Press releases

Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig have found evidence that the language we speak shapes the connectivity in our brains that may underlie the way we think. With the help of magnetic resonance tomography, they looked deep into the brains of native German and Arabic speakers and discovered differences in the wiring of the language regions in the brain.
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What influence do plant-based meals have on mood and on feeling full compared to animal-based meals? Neuroscientists at MPI CBS in Leipzig investigated this in three smartphone-based studies in over 400 university cafeterias across Germany and have now published their findings in the journal Nature Science of Food.
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Scientists led by Julia Sacher from MPI CBS and Osama Sabri from the Leipzig University Hospital have discovered in an elaborate patient study that the transport of the neurotransmitter serotonin in the brain increases in women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) shortly before menstruation. Their findings provide the basis for a more targeted therapy of this specific mood disorder, in which patients only have to take antidepressants for a few days.
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Is it possible to enhance athletic performance using brain stimulation? In a recent study in the journal Brain Stimulation, researchers at MPI CBS in Leipzig, in collaboration with Leipzig University and the EuroMov research center at the University of Montpellier, explored this question. The results point to performance-enhancing effects when certain areas of the brain are stimulated in competitive athletes.

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Researchers at MPI CBS and University of Leipzig Medical Center have used new artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning techniques to detect rare forms of dementia on MRI images. In their study, the researchers show that AI can automatically recognize patterns in patient imaging data that are specific to rare forms of dementia, enabling early diagnosis. They included Alzheimer's disease with memory impairment as well as many other diseases that may be characterized by changes in language, personality or motor function.
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How is it possible for the brain to recognise drawn objects as houses or animals? In a recent study in the Journal of Neuroscience, scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig, in collaboration with the Freie Universität Berlin and Justus Liebig University Giessen, investigated how our perception of line drawings differs from natural images. The researchers show that the perception of objects is particularly robust to changes in our environment.

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From an early age, children learn to name things and events, but also how to combine words according to the rules of their language. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences (MPI CBS) Leipzig and the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin have now found that even six-month-old babies store relationships between speech elements in memory.
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Anyone who has ever learned a foreign language knows how laborious it is to acquire vocabulary and grammar. In contrast, children acquire their first language seemingly effortlessly. By the age of four, many children are already speaking without errors and can draw on a large vocabulary. But how can the brain accomplish this? In a study published in the journal "Cerebral Cortex", scientists from MPI CBS now describe that the development of language ability in three to four year olds is accompanied by the maturation of brain areas within the same language network that is also responsible for understanding and producing language in adults.
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It's very important in sports, and in interpersonal relationships, too - perfect timing. But how does our brain learn to estimate when events might occur and react accordingly? Scientists at MPI CBS in Leipzig together with colleagues from the Kavli Institute at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim were able to demonstrate in an MRI study that our brain learns best in connection with constructive feedback.
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Communicating with babies in infant-directed-speech is considered an essential prerequisite for successful language development of the little ones. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences have now investigated how the mood of mothers in the postpartum period affects their child’s development. They found that even children whose mothers suffer from mild depressive mood that do not yet require medical treatment show early signs of delayed language development. The reason for this could be the way the women talk to the newborns. The findings could help prevent potential deficits early on. more