Brain Research:Smallest 3-D camera offers brain surgery innovation ♦ Alzheimer’s disease accelerated by an abnormal build-up of fat ♦ Memory loss two-three years before dementia onset

Alzheimer’s disease thought to be accelerated by an abnormal build-up of fat in the brain People with Alzheimer’s disease have fat deposits in the brain. For the first time since the disease was described 109 years ago, researchers have discovered accumulations of fat droplets in the brain of patients who died from the disease and have identified the nature of the fat.

Awareness of memory loss may decline two-three years before dementia onset People who will develop dementia may begin to lose awareness of their memory problems two to three years before the actual onset of the disease, according to a new study. The study also found that several dementia-related brain changes, or pathologies, are associated with the decline in memory awareness.

Reward, aversion behaviors activated through same brain pathways New research may help explain why drug treatments for addiction and depression don't work for some patients. The conditions are linked to reward and aversion responses in the brain. And the research suggests that some treatments simultaneously stimulate reward and aversion responses, resulting in a net zero effect.

Smallest 3-D camera offers brain surgery innovation To operate on the brain, doctors need to see fine details on a small scale. A tiny camera that could produce 3-D images from inside the brain would help surgeons see more intricacies of the tissue they are handling and lead to faster, safer procedures.