As a part of a $30 million dollar National Institutes of Health (NIH) initiative to map the human brain, Saint Louis University neurosurgeon Richard Bucholz, M.D. will image the brains of healthy adults with MEG technology, providing key information about brain function.

Earlier belief that happiness is a genetic trait influenced by early life experiences has been contradicted by new research from Germany. This new study found that feelings of happiness and wellbeing respond to external factors such as healthy lifestyle, religion and working hours. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The National Institutes of Health will award up to $64 million over five years to encourage exploration of exceptionally innovative and original research ideas that have the potential for extraordinary impact.

DNA methylation - a modification of DNA linked to gene regulation - is altered with increasing severity in a blood cancer called multiple myeloma, according to a study by Mayo Clinic and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen).

The University of Alaska Fairbanks will study how the genetics and diet of Yup'ik Eskimos affect the blood-thinning properties of a common drug used by heart and stroke patients.