3rd International conference on Brain disorders & Neurodegeneration

Dementia is a category of disease, not a diagnosis. It indicates that there are problems with cognition severe enough to interfere with daily function. AD is the most common form of dementia. It is characterized by plaques (beta amyloid) that form outside the neuron, and tangles (tau tangles) that form inside the neuron. The neuron subsequently dies, and the surround structures of the brain are affected until the brain can no longer sustain life. There are three forms of AD, and one subtype. Lewy Body Dementia is the third most commonly occurring dementia. Lewy bodies are deposits of alpha-synuclein in the brain. If those deposits form and stay in the substantia nigra, it is Parkinson’s disease. If they form elsewhere in the brain, it is LBD. LBD is characterized by psychiatric features, and does not progress in the same manner as AD (which has a fairly predictable progression). LBD is misdiagnosed about 25% of the time. Having an accurate diagnosis for this form of dementia is ...

Well, I must admit that  Diagnosing ADHD  isn’t just about reading symptoms and reading relate able posts. It’s much beyond that. It  requires a psychologist and various tests and behavioural observation over a period of time. It could often have overlapping symptoms with Bipolar Disorder, depression and anxiety . Psychiatrists diagnose attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) if the individual displays six or more of the following symptoms of inattention or six or more symptoms of hyperactivity and impulsivity. The signs must occur often and be present for at least six months to a degree that is maladaptive and inconsistent with the person’s developmental level. ADHD involves two sets of symptoms: inattention and a combination of hyperactive and impulsive behaviours- INATTENTION ·          Fails to give close attention to details or makes careless mistakes in schoolwork, work or other activities ·   ...

Gray matter is the part of brain where cell bodies of nerve cells reside. Normally the gray matter forms the outer part of the brain and certain islands of tissues deep within the brain like basal ganglia nuclei, thalamic nuclei etc. The axons of the cells present within these areas travelling downwards to form the white matter. They form collection of nerve cell axons which are called tracts. These tracts connect various areas of the brain. The gray matter and white matter are named due to their respective colours in the cut section of brain. Reference: Madhukar Mohan

An abscess is a pocket of necrotic, degenerating tissue, often with infection, in any organ ranging from skin and gums to liver and kidneys. A brain abscess is a life-threatening condition requiring emergency intervention. It begins as inflammation and, without intervention, progresses to an abscess in about 10 days. About 25% of brain abscesses are sterile (without infection), but more often, they’re caused by pathogens such as  Streptococcus, Staphylococcus,  or  Listeria . Other causes include  Candida  and  Aspergillus  (both fungi),  Toxoplasma  (a protozoan that can be contracted from cats, undercooked meat, and unpasteurized milk), and the very rare but deadly “brain-eating amoeba”  Naegleria . Reference: Ken Saladin

Neurotoxicity occurs when exposure to natural or artificial toxic substances, which are called neurotoxins, alters the normal activity of the nervous system in such a way as to cause damage to nervous tissue. This can eventually disrupt or even kill neurons, key cells that transmit and process signals in the brain and other parts of the nervous system. Neurotoxicity can result from exposure to substances used in chemotherapy, radiation treatment, drug therapies, certain drug abuse, and organ transplants, as well as exposure to heavy metals, certain foods and food additives, pesticides, industrial and/or cleaning solvents, cosmetics, and some naturally occurring substances. Symptoms may appear immediately after exposure or be delayed. They may include limb weakness or numbness, loss of memory, Neurotoxicity occurs when exposure to natural or artificial toxic substances, which are called neurotoxins, alters the normal activity of the nervous system in such a way as to cause damage to...

There are a lot of archaic and inappropriate answers here, please disregard them. The only the one that is correct by current scientific understanding as of 2019, provided by  Xeno Rasmusson ,  is nice enough to point out that the idea of what’s valid about this topic is something that changes over time and with more knowledge and research. My own answer below will be outdated, eventually, by a better answer. I’ll skip the lesson on  how the human brain forms  in the first place and just start with what happens when it’s growing. Neurogenesis, the process by which progenitor neural stem cells migrate from the brain’s ventricular zone to various locations in the brain and mature as neurons in a network, is not just a rare or one-time event. There’s a massive spike in neurogenesis during the first few years of life, which is fairly apparent by the matter in how fast infants, of any species, cognitively mature. The rate of human neurogenesis in the brain slows consi...

All old people suffer from brain atrophy. Some old people suffer dementia. The brain cells (neurons) you were born with are all the brains you’re going to get, and every day 1,000,000 of those precious cells die. Yet you can lose half your brain and still retain personality and memory. Every time you get drunk or concussed, you lose another million or so. Smokers’ brains atrophy quicker than non-smokers. Alzheimer’s respects neither age nor intelligence. Cherish your mental muscles. Exercise them, and don’t say ‘I don’t have the brains’ as an excuse for not wanting to do something challenging. The brain behaves like a muscle, has more connections than there are stars in the known universe, and is a miracle of nature. The brain is so complex that half of all your genes are required for its complex development. Reference: Jim Euclid