Research News

A new study led by Stanford Medicine scientists found that certain changes in neural activity predicted which patients would benefit from a type of cognitive behavioral therapy.

Cognitive behavioral therapy, one of the most common treatments for depression, can teach skills for coping with everyday troubles, reinforce healthy behaviors and counter negative thoughts. But can altering thoughts and behaviors lead to lasting changes in the brain?

In a study published in Science, researchers at Karolinska Institutet describe the neural processes behind how morphine relieves pain. This is valuable knowledge because the drug has such serious side effects. 

Morphine is a powerful painkiller that belongs to the group of opioids. It blocks signals in the pain pathways and also increases feelings of pleasure.  Morphine acts on several central and peripheral pain pathways in the body, but the neural processes behind the pain relief have not previously been fully understood.  

Certain types of gut bacteria can hinder the efficacy of the rotavirus vaccine, according to researchers in the Institute for Biomedical Sciences at Georgia State University.

A unique influenza vaccine candidate that’s inhaled and based on technology developed by University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers is safe and could bolster protection against seasonal and pandemic influenza for people vulnerable to severe disease when they receive it in addition to the annual flu shot.