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The language we learn growing up seems to leave a lasting, biological imprint on our brains. German and Arabic native speakers have different connection strengths in specific parts of the brain’s language circuit, researchers report. The new study, based on nearly 100 brain scans, is one of the first in which scientists have identified these kinds of structural wiring differences in a large group of monolingual adults. Our brains process the key aspects of our native language in a constellation of brian regions connected by white matter. This tissue routes long, cablelike nerve cells from one part of the brain to another and speeds up communication between them. Wiring brain regions together this way is part of how we learn: The more often we use a connection, the more robust it becomes. Swipe left to compare the brain scans of German speakers (left) with Arabic speakers (right). The brains of German native speakers had stronger white matter networks (lines) within the left hemisphere, while the brains of Arabic native speakers had denser networks bridging the two hemispheres. Each sphere represents a different part of the language circuit, with its size showing how central it is. (🎨, first image: mussbila/iStock/Getty Images Plus 🎨, second image: X. Wei et al/NeuroImage 2023) #science #language #brain #neuroscience #brainscience #braindevelopment #languagelearning #notanaprilfoolsjoke

Scientists can see chronic pain in the brain with new clarity. Over months, electrodes implanted in the brains of four people picked up specific signs of their persistent pain. Chronic pain is incredibly common, but also incredibly complex and thus difficult to treat. Stimulating the brian with electricity is one common treatment approach. In this study, implanted electrodes (red dots in the images above) in the orbitofrontal cortex (shown in yellow) and anterior cingulate cortex (shown in blue) monitored brain signals of people with chronic pain. Using sophisticated machine learning approaches, researchers then linked each person’s pain ratings to their brain activity patterns, ultimately landing on a signature of each person’s chronic pain. In many ways, the patterns were unique to each person, but there was overlap: Brain activity in the OFC, an area at the front of the brain just behind the eyes, tracked with people’s chronic pain levels. Brain activity in the OFC could represent a solid biomarker of chronic pain, a signal that could both help doctors track treatment responses and serve as new targets for treatment, says neuroscientist Chelsea Kaplan. (📸: P. Shirvalkar) #science #neuroscience #chronicpain #medicine #electrode #brain #brainimplant