City of Hope-led study demystifies tumor formation’s two-step process — a foundational understanding needed to prevent cancer
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Updates every hour. Last Updated: 8-Sep-2025 21:11 ET (9-Sep-2025 01:11 GMT/UTC)
By watching the ebb and flow of the brain’s chemical signals, researchers are beginning to disentangle the molecular mechanisms underlying the intrinsic motivation to learn. In a new study of zebra finches published in Nature, researchers show that a hit a dopamine tells baby birds when their song practice is paying off. The findings suggest that dopamine acts like an internal “compass” to steer their learning when external incentives are absent.
A drug typically prescribed for arthritis halts brain-damaging seizures in mice that have a condition like epilepsy, according to researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. If the drug proves viable for human patients, it would be the first to provide lasting relief from seizures even after they stopped taking it.