Muscle Wasting News and Research

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Study finds link between neurodegenerative disorders and inflammation

Researchers from McMaster University and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York have discovered that a protein associated with neurodegenerative diseases like ALS also plays an important role in the body's natural antiviral response.

30 Mar 2015

UVA researcher identifies potential therapeutic target for myotonic muscular dystrophy

A doctor who was one of the discoverers of the gene responsible for myotonic muscular dystrophy has now identified a therapeutic that could modify progression of muscle damage and muscle dysfunction associated with the disease - issues that cause patients significant disability and deterioration in quality of life.

19 Mar 2015

Early mobility therapy improves outcomes of patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a life-threatening lung condition that affects approximately 200,000 people a year in the United States and has a higher mortality rate than breast and prostate cancer combined. The condition most often occurs in people who are critically ill or who have significant injuries; those who do survive it often experience profound skeletal muscle weakness.

12 Mar 2015

First human clinical study of ChromaDex's NIAGEN nicotinamide riboside meets primary endpoint

ChromaDex Corp. announced today that the initial results of the first human clinical study for the company's NIAGEN nicotinamide riboside (NR) has met its primary endpoint.

11 Feb 2015

Bern researchers develop active substance for treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a congenital disease which causes muscle degeneration and eventual death in teenagers. Recently, researchers from Bern developed an active substance, which they together with an international team tested successfully.

3 Feb 2015

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center releases November tip sheet of story ideas

Following is the November 2014 tip sheet of story ideas from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

27 Nov 2014

Cardiac stem cell treatment restores heart function damaged by Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Researchers at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute have found that injections of cardiac stem cells might help reverse heart damage caused by Duchenne muscular dystrophy, potentially resulting in a longer life expectancy for patients with the chronic muscle-wasting disease.

18 Nov 2014

New guideline makes recommendations about treating, managing distal muscular dystrophy

A new guideline from the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine and the American Academy of Neurology recommends guidance on how doctors should evaluate the full picture—from symptoms, family history, and ethnicity, to a physical exam and certain lab test results—in order to determine what genetic tests may best diagnose a person's subtype of limb-girdle or distal muscular dystrophy.

14 Oct 2014

TSRI study points way to potential therapies for hereditary spastic paraplegia

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have discovered that a gene mutation linked to hereditary spastic paraplegia, a disabling neurological disorder, interferes with the normal breakdown of triglyceride fat molecules in the brain. The TSRI researchers found large droplets of triglycerides within the neurons of mice modeling the disease.

30 Sep 2014

Scientists discover sign of early development of pancreatic cancer

Scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and other institutions have discovered a sign of the early development of pancreatic cancer - an upsurge in certain amino acids that occurs before the disease is diagnosed and symptoms appear.

29 Sep 2014

Research could help eventual treatment of degenerative muscle, brain diseases

Our genetic information is stored in DNA, tiny strands of nucleic acid that contain instructions for the functioning of our bodies. To express this genetic data, our DNA is copied into RNA molecules, which then translate the instructions into proteins that perform tasks in our cells.

19 Sep 2014

Researchers examine why stem cells lose their capacity to repair damage as age increases

As we age, stem cells throughout our bodies gradually lose their capacity to repair damage, even from normal wear and tear.

8 Sep 2014

Researchers develop novel technique to promote tissue repair in damaged muscles

Researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) have developed a novel technique to promote tissue repair in damaged muscles.

8 Sep 2014

Researchers restore missing repair protein in skeletal muscle of patients with muscular dystrophy

Advances in the treatment of muscular dystrophy: For the first time, a research team has succeeded in restoring a missing repair protein in skeletal muscle of patients with muscular dystrophy.

21 Aug 2014

UTHealth scientists identify inhibitory switch to prevent peripheral vascular disease

Millions of people in the United States have a circulatory problem of the legs called peripheral vascular disease. It can be painful and may even require surgery in serious cases. This disease can lead to severe skeletal muscle wasting and, in turn, limb amputation.

25 Jul 2014

Study pinpoints molecular cause of cachexia, hints at a potential treatment

New research raises the prospect of more effective treatments for cachexia, a profound wasting of fat and muscle occurring in about half of all cancer patients, raising their risk of death, according to scientists from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

14 Jul 2014

PTC Therapeutics initiates reimbursed expanded access program for Translarna

PTC Therapeutics, Inc. today announced the initiation of a reimbursed expanded access program (EAP). PTC's EAP program is intended to make Translarna (ataluren) available to patients before commercial availability in certain countries.

9 Jul 2014

Study presents oxytocin as latest treatment target for age-related muscle wasting

Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have discovered that oxytocin -- a hormone associated with maternal nurturing, social attachments, childbirth and sex -- is indispensable for healthy muscle maintenance and repair, and that in mice, it declines with age.

11 Jun 2014

Sildenafil may help boys suffering from muscular dystrophy disease

Drugs used to treat erectile dysfunction may be able to slow disease progression in boys who suffer from the muscle wasting disease Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

8 May 2014

Commonly used drug restores blood flow to oxygen-starved muscles of boys with muscular dystrophy

Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute researchers have found that a commonly prescribed drug restores blood flow to oxygen-starved muscles of boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a genetic muscle-wasting disease that rarely is seen in girls but affects one in 3,500 male babies, profoundly shortening life expectancy. It is the most common fatal disease that affects children.