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A beloved news anchor who passed away last week died from a brain aneurysm, it has been revealed. Ana Orsini's death was announced on Monday night by CBS affiliate KOLD News13 co-anchors Tyler Butler and Carsyn Currier. The 28-year-old was remembered for her 'funny', vibrant personality as Currier broke down in tears while sharing the tragic news. 'Our beloved friend and co-anchor Ana Orsini passed away unexpectedly last week,' Butler began. 'Ana had been here at 13 News since June of 2023', Currier added, struggling to hold back tears. 'We are devastated by this loss.' The TV host was so...

Researchers have found that incorporating specific nutrients into a regular diet may reduce iron buildup in the brain—a factor associated with cognitive decline in normal aging. In this project, researchers specifically looked at non-heme iron, which is critical for brain health. This type of iron does not bind with storage proteins and, with age and in excess, can contribute to oxidative stress, potentially affecting neuronal integrity and cognition. Excessive brain iron has been linked to poor cognitive performance, even in normal aging. "Despite mounting evidence connecting iron overload to negative cognitive outcomes, there are currently no established methods for reducing...

Joe Biden on Wednesday delivered remarks at the White House Conference on Women’s Health Research. Biden told the attendees that doctors opened up the top of his head twice and couldn’t find a brain. Joe Biden had multiple brain surgeries in the 1980s after suffering two brain aneurysms. “I have been a beneficiary of a lot of the research that’s been done. I had two cranial aneurysms; I had two nine-hour operations — they took the top of my head off twice and couldn’t find a brain the first time.” WATCH:

Healing the gut may be the key to improving long-term recovery in stroke patients, scientists have found. The team demonstrated how a drug that was effective at protecting the brain in the immediate aftermath of a stroke failed to prevent long-term cognitive impairment when applied only to the brain. The same drug, when applied to the gut, reduced impairment significantly. What happens in the gut after a stroke? Within mere moments of a stroke, patients experience a cascade of symptoms, many of which are immediately apparent, Sohrabji said. Less apparent, is the damage being done to key structures in the...

Kelly Powers, a commentator on Fox News, died this week from brain cancer. Powers was 45 years old. An obituary posted online for Powers called her “a brave and beautiful soul who could make friends anywhere she went.” The former surgeon and medical expert was a regular commentator on the network and a guest on programs like “Red Eye” and “Fox and Friends.” In 2020, she was diagnosed with Glioblastoma, a severe form of brain cancer, according to a GoFundMe page set up for her family. After three brain surgeries, multiple rounds of radiation, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy, her cancer returned...

If you’re looking to boost brain health, a common supplement that’s sold on Amazon and at stores like Walgreens, Walmart, and GNC could help fight symptoms of dementia and Alzheimer’s. Ginkgo biloba extract — known as the “brain herb” — stems from dried leaves of the ginkgo biloba tree, which is native to East Asia and one of the world’s oldest living tree species. Rooted in traditional Chinese medicine, the popular supplement may alleviate dementia symptoms by enhancing cognitive function and memory. “The extract from the ginkgo biloba tree may increase blood flow to the brain and improve brain functions...

Researchers have discovered a promising approach for reducing brain injury risk in patients undergoing carotid artery stenting (CAS). CAS is a procedure commonly performed in elderly patients with blockages in the carotid arteries, which supply blood to the brain. It carries the risk of cerebral hyperperfusion syndrome, a serious complication where sudden blood flow to the brain leads to injury or even death. The study assessed the effect of the sedative dexmedetomidine (Dex) on patients undergoing CAS. It found that only 11% of patients receiving Dex developed cerebral hyperperfusion, compared to 38% in a placebo group. Only 3% of patients...

A groundbreaking study has found that cells outside the brain may have memory functions, challenging the long-held belief that memory is exclusive to brain cells. Researchers demonstrated that non-brain cells could learn from spaced repetition, activating a “memory gene” similar to brain cells. Research reveals that kidney and nerve tissue cells can learn and form memories in ways similar to neurons. ========================================================================== Our brains—and specifically, our brain cells—are commonly known to store memories. However, a team of scientists has discovered that cells from other parts of the body also play a role in memory, opening new pathways for understanding how...

A drug commonly used to treat glaucoma has been shown in zebrafish and mice to protect against the build-up in the brain of the protein tau, which causes various forms of dementia and is implicated in Alzheimer's disease. Researchers screened more than 1,400 clinically-approved drug compounds using zebrafish genetically engineered to make them mimic so-called tauopathies. They discovered that drugs known as carbonic anhydrase inhibitors—of which the glaucoma drug methazolamide is one—clear tau build-up and reduce signs of the disease in zebrafish and mice carrying the mutant forms of tau that cause human dementias. Professor David Rubinsztein, Dr. Angeleen Fleming...

