also sustain a mTBI," says lead study author Richard L. Uhl, MD, an orthopaedic surgeon at Albany Medical Center in Albany, N.Y. Eurekalert!

Sticks and stones: Brain releases natural painkillers during social rejection, U-M study finds
"This is the first study to peer into the human brain to show that the opioid system is activated during social rejection," says Hsu, a research assistant professor of psychiatry. "In general, opioids have been known to be released during social distress and isolation in animals, but where this occurs in the human brain has not been shown until now." Eurekalert!