Nervous System News and Research

Latest Nervous System News and Research

Neuroscientists have overcome a major obstacle in gene therapy research

Northwestern University neuroscientists have overcome a major obstacle in gene therapy research. They've devised a method that will safely deliver and regulate expression of therapeutic genes introduced into the central nervous system to treat Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases.

5 Jun 2004

Exercise can help brain healing process

Exercise can stimulate injured neurons to regenerate their axons, which are the primary transmission lines of the nervous system, according to a study published June 1 in the print edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and the last week of May in the early online edition.

2 Jun 2004

Treating post-traumatic stress disorder

Trinity Western University researchers are conducting comparative studies for three treatments of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) that, in the last 10 years, have helped reduce and eliminate PTSD symptoms in female victims of sexual assault.

2 Jun 2004

Model of the central nervous system will allow oncologists and neurosurgeons to target tumours more effectively

A larger-than-life model of the human central nervous system including the brain and spinal cord, which will allow oncologists and neurosurgeons to target tumours more effectively, will be among a range of student projects on display at an event at The University of Nottingham this week.

2 Jun 2004

Acne drug may help treat multiple sclerosis

Dr. Luanne Metz, an associate professor of neurosciences and physician-scientist in the Neuroscience Research Group at the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Medicine, has found that minocycline, a drug currently used to treat such conditions as acne, decreases the activity of lesions in the brains of people suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS).

2 Jun 2004

Surprising levels of mercury in Cincinnati's Brood-X cicadas

Think twice before you eat one of Cincinnati's Brood-X cicadas. That's the warning from researchers at the University of Cincinnati College of Engineering, who have found surprising levels of mercury in these insects.

1 Jun 2004

Call for Bush Administration to remedy failures on mad cow disease

Carol Tucker Foreman, director of Consumer Federation of America's Food Policy Institute, joined Consumers Union, Public Citizen and R-CALF in calling on the Bush Administration to remedy failures and improve protection against BSE.

1 Jun 2004

3-D micro-imaging technology licensed to Carl Zeiss Jena by Cornell

Biomedical microscopic imaging deep inside living tissue with unprecedented clarity could become routine and widely available with the signing of technology-transfer and collaborative-research agreements today (May 28, 2004) by Carl Zeiss Jena GmbH, a leading maker of microscopy instrumentation, and by CCTEC, the technology, enterprise and commercialization arm of Cornell University.

30 May 2004

Cigarette smoking linked to leukemia

Cigarette smoking has been linked to acute myelogenous leukemia, according to The Health Consequences of Smoking: A Report of the Surgeon General, released today.

27 May 2004

Researchers identify molecules that underlie nerve fiber degeneration in multiple sclerosis patients

Yale researchers and collaborators have identified molecules that underlie nerve fiber degeneration in patients with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (MS), a disease that cripples nearly three million people worldwide. The new findings are the first observations in humans of molecules that contribute to degeneration of nerve fibers.

27 May 2004

New technology to measure the sensitivity of nerve fibers that wire up the brain during development

Researchers at Georgetown University have developed a novel technology to precisely measure the sensitivity of nerve fibers that wire up the brain during development. Through use of this technology, they discovered that these fibers, or axons, possess an incredible sensitivity to molecular guidance cues that direct the axon’s route to its desired destination in the brain.

26 May 2004

A new guideline evaluates the treatment of infantile spasms

A new guideline developed by the American Academy of Neurology and the Child Neurology Society evaluates the treatment of infantile spasms. The guideline is published in the May 25 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

24 May 2004

People with low incomes are more likely to develop brain cancer

People with low incomes are more likely to develop brain cancer, according to a study published in the May 25 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

24 May 2004

Trial shows Daclizumab therapy improves multiple sclerosis outcome

A small clinical trial of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) who did not respond to interferon alone found that adding the human antibody daclizumab improved patient outcome. Patients who received the combined therapy had a 78 percent reduction in new brain lesions and a 70 percent reduction in total lesions, along with other significant clinical improvements.

24 May 2004

Damage to the left half side of brain may make a right-handed person more susceptible to infection

A major immunological difference between the opposite halves of the human brain is now confirmed in a study published May 24, 2004 in the online edition of the Annals of Neurology. Researchers have found that damage or surgery to the left half of the brain may make a right-handed person more susceptible to being immunocompromised.

24 May 2004

Researchers have developed technology to precisely measure the sensitivity of nerve fibers that wire up the brain during development

Through use of this technology, they discovered that these fibers, or axons, possess an incredible sensitivity to molecular guidance cues that direct the axon's route to its desired destination in the brain. Their findings are described in the June issue of Nature Neuroscience.

23 May 2004

Nicotine remains one of the most addictive drugs ever used

Nicotine-the main ingredient in tobacco products-remains one of the most addictive drugs ever used. Still, nearly 72 million people have used nicotine in the United States, according to the 2002 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, which is administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

21 May 2004

Variability in weight and drug content of split tablet may put patients at risk of receiving wrong dosage

Back and neck pain sufferers who divide the most frequently prescribed muscle relaxant may be getting anywhere from half to one-and-a-half times the amount of medicine they believe they are taking, suggests a new study examining the practice of tablet splitting.

19 May 2004

Study comparing the efficacy of REMICADE® to Azathioprine alone and in combination With REMICADE®

Centocor, Inc., and Schering-Plough Corporation announced today the initiation of the SONIC (Study of Immunomodulator Naive patients in Crohn's Disease) trial that will evaluate the efficacy of REMICADE® (infliximab) versus azathioprine, a conventional immunosuppressive agent, alone and versus the combination of both drugs for the treatment of patients with Crohn's disease.

18 May 2004