December 2006

• Laughter: it's catching

  Standfirst

  Happy sounds tickle the brain to prompt a smile.

  news@nature.com

  (12 December 2006); doi:10.1038/news061211-7

• Spit could show up sleepiness

  Standfirst

  Enzyme in saliva linked to sleep deprivation.

  news@nature.com

  (11 December 2006); doi:10.1038/news061211-2

• Younger siblings up the odds of brain cancer

  Standfirst

  Could childhood infections double cancer risk?

  news@nature.com

  (11 December 2006); doi:10.1038/news061211-3

• Rogue theory of smell gets a boost

  Standfirst

  Physicists check out a bold hypothesis for how the nose works.

  news@nature.com

  (7 December 2006); doi:10.1038/news061204-10

• Mood makes food taste different

  Standfirst

  Taste test could be used to pinpoint chemical causes of depression.

  news@nature.com

  (6 December 2006); doi:10.1038/news061204-5

• Fear centre is shrunken in severely autistic brains

  Standfirst

  A hyperactive amygdala may cause its own self-destruction.

  news@nature.com

  (5 December 2006); doi:10.1038/news061204-4

• Could RNA interfere with prion disease?

  Standfirst

  Genetic treatment shows promise against scrapie.

  news@nature.com

  (1 December 2006); doi:10.1038/news061127-15

• One look says it all

  Standfirst

  Women beat men at the task of being attuned to a familiar face.

  news@nature.com

  (29 November 2006); doi:10.1038/news061127-5

• Lou Gehrig's group dangles million-dollar bait for biomarker search

  Standfirst

  Can the lure of a prize produce a winner?

  news@nature.com

  (29 November 2006); doi:10.1038/nm1206-1334a