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Neuroscience
Brain stimulation decreases intent to commit assault
Research from Penn Medicine and the Criminology department shows that using minimally invasive electrical currents on the prefrontal cortex can reduce the desire to carry out such violence and increase the perception that it’s morally wrong.
Uncovering the biological basis of aesthetics
The new Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics, led by Anjan Chatterjee, will investigate the neural activity that dictates aesthetic experiences and choices
Sharing space to support ‘better science’
Across disciplines, Penn researchers in the Computational Neuroscience Initiative put their heads together to better understand the brain.
Bioengineer takes big step forward in radical approach to treating neurodegeneration
Research by D. Kacy Cullen, an associate professor of neurosurgery in the Perelman School of Medicine, could aid patients with neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson’s disease.
Oxytocin, vasopressin flatten social hierarchy and synchronize behaviors
Findings from a study of male rhesus macaques from PIK professor Michael Platt and postdoc Yaoguang Jiang could lead to treatment options for social impairments in disorders like autism and schizophrenia.
Addressing unseen scars of a traumatic brain injury head on
Research at Penn Med explores the lasting effect of traumatic brain injuries on the nervous system to expand how we understand physical injury to the brain and behavior.
Risk tolerance linked to amygdala and prefrontal cortex brain regions
New research links willingness to take risks to brain structure and function, specifically the amygdala, the prefrontal cortex, and connections between the two.
Being hungry shuts off perception of chronic pain
Finding food is a necessary survival skill, but so is avoiding pain. Research led by J. Nicholas Betley and postdoctoral researcher Amber Alhadeff showed that being hungry activates a neural pathway that inhibits the sensing and responding to chronic pain. The findings offer up new targets for treating pain.
Researchers prove that timed brain stimulation improves memory
Performance can be enhanced by as much as 15 percent, according to a study by Penn neuroscientists published in Nature Communications. It is the first time such a connection has been made.
Researcher awarded Swartz Fellowship to investigate mechanisms of learning and memory
Gaia Tavoni, a postdoctoral fellow of the Computational Neuroscience Initiative, has been named a Swartz Foundation Fellow for Theory in Neuroscience for her research proposal suggesting pathways to investigate the brain mechanisms involved in learning and memory.
In the News
Financial Times
How Brain Science Found Its Way into Business School
Wharton professor Michael Platt discussed the effect of neuroscience on the “future of business education.”
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Scicasts
'Epigenetic Landscape' Is Protective in Normal Aging, Impaired in Alzheimer's Disease, Says Study
Shelley Berger, Nancy Bonini, and Brad Johnson, of the Perelman School of Medicine co-authored a study profiling the “epigenetic landscape” of human brains with Alzheimer’s disease.
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