Brain News and Research

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The human brain is the center of the human nervous system and is a highly complex organ. Enclosed in the cranium, it has the same general structure as the brains of other mammals, but is over three times as large as the brain of a typical mammal with an equivalent body size.

A Center for Human Genetics/Genomics has been established at the University of California

Established in UCSD Health Sciences, which includes the School of Medicine and School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, the Center brings together UCSD faculty from multiple campus departments and schools including medicine, pharmacy, biology, biostatistics and mathematics.

30 Jun 2004

New research offers clues into how the body controls appetite and food intake

Concurrent with the national obesity epidemic has been a rise in the discoveries about how the body controls appetite and food intake.

30 Jun 2004

Harmless form of the herpes virus may help create a vaccine for Alzheimer’s disease

Scientists have taken an important step toward creating a vaccine against Alzheimer’s disease, customizing the response of the immune system with unprecedented precision.

30 Jun 2004

An EU-funded research project will help to uncover the genetic factors linked to depression to develop new drug treatments

120 million people worldwide suffer from depression. An EU-funded research project launched recently will help to uncover the genetic factors linked to depression to develop new drug treatments.

29 Jun 2004

Nighttime surge of ghrelin may point to new targets for treating obesity

UCLA scientists have discovered that lean people experience a huge nighttime surge of ghrelin — the hormone that stimulates hunger — but obese people do not.

29 Jun 2004

Vascular dementia, a common form of dementia often mistaken for Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer’s isn’t always the cause of a progressive loss of memory and other mental skills.

29 Jun 2004

Michael J. Fox Foundation funds $2 million to solve midbrain system mysteries

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) announced today that it has awarded approximately $2.1 million to fund 11 research projects

29 Jun 2004

Sex hormones alter the development of certain brain structures during puberty

The results, in press with NeuroImage, show that sex hormones alter the development of certain brain structures during puberty and that these effects persist into adulthood.

29 Jun 2004

Blood hormone may be key to appetite suppression and obesity control

How the body naturally regulates appetite through the presence of a blood hormone may offer the prospect of a safer and more effective method of weight control, according to Dr. Leonard Firestone of Manhattan Pharmaceuticals.

28 Jun 2004

Hormone replacement therapy in women increases risk of dementia

These "surprising and significant findings" are reported in two studies from the Women's Health Initiative Memory Study, in which UC Medical Center participates, in today's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

28 Jun 2004

Discovery of gene that causes a rare juvenile-onset form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)

The discovery of the Senataxin gene, on chromosome 9q34, may provide clues to the mechanisms of related brain disorders. The study appears in the June 2004 issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics.

28 Jun 2004

Scientists use genetic engineering to work out how odors are encoded

Yale scientists, working with the fruit fly as a model, have discovered how odors are encoded by the olfactory system into the complex messages that are sent to the brain.

26 Jun 2004

Experimental therapy improves arm function in chronically impaired stroke survivors

An experimental therapy improves arm function in chronically impaired stroke survivors long after the possibility of spontaneous recovery has been exhausted, researchers reported today at the 5th World Stroke Congress.

26 Jun 2004

Mysterious disease that causes the body’s immune system to turn against itself

A mysterious disease that causes the body’s immune system to turn against itself also sends a warning signal to alert doctors of the onset of its worst symptoms, University of Florida physicians have found.

25 Jun 2004

750,000 Americans will have a stroke or brain attack this year

Today researchers from the University of Washington School of Medicine reported findings that suggest that not all stroke patients have equal access to the only Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved acute ischemic stroke treatment.

25 Jun 2004

Most Alzheimer's drugs don't work

A new UK study published in THE LANCET concludes that the most widely used drugs to treat Alzheimer's disease have only minimal efficacy, and that an alternative approach for treatment is needed.

24 Jun 2004

Research suggests the brain is a much more sensitive organ than originally perceived, sensitive to the tiniest of chemical signals

The brain is a maddeningly complex organ for scientists to understand. No assumption can remain unchallenged, no given taken as a given.

24 Jun 2004

Eating fish during pregnancy produces children with better language and communication skills

A new study of children in Bristol has shown that women who ate fish regularly during pregnancy had children with better language and communication skills by the age of 18 months.

24 Jun 2004

Treating cocaine addiction with a virus

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have designed a potentially valuable tool for treating cocaine addiction by creating a modified "phage" virus that soaks up the drug inside the brain.

24 Jun 2004

Implantable chip could serve as a prosthetic retina for people who suffer from age-related blindness

Where other types of chips use electricity to stimulate nerves, this one instead tickles cells with minute amounts of chemicals. Because nerve cells normally communicate with each other by releasing chemicals known as neurotransmitters, the new device points to a more effective way of treating very delicate tissues, such as those in the eye and in the brain.

24 Jun 2004

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

A Center for Human Genetics/Genomics has been established at the University of California

New research offers clues into how the body controls appetite and food intake

Harmless form of the herpes virus may help create a vaccine for Alzheimer’s disease

An EU-funded research project will help to uncover the genetic factors linked to depression to develop new drug treatments

Nighttime surge of ghrelin may point to new targets for treating obesity

Vascular dementia, a common form of dementia often mistaken for Alzheimer’s disease

Michael J. Fox Foundation funds $2 million to solve midbrain system mysteries

Sex hormones alter the development of certain brain structures during puberty

Blood hormone may be key to appetite suppression and obesity control

Hormone replacement therapy in women increases risk of dementia

Discovery of gene that causes a rare juvenile-onset form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)

Scientists use genetic engineering to work out how odors are encoded

Experimental therapy improves arm function in chronically impaired stroke survivors

Mysterious disease that causes the body’s immune system to turn against itself

750,000 Americans will have a stroke or brain attack this year

Most Alzheimer's drugs don't work

Research suggests the brain is a much more sensitive organ than originally perceived, sensitive to the tiniest of chemical signals

Eating fish during pregnancy produces children with better language and communication skills

Treating cocaine addiction with a virus

Implantable chip could serve as a prosthetic retina for people who suffer from age-related blindness

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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