Cognitive Labs

Natrol, Inc., our partner in offering the BrainSpeed (tm) test both online and at retail - has been acquired by Plethico, a healthcare co. based in Mumbai(Bombay) India for $81 million in cash consideration. (details of closing)

The innovative combined test, which represented the first time consumers were able to track their mental state in conjunction with a consumer packaged good (CPG) like they might track something on ups.com or their favorite online retailer, was first launched in 2005 at E3 in Los Angeles; subsequently - more than 50,000 people logged in after purchase. Blogs, specifically weblogs, inc and our own brainspeed.blogspot and our simple javascript game brainSpeed blaster (tm) which has logged hundreds of thousands of plays (developed by me), were used to support the effort, along with standard marketing stuff.

The Natrol blend was scientifically engineered, containing Huperzine A, among other ingredients. Following this launch, the NIH sponsored a large scale clinical trial of Huperzine (ongoing) as a possible treatment for Alzheimer's. At least one company, Neuro-HiTech has gone public as a biotech company on the emerging neurocognitive potential of Huperzine.

Labels: 81, brainspeed, E3, estonia, weblogs

Researchers in Denmark tracked a genetic mutation showing that people with blue eyes have a single, common ancestor.

Hans Eiberg of the University of Copenhagen and his team examined mitochondrial DNA and compared the eye color of blue-eyed individuals in countries as diverse as Jordan, Denmark and Turkey.

"Originally, we all had brown eyes," Eiberg said in a statement. "But a genetic mutation affecting the OCA2 gene in our chromosomes resulted in the creation of a 'switch,' which literally 'turned off' the ability to produce brown eyes."

The switch, which is located in the gene adjacent to OCA2 does not, however, turn off the gene entirely, but rather limits its action to reducing the production of melanin in the iris -- effectively "diluting" brown eyes to blue.

Variation in eye color from brown to green can be explained by the amount of melanin in the iris, but blue-eyed individuals only have a small degree of variation in the amount of melanin in their eyes, Eiberg explained.

"From this we can conclude that all blue-eyed individuals are linked to the same ancestor," Eiberg said. "They have all inherited the same switch at exactly the same spot in their DNA."

The mutations responsible for blue eye colour most likely originate from the north-west part of the Black Sea region, where the great agricultural migration of the northern part of Europe took place in the Neolithic periods about 6,000 to 10,000 years ago," the researchers report in Human Genetics.

What's the bluest-eyed nation? Estonia - with 92.9% of the population blue-eyed. Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Germany follow - with 75% of Germans blue-eyed.

Most significantly, this illustrates how fast genetic change can propagate from a single mutation-in practically a millisecond of the human experience. Change is constant. Imagine tomorrow a baby is born with plaid eyes-in a few thousand years this could become the norm! The Blink of an Eye Test:


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Labels: blue, blueeyes, dna, estonia

// posted by neurofuture10:35 PM permanent link

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