Neurodegenerative Disorder News and Research

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Researchers estimate risk of transmission of Huntington's disease to offspring among male carriers

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have quantified the probability of a male who carries a "high normal" variant of the Huntington's Disease (HD) gene having a child who develops the disease. Although thought to be a very rare event, the probability has never been estimated using current information and disease guidelines. The findings, appear on-line in the American Journal of Medical Genetics, may be useful during prenatal genetic counseling.

9 Jun 2009

New insights Huntington disease development

A global analysis of brain proteins over a 10-week period in a mouse model of Huntington Disease has revealed some new insights into this complex neurodegenerative disorder.

16 Apr 2009

Rare window on spinal muscular atrophy genetics

Caused by a mutation of the SMN gene, spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is an infantile and juvenile neurodegenerative disorder where motor neuron loss causes progressive paralysis.

6 Apr 2009

Launch of new foundation for Batten disease

Leading scientists, medical researchers and affected families joined together today to launch Beyond Batten Disease Foundation, an organization committed to finding a cure for this rare disease that claims the lives of children.

4 Mar 2009

Researchers isolate gene mutations in patients with inherited amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) have discovered a new gene whose mutations cause familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a fatal neurological disorder.

26 Feb 2009

Significant Rett syndrome discovery

A paper published online today in Nature Neuroscience reveals the presence of methyl CpG binding protein 2 (MeCP2) in glia. MeCP2 is a protein associated with a variety of neurological disorders, including Rett Syndrome, the most physically disabling of the autism spectrum disorders.

23 Feb 2009

Drug sodium phenylbutyrate could improve the memory of those with Alzheimer's disease

The results of the project, developed by researchers of the Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA) of the University of Navarra have been published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology.

20 Feb 2009

New nationwide Alzheimer's study underway

Researchers at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center are preparing to begin a clinical trial aimed at testing an investigational new drug that may help control the progression of Alzheimer's disease.

17 Feb 2009

Link found between genetic and environmental causes of Parkinson's disease

Scientists at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research have found that a single gene, known as PARK9, protects cells from manganese toxicity and rescues neurons from over-expression of the protein alpha-synuclein.

3 Feb 2009

Researchers identify compound that frees trapped cholesterol

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified in mice a compound that liberates cholesterol that has inappropriately accumulated to excessive levels inside cells.

27 Jan 2009

New understanding of genetic signature associated with Alzheimer's disease

Scientists have new information about the complex genetic signature associated with Alzheimer's disease, the leading cause of cognitive decline and dementia in the elderly.

1 Jan 2009

Magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging predicts effects of multiple sclerosis flare-ups on optic nerve

One of the most pernicious aspects of multiple sclerosis (MS) - its sheer unpredictability - may finally be starting to yield to advanced medical imaging techniques.

17 Dec 2008

Trans-splicing therapy for spinal muscular atrophy closer to clinical use

Spinal muscular atrophy, a neurodegenerative disorder that causes the weakening of muscles, is the leading cause of infant death and occurs in 1 in 6,000 live births.

16 Dec 2008

MRI scans can predict effects of multiple sclerosis 'flare-ups' on optic nerve

One of the most pernicious aspects of multiple sclerosis (MS) - its sheer unpredictability - may finally be starting to yield to advanced medical imaging techniques.

16 Dec 2008

Mouse model of prion disease mimics diverse symptoms of human disorder

A comprehensive mouse model of inherited prion disease exhibits cognitive, motor, and neurophysiological deficits that bear a striking resemblance to the symptoms experienced by patients with the human version of "mad cow disease," Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD).

26 Nov 2008

Discovery of key contributor to Alzheimer's disease process

Walter J. Lukiw, PhD, Associate Professor of Neuroscience and Ophthalmology at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, is the lead author of a paper identifying, for the first time, a specific function of a fragment of ribonucleic acid (RNA), once thought to be no more than a byproduct, in regulating inflammation and the development of Alzheimer's disease.

16 Nov 2008

First drug for Huntington's disease approved for use in the U.S.

Huntington's disease is a fatal, inherited neurodegenerative disorder for which there is no cure and usually affects people in their 30s and 40s, but some patients are affected as early as childhood, while others aren't affected until they are older.

18 Aug 2008

FDA approves tetrabenazine for Huntington's disease

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved tetrabenazine, the first drug approved for use in the United States to treat Huntington's disease, a fatal, inherited neurodegenerative disorder for which there is no cure. The action comes about eight months after an advisory panel unanimously voted to advise FDA to make the medication available to treat the disease.

17 Aug 2008

Huntington's disease brain damage linked to overactive immune response in the bloodstream

The damage to brain tissue seen in Huntington's disease may be caused by an overactive immune response in the bloodstream and the brain, according to new findings from two teams of researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle and University College London. The findings will be published online July 14 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.

14 Jul 2008

Discovery of second genetic risk factor for developing late-onset Alzheimer's disease

Researchers have discovered the second, strong genetic risk factor for developing late-onset Alzheimer's disease, according to a new report in the June 27th issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication.

25 Jun 2008