BrainASAP

Trauma Cues Increased Substance Craving via Negative Affect in Meta-Analysis

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Trauma Cues Increased Substance Craving via Negative Affect in Meta-Analysis

TL;DR: A 2026 meta-analysis in European Journal of Psychotraumatology found that trauma cues increased substance craving in trauma-exposed people who use substances, and the strongest pathway ran through cue-triggered negative affect. Key Findings 32 studies: Researchers synthesized trauma cue-reactivity studies from 21 unique datasets. Craving increased with trauma cues: Trauma reminders produced higher craving than …

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Problematic Gaming Linked to Lower Working Memory, Not Recreational Play

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Problematic Gaming Linked to Lower Working Memory, Not Recreational Play

TL;DR: A 2025 study in Computers in Human Behavior linked at-risk problematic gaming to weaker basic working memory, while recreational gaming was linked to better target detection on an attention-control task. Key Findings Three gaming groups: Researchers compared 114 adults who were non-gamers, recreational gamers, or gamers at risk for gaming disorder. Working memory was …

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Prion Disease Models Linked Delayed UPR to Toxic Protein Spread

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Prion Disease Models Linked Delayed UPR to Toxic Protein Spread

TL;DR: A 2026 modeling study in Journal of Mathematical Biology found that delayed unfolded protein response (UPR), a cellular stress program that slows protein production, could make toxic prion protein either die out, persist, or oscillate as it spreads through a brain-connectome model. Key Findings The model tracked PrPC and PrPSc: Researchers modeled normal cellular …

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Psychomotor Retardation in Depression Linked to Parkinson’s Risk

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Psychomotor Retardation in Depression Linked to Parkinson's Risk

TL;DR: A 2026 medRxiv preprint found psychomotor retardation, meaning slowed movement, speech, and thinking during depression, was linked to higher later Parkinson’s diagnosis risk in 6,327 London mental-health records. Key Findings Psychomotor retardation was common: Among 6,327 people with depression at age 40 or older, 2,402 patients, or 38.0%, had psychomotor retardation documented in records. …

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9 Hours or Less of Night Sleep Linked to Higher Preschool Anxiety Scores

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9 Hours or Less of Night Sleep Linked to Higher Preschool Anxiety Scores

TL;DR: A 2026 cross-sectional study in Nature and Science of Sleep linked 9 hours or less of nighttime sleep with higher parent-rated anxiety scores in 1,589 preschool children in China, but the design can show association rather than prove that shorter sleep caused the symptoms. Key Findings 1,589 preschoolers: Researchers analyzed parent questionnaires from two …

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Exercise Before CBT Linked to Higher Depression Remission in Pilot Trial

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Exercise Before CBT Linked to Higher Depression Remission in Pilot Trial

TL;DR: A 2026 randomized pilot trial in the Journal of Affective Disorders found that 30 minutes of moderate exercise before cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for major depressive disorder was linked to stronger therapy-process measures and higher exploratory remission than quiet rest before CBT. Key Findings Forty adults with major depressive disorder were randomized: Nineteen received …

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Evidence Accumulation Predicted Cigarette and Cannabis Use

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Evidence Accumulation Predicted Cigarette and Cannabis Use

TL;DR: A 2026 study in Neuropsychopharmacology found that decision-making measures from a stop-signal task, especially evidence accumulation, predicted cigarette and cannabis use better than stop-signal reaction time (SSRT), a common estimate of response inhibition. Key Findings More than 1,000 young adults: The analysis used IMAGEN cohort stop-signal task data from 1,256 participants at age 19 …

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NeuroMark SPECT Linked Depression Symptoms to Brain Network Patterns

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NeuroMark SPECT Linked Depression Symptoms to Brain Network Patterns

TL;DR: A 2026 medRxiv preprint used single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), a brain blood-flow imaging method, and a 68-component NeuroMark template to link depression-related symptoms with frontal, subcortical, cerebellar, salience, and visual network patterns across several psychiatric groups. Key Findings Large imaging pool: Researchers analyzed 2,743 patient SPECT scans with clinical data plus 76 …

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Gamma Neuromodulation Linked to Schizophrenia and Depression Symptom Gains

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Gamma Neuromodulation Linked to Schizophrenia and Depression Symptom Gains

TL;DR: A 2026 systematic review and meta-analysis posted to medRxiv found that gamma-frequency non-invasive brain stimulation was linked to symptom improvement in schizophrenia and depressive-symptom reduction in major depressive disorder, but the evidence was heterogeneous and still preprint-level. Key Findings 56 controlled studies were included across schizophrenia, major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, and autism spectrum …

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COVID Neurocognitive Recovery Improved After Alpha/Delta and Omicron

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COVID Neurocognitive Recovery Improved After Alpha/Delta and Omicron

TL;DR: A 2026 study in Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment followed 55 adults after mild-to-moderate COVID-19 and found that neurocognitive test performance improved over time after both Alpha/Delta-era and Omicron-era infections. Key Findings 55-person longitudinal sample: Researchers compared 28 Alpha/Delta-era participants with 27 Omicron-era participants after mild-to-moderate COVID-19. Initial cognitive findings: About half of each group …

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