Brains may have a playfulness switch

Blocking the activity of certain cells reduces play behavior in rats. Rats are extremely playful creatures. They love playing chase and they literally jump for joy when tickled. Central to this playfulness, a new study finds, are nerve cells in a specific region of...

The Gut-Brain Axis

Cynthia Thurlow likes to remind her patients that digestion begins in the brain, in the way people think about their food before they have even taken a bite. Conversely, 95 percent of the mood-regulating neurotransmitter serotonin, which is targeted by conventional...