Glenn T Goodwin, PhD

10/07/2025

10/07/2025

Neurons Burn Fat for Fuel: Discovery Could Reverse Brain Damage

Researchers have discovered that neurons can use fats—not just sugars—as a fuel source, overturning long-held beliefs about how the brain powers itself.

The study revealed that when energy demands rise, neurons recycle parts of themselves to create fats, a process driven by the DDHD2 protein.

In patients with Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia 54, this mechanism fails, leading to severe neurodegeneration.

By supplementing fatty acids, scientists restored neuron function within 48 hours, offering new hope for treating neurodegenerative disorders.

09/10/2025

REM Sleep Reactivation Locks Memories in Place

REM sleep isn’t just for dreaming—it’s when memories are secured.

A new study found that hippocampal adult-born neurons reactivate during REM sleep in mice, replaying waking experiences.

This reactivation, synchronized with theta brain waves, ensures memories are consolidated into long-term storage.

Blocking the process disrupted recall, explaining why losing these neurons—as in Alzheimer’s—can devastate memory function.

08/20/2025

Highly Sensitive People Face Greater Mental Health Risks

Sensitivity has long been overlooked in mental health research, but new evidence shows it plays a crucial role in vulnerability and recovery.

By analyzing data from over 30 studies, researchers concluded that highly sensitive individuals face a higher likelihood of depression and anxiety.

However, this same trait also makes them more responsive to therapy and positive life experiences.

Around one-third of the population falls into the “highly sensitive” category, meaning these findings could have broad clinical importance.

Tailoring treatment to sensitivity levels may improve therapeutic outcomes and reduce relapse rates.

The study ultimately emphasizes that sensitivity should be recognized as a key factor in shaping mental health across the lifespan.

08/20/2025

Learn about the research via the link in the comments!

08/02/2025

Learn how you can become a trauma-informed neurofeedback provider here: https://traumaresearchfoundation.org/lp/neurofeedback-training-program/

The fall 2025 cohort of the Trauma-Informed Neurofeedback Training Program begins on September 10.

08/02/2025

Neuroscientists think moments of "mind blanking" could be a way for the brain to protect itself.

07/17/2025

How Brain Blood Flows to Power Your Thoughts

Although the brain accounts for just 2% of body weight, it consumes 20% of its energy, requiring a fast, efficient blood allocation system.

New research reveals that endothelial cells create a “communication highway” via gap junctions to direct blood flow to the right places in real time.

This elegant mechanism helps maintain cognitive performance while conserving energy.

The same system seems to falter in neurodegenerative diseases, contributing to cognitive decline.

The study also highlights potential for improving the interpretation of brain imaging tools like fMRI.

By uncovering this key mechanism, scientists may develop therapies that target blood flow regulation in the brain.

06/27/2025

Sleep’s Secret Sequence May Sculpt Our Memories Like a Garden

Sleep has long been recognized as essential for memory, but a new study reveals how the sequence of sleep stages may be the key.

Researchers propose that non-REM sleep strengthens newly formed memories while REM sleep prunes overlapping or redundant ones, keeping memories organized.

This process was observed in mouse brains following a conditioning experiment and confirmed through computational modeling of neural circuits.

The model also showed that reversing the sleep sequence caused memory degradation.

Acetylcholine levels and interactions between excitatory and inhibitory neurons played central roles in this dynamic.

The results point to a deeply conserved biological mechanism that helps the brain retain and refine important information during sleep.

06/17/2025

Brain Cells Tune to Multiple Rhythms Like a Neural Radio

A new study shows that brain cells don’t just send one type of signal—they can dynamically shift between different firing modes to process more than one brain rhythm at once.

Using voltage imaging and computational models, researchers demonstrated that hippocampal neurons use bursts to resonate with slower theta waves and single spikes to track faster gamma waves.

This dual-response system, termed interleaved resonance, may help the brain coordinate complex functions like spatial memory and decision-making.

The neurons' responsiveness is shaped by internal ion channels and the timing of their activity, allowing them to adapt to changing cognitive demands.

Importantly, this discovery helps bridge the gap between neural rhythms and behavior.

It also opens new possibilities for understanding and potentially correcting disrupted brain signaling in diseases like Alzheimer’s and epilepsy.

06/03/2025

Scientists are still debating whether the human brain is capable of growing new cells past childhood.