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Nervous System

Yaks on the Tibetan Plateau have adapted to deal with high-altitude conditions.

This Genetic Mutation Helps Yaks Survive at High Elevations. It Could Lead to Treatments for Nerve Damage in Humans

Animals that dwell at high altitudes have adapted to cope with low oxygen levels, a condition that damages a vital part of nerve cells

Brainless upside-down jellyfish, like this one in its natural habitat near Eilat, Israel, spend about one-third of their time asleep.

Even Though They Don’t Have Brains to Rest, Jellyfish and Sea Anemones Sleep Like Humans

Sleep may have evolved to help reduce DNA damage in nerve cells long before they became centralized in the brain, a study suggests

A sea lamprey shows off its nightmarish mouth.

This Invasive Vampire Fish Is Helping Researchers Understand the Human Nervous System in Jaw-Dropping Ways

The sea lamprey looks like it’s from another planet, but this ancient creature has a surprising amount in common with humans

An artistic rendering of an early vertebrate being attacked by a sea-scorpion in dark waters

Our Teeth May Descend From Sensitive Bumps on Prehistoric Fish Armor, New Research Finds

Hundreds of millions of years ago, fish had sensory features on their exoskeletons that contained dentine, the material that makes our teeth sensitive today

Scientists have discovered the strongest evidence yet that healthy vertebrates can have brain microbiomes.

Fish Have a Brain Microbiome. Could Humans Have One Too?

The discovery that other vertebrates have healthy microbial brains is fueling questions about our own brains

Two comb jellies have fused together and are being probed by a pipette.

These Frankenstein-Like Sea Creatures Can Actually Fuse Their Bodies Together

Two comb jellies can merge their digestive and nervous systems and even sync their bodily functions, according to new research. The discovery could have implications for human medicine

The vagus nerve sprawls from the brain through the body, innervating our organs and managing life support and emotion.

Everything You Wanted to Know About the Longest Nerve in the Body

Like a highway system, the vagus nerve branches profusely from your brain through your organs to marshal bodily functions, including aspects of the mind such as mood, pleasure and fear

Health officials say there is an elevated risk for Eastern equine encephalitis infections in New England this year. Wearing insect repellant, covering skin outdoors and staying indoors between dusk and dawn can help prevent infection.

New Hampshire Resident Dies From Rare but Serious Mosquito-Borne Illness

It’s one of four cases of Eastern equine encephalitis reported in the U.S. so far this year—and the state’s first since 2014

The sympathetic nervous system was thought to have evolved with jawed vertebrates. But lampreys—jawless, parasitic fish that suck out the blood of their hosts—have a simple one, per recent research.

Eerie Lampreys Hint at the Origins of Our ‘Fight-or-Flight’ Response and Sympathetic Nervous System

The jawless, parasitic fish largely haven’t changed over the last 340 million years, but they might be better sources for studying our own evolution than thought, a recent study suggests

Hand washing is one of the simplest ways to prevent disease transmission.

The Dirty Secret About How Our Hands Spread Disease

The human hand is an incredible tool—and a deadly threat

Fabrizio Fidati, a 57-year-old amputee, uses the MiniTouch device with his prosthetic to accurately sort cubes of different temperatures.

In a First, a Prosthetic Limb Can Sense Temperature Like a Living Hand

The advance may help users feel a greater sense of human connection through touch

A moment from Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie, which premiered last month at Sundance Film Festival 

Michael J. Fox Reflects on Rise to Fame and Life with Parkinson’s

A new documentary offers an intimate look at the actor and activist’s story

Scientists developed a skin swab test to detect Parkinson's disease within about three minutes.

Woman Who Can Smell Parkinson’s Helps Develop a Skin Swab Diagnostic Test

The test, which would be the first of its kind for this disease, can make a diagnosis in about three minutes

On average, Osborne experienced 20 to 40 involuntary diaphragm spasms per minute. In total, he hiccupped an estimated 430 million times before his death in May 1991 at age 97.

The Curious Case of Charles Osborne, Who Hiccupped for 68 Years Straight

A 1922 accident sparked the Iowa man’s intractable hiccups, which suddenly subsided in 1990

According to the American Library Association, Scary Stories were the most challenged books between 1990 and 1999.

Why ‘Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark’ Frightened So Many Parents in the 1990s

Launched 40 years ago, Alvin Schwartz’s spooky series pitted school administrators against PTO members pleading to ban the books

Increased immunity from vaccines and previous infections could be a reason behind the drop in cases of "Covid toes." (Pictured: Nurse Sandra Lindsay—the first person to receive vaccine in the USA on December 14, 2020— receives COVID-19 Pfizer vaccine booster in New York on October 6, 2021.)

Powerful Immune System Response May Be Behind ‘Covid Toes’

A new study brings doctors closer to understanding the mysterious frostbite-like lesions on patients’ toes and fingers

The Nobel committee announced the winners of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian, earlier today.

Scientists Studied Spicy Chili Peppers and Cool Menthol for Their Nobel Prize–Winning Research on Heat and Touch

Their independent discoveries answer fundamental questions about how we sense our environment and could lead to breakthrough pain relief treatments

A heat map of the receptive fields of sensory neuron receptors on a human fingertip.

New Research

Study Shows Fingerprint Ridges Play Key Role in Sense of Touch

Experiments show that our fingertips’ finely tuned sensitivity maps onto the whorled ridges of our prints

A round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) in a plastic pipe in the lab.

New Research

Some Fish Fins Are as Sensitive as a Primate’s Fingertips

Experiments reveal fish fins aren’t just for getting around. They could have implications for underwater robotics

Could This Brain Implant Stop Epilepsy Seizures?

A new approach, which involves an implantable device delivering neurotransmitters to the brain, proves effective in mice

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