How does our brain switch between different behaviors? A current study has now provided the first answers to this key question in neuroscience. Using mice, the researchers investigated electrical activity in a certain area within the brain. Results were then analyzed with the help of an adaptive computer algorithm. This artificial intelligence identified a type of typical fingerprint in the signals. Analyzing this signal allowed researchers to predict which behavior the animals would switch to next, two seconds before they actually made the change. The results have now been published in the journal Nature Neuroscience.*
Accurate climate data is immensely important for climate change predictions and modeling. Using a unique climate data set of 170 stations, mainly from the mountains of Tanzania including Kilimanjaro, Dr. Andreas Hemp, researcher at the Chair of Plant Systematics at the University of Bayreuth, shows that the commonly used data sets are inaccurate. Hemp shows which data is more suitable in a recent publication in the journal PLOS ONE.
TREM2, a receptor on the surface of macrophages, could play an important role in atherosclerosis A publication in Nature Cardiovascular Research from the University Hospital Würzburg (UKW) and the Medical University of Vienna investigates the mechanisms by which the receptor TREM2 affects atherosclerosis and a possible therapeutic approach using an agonistic TREM2 antibody.
Ancient genomes show that the main genetic variant responsible for fatty liver diseases dates back to beyond the split from Neanderthals, where it reached 100% frequency, perhaps due to advantages in cold adaptation.
The Bayreuth plant ecologists Prof Dr Steven Higgins and Dr Timo Conradi argue in favour of interpreting the coming climatic changes from the perspective of plants in order to better assess the risks of climate change for ecosystems. If information on the physiological reactions of plant species to changing temperatures, soil water content and atmospheric CO2 concentrations is taken into account, the consequences of climate change for ecosystems can be better predicted. They report this in a recent article in the scientific journal "Nature Ecology & Evolution".
Prof. Dr. Grit Hein from the University Hospital Würzburg (UKW) has shared insights into the transmission of empathy in a study published the journal PNAS. Observational learning processes influence the degree to which an individual empathizes with another person's pain. Thus, empathy can be acquired or lost through environmental influences.
Immune cells must learn not to attack the body itself. A team of researchers from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU) has discovered a previously unknown mechanism behind this: other immune cells, the B cells, contribute to the "training" of the T cells in the thymus gland. If this process fails, autoimmune diseases can develop. The study confirms this for Neuromyelitis optica, a disease similar to Multiple Sclerosis. Other autoimmune diseases may be linked to the failure of this new mechanism as well.
Treating knee joint defects with cartilage from the nose: The University Hospital in Würzburg is working on the approval of this procedure. They received funding of 2.3 million euros for this purpose. Dr. Sarah Nietzer and Associate Professor Dr. Oliver Pullig are responsible for both projects at the Department of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, in which the production of autologous cartilage tissue from the nose is to be established for the regeneration of cartilage defects in the knee.
Researchers at the University of Regensburg, led by Professor Dr. Burkhard König, Institute of Organic Chemistry, have developed a new synthesis method: Light reaction on a water surface allows chemical syntheses without the use of organic solvents or other reaction additives. This makes the production of chemical products more efficient and environmentally friendly. The results of years of research have now been published in the internationally renowned journal Science.
Desert ants find their way during an early learning phase with the help of the Earth's magnetic field. The associated learning process leaves clear traces in their nervous system. This is shown in a new study by a Würzburg research team.
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