Cognition

ATP11B-YAP Axis Linked Iron Transport to Cognitive Decline in Aging Mice

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ATP11B-YAP Axis Linked Iron Transport to Cognitive Decline in Aging Mice

TL;DR: A 2026 mouse and cell study in Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy linked ATP11B, a phospholipid-flipping transport protein, to hippocampal iron handling, mitochondrial failure, ferroptosis, and age-related cognitive decline. Key Findings ATP11B fell with brain aging: Older mice showed lower blood-brain-barrier tight-junction markers and ATP11B emerged from integrated aging, endothelial-cell, and transport-gene analyses. ATP11B …

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DLPFC tDCS Improved MoCA and Depression Scores in Chemo-Brain Case Report

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DLPFC tDCS Improved MoCA and Depression Scores in Chemo-Brain Case Report

TL;DR: A 2026 study in Journal of Medical Case Reports described a 71-year-old breast-cancer survivor whose Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), a cognitive screening test, increased from 16 to 20 and whose 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), a depression-symptom questionnaire, decreased from 8 to 2 after 12 sessions of left DLPFC, a prefrontal executive-control region, transcranial …

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Social Cognition Deficits After Brain Injury Involved Distributed Networks

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Social Cognition Deficits After Brain Injury Involved Distributed Networks

TL;DR: A 2026 systematic review in Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience found that stroke and traumatic brain injury populations showed consistent social cognition alterations across domains, while insula, cingulate cortex, middle frontal gyrus, and corpus callosum were repeatedly implicated. Key Findings Study type: a PRISMA-guided systematic review of social cognition domains after stroke and traumatic …

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Singing Mouse Orofacial Motor Cortex Showed 2.8-Fold and 3.3-Fold Expansion of Projections to Auditory Cortex and PAG

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Singing Mouse Orofacial Motor Cortex Showed 2.8-Fold and 3.3-Fold Expansion of Projections to Auditory Cortex and PAG

TL;DR: A 2026 mouse study in Nature mapped more than 76,000 single-neuron projections from the orofacial motor cortex (OMC) and found that Alston’s singing mouse, which produces audible song, has 2.8-fold higher OMC connectivity to an auditory cortical region and 3.3-fold higher OMC connectivity to the midbrain periaqueductal grey (PAG) than the laboratory mouse. Key …

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A Specific Serotonergic Brain Circuit Produced Tinnitus-Like Behavior in Mice and Explains SSRI-Tinnitus Reports

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A Specific Serotonergic Brain Circuit Produced Tinnitus-Like Behavior in Mice and Explains SSRI-Tinnitus Reports

TL;DR: A 2026 study in PNAS from Oregon Health & Science University and Anhui University used optogenetics in mice to map a specific serotonin-producing brain circuit that runs straight to the auditory system, showed that activating this circuit produced tinnitus-like behavior, and traced a likely mechanism for why some patients on SSRI antidepressants report worsened …

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SenseCheQ Home Nerve Testing Tracked Chemotherapy Neuropathy Signals

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SenseCheQ Home Nerve Testing Tracked Chemotherapy Neuropathy Signals

TL;DR: A 2026 preprint in medRxiv reported that SenseCheQ, a home quantitative sensory testing device, produced reliable vibration and temperature-threshold measurements in 30 healthy adults and tracked early sensory changes in 3 breast cancer patients receiving neurotoxic chemotherapy. Key Findings 30-person home study: Healthy adults completed one familiarization session and three self-administered home sessions using …

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Seasonal Circadian Disruption May Increase Driver Drowsiness and Crash Risk

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Seasonal Circadian Disruption May Increase Driver Drowsiness and Crash Risk

TL;DR: A 2026 scoping review in Sleep Science linked seasonal timing, daylight exposure, daylight saving time (DST), sleep-wake rhythm disruption, and driver drowsiness to traffic-crash risk, but found that few studies directly integrate seasonality with chronobiology in one model. Key Findings 1,758 records screened: The scoping review used PRISMA-ScR methods and screened 1,758 records before …

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Post-Stroke Aphasia Theory of Mind Performance Tracked Vascular Brain Health

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Post-Stroke Aphasia Theory of Mind Performance Tracked Vascular Brain Health

TL;DR: A 2026 medRxiv preprint found that nonverbal Theory of Mind (ToM), the ability to infer another person’s beliefs or perspective, varied in 44 adults with post-stroke aphasia and was more closely tied to vascular brain-health markers than to aphasia severity. Key Findings Study group: 44 adults with aphasia after mostly left-hemisphere stroke completed 2 …

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Natural Images and White Noise Changed What People Saw in Pareidolia

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Natural Images and White Noise Changed What People Saw in Pareidolia

TL;DR: A 2026 Scientific Reports study found that natural images and white noise images produced similar amounts of pareidolia, but they shifted what people thought they saw. Key Findings Healthy adult sample: The study included 81 participants who viewed ambiguous images and drew every illusory object, face, figure, or pattern they perceived. Equal quantity: The …

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