A study from Tufts University found that daily consumption of pistachios can enhance eye health by increasing macular pigment optical density (MPOD), which helps protect against blue light and age-related eye damage. This benefit is attributed to pistachios’ unique content of lutein, a plant pigment essential for eye health and potentially useful in preventing age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Daily pistachios boost eye health by raising lutein, protecting against age-related damage, and supporting brain function. A recent study by researchers at Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy suggests that eating pistachios daily may greatly benefit eye health. This...

Experiments in sheep are hinting that doses of caffeine given to women in pregnancy, as well as their newborns after birth, could prevent cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy is a disabling condition often caused by asphyxia—reductions in oxygen supply—around the time of birth. "Caffeine has previously proven to be safe in stimulating the respiratory centers of preterm babies and helping them remember to breathe," said Maltepe. Caffeine "easily crosses the blood-brain barrier and is a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory molecule," added Dr. Jana Mike. In the new study, 30 pregnant sheep received either a single intravenous dose of one gram of...

A pig’s brain has been brought back to life, with functioning activity, nearly an hour after the animal had died. The eerie experiment aims to figure out how doctors can restore brain function to a patient who has suffered a sudden cardiac arrest. Sudden cardiac arrest stops blood flow from reaching the brain, which can cause serious, irreparable damage within minutes. This is why the resuscitation window for a cardiac arrest is so short.

Decades of exercise research data support the common view that steady workouts over the long haul produce not only physical benefits but also improved brain function. But what about single bursts of exercise? A team has taken a closer look. Focusing on subjects between 18–45 years old, first author Jordan Garrett and the team screened thousands of exercise studies published between 1995 and 2023 to determine the consistent trends in the literature. Based on the results of their modeling approach, cycling and high intensity interval training (HIIT) produced the most consistent effects in improvement of memory, attention, executive function, information...

Glioblastomas are aggressive brain tumors with a median survival time of less than 22 months despite standard therapy including surgery, irradiation, and chemotherapy. It has become clear in recent years that not all cells within the brain tumor have an equal potential to divide and drive tumor growth. As such, a fraction of tumor cells called brain tumor stem cells (BTSCs) are thought to be the primary origin of tumor re-growth after surgery, in addition to being resistant to standard treatments including chemotherapy and irradiation. Therefore, targeting BTSCs may be a way to effectively treat glioblastomas. In an effort to...

Researchers recently investigated the effect of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) on brain health and memory to determine if consumption of extra virgin olive oil, the main component of the Mediterranean diet, can delay cognitive decline in people with Down syndrome (DS). DS is the most common genetically induced form of physical and intellectual disability, and while modern medical advances have helped to prolong life expectancy from around 40 years to an average of 60, the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD) in DS patients has become more common than ever before. Individuals with DS develop age-dependent cognitive decline and synaptic...

A research team is the first to reveal that a molecule in the brain—ophthalmic acid—unexpectedly acts like a neurotransmitter similar to dopamine in regulating motor function, offering a new therapeutic target for Parkinson's. The researchers observed that ophthalmic acid binds to and activates calcium-sensing receptors in the brain, reversing the movement impairments of Parkinson's mouse models for more than 20 hours. The disabling neurogenerative disease affects millions worldwide over the age of 50. L-dopa, the front-line drug for treatment, acts by replacing the lost dopamine and has a duration of two to three hours. While initially successful, the effect of...

Most neurons in the human brain last a lifetime, and for good reason. Intricate, long-term information is preserved in the complex structural relationships between their synapses. To lose the neurons would be to lose that critical information—that is, to forget. Intriguingly, some new neurons are still produced in the adult brain by a population of cells called neural stem cells. As brains age, however, they become less and less adept at making these new neurons. A new study sheds hopeful new light on how and why neural stem cells, the cells behind the generation of new neurons in the adult...

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A substantial number of patients with brain metastases who experience cognitive side effects following radiation therapy may fully regain cognitive function, according to a pooled analysis of three large, Phase III clinical trials. Recovery was more likely for people treated with conformal, or highly targeted, radiation techniques, compared to standard whole-brain treatment. The two most common types of conformal radiation are stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), which delivers fewer, but higher doses of radiation per treatment to the tumor site, and hippocampal avoidance WBRT, which limits radiation exposure to the parts of the brain known to contribute to neurocognitive side effects that...

Researchers have found that SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) antidepressants have the potential to improve certain cognitive functions, such as verbal memory. They measured brain function in patients before and after taking the SSRI, escitalopram, and correlated this to a drop in the level of one of the serotonin receptors in the brain and to cognitive improvements during treatment. Serotonin is often described as a 'feel good' chemical, and higher levels of serotonin circulating in the brain contribute to a sense of well-being, and can ease clinical depression in most sufferers. There are several serotonin receptors in the brain, and...