Neuropeptide News and Research

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Study of fruit flies could help better understand food choice in obese people

Think of the smell of freshly baking bread. There is something in that smell, without any other cues - visual or tactile - that steers you toward the bakery. On the flip side, there may be a smell, for instance that of fresh fish, that may not appeal to you. If you haven't eaten a morsel of food in three days, of course, a fishy odor might seem a good deal more attractive.

8 Oct 2013

Scientists discover key function in molecule that regulates sleep, metabolism and hunger

Why does hunger keep us awake and a full belly make us tired? Why do people with sleep disorders such as insomnia often binge eat late at night? What can sleep patterns tell us about obesity?

5 Oct 2013

Psoriasis and the nervous system: an interview with Dr Nicole Ward, Case Western Reserve University

The prevalence of skin disease exceeds that of obesity, hypertension or cancer. One in three individuals in the United States suffers with a skin disease, with ~2-3% of the American population suffering from psoriasis.

27 Sep 2013

Oxytocin shows evidence of therapeutic value for autism, schizophrenia

The hormone oxytocin could play a role in treating psychiatric disorders such as autism and schizophrenia, according to a review article in the September Harvard Review of Psychiatry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

17 Sep 2013

Characterizing stem cells in larval schistosomes may help control prolific human parasite

Ancient Egyptian mummies revealed that humans have been hosting parasitic flatworms called schistosomes for more than 5,000 years. Today these parasites continue to plague millions of people across the world, causing roughly 250,000 deaths each year.

13 Aug 2013

OGF-OGFr axis can be modulated in human triple-negative breast cancer cells to inhibit proliferation

Researchers at The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, led by Dr. Ian S. Zagon, have discovered that a novel biological pathway, the OGF-OGFr axis, can be modulated in human triple-negative breast cancer cells to inhibit proliferation. According to BreastCancer.org 1 in 8 women in the U.S. will develop invasive breast cancer and more than 39,000 deaths occur annually.

12 Aug 2013

Statins: A class of cholesterol-lowering drugs may help treat Rett Syndrome

Statins, a class of cholesterol-lowering drugs found in millions of medicine cabinets, may help treat Rett Syndrome, according to a study published today in Nature Genetics. The Rett Syndrome Research Trust (RSRT) funded this work with generous support from the Rett Syndrome Research Trust UK and Rett Syndrome Research & Treatment Foundation.

30 Jul 2013

RUB chemists track interaction of enkephalin messengers with opioid receptor

"Pain begone!" In order to send out this signal, the human body produces tiny messenger molecules that dock to certain receptors. Using traditional biochemical methods, this interaction between the messengers, so-called enkephalins, and opioid receptors is very difficult to study.

10 Jul 2013

Research: Boosting levels of gut hormones may be effective weapon in fight against obesity

In the constant cross talk between our brain and our gut, two gut hormones are already known to tell the brain when we have had enough to eat. New research suggests that boosting levels of these hormones simultaneously may be an effective new weapon in the fight against obesity.

10 Jul 2013

Study shows possible biological cause of narcolepsy

In 2000, researchers at the UCLA Center for Sleep Research published findings showing that people suffering from narcolepsy, a disorder characterized by uncontrollable periods of deep sleep, had 90 percent fewer neurons containing the neuropeptide hypocretin in their brains than healthy people.

4 Jul 2013

Researchers report that two biomarkers appear to indicate risk for silent strokes

Two biomarkers widely being investigated as predictors of heart and vascular disease appear to indicate risk for "silent" strokes and other causes of mild brain damage that present no symptoms, report researchers from The Methodist Hospital and several other institutions in an upcoming issue of Stroke (now online).

5 Jun 2013

People with narcolepsy have increased number of neurons that produce histamine

A new study provides surprising evidence that people with narcolepsy have an increased number of neurons that produce histamine, suggesting that histamine signaling may be a novel therapeutic target for this potentially disabling sleep disorder.

4 Jun 2013

Protein processing breakdown in endoplasmic reticulum

With obesity reaching epidemic levels in some parts of the world, scientists have only begun to understand why it is such a persistent condition. A study in the Journal of Biological Chemistry adds substantially to the story by reporting the discovery of a molecular chain of events in the brains of obese rats that undermined their ability to suppress appetite and to increase calorie burning.

17 May 2013

TSRI scientists receive innovative grant to help people break nicotine addiction

As part of an unprecedented national effort to develop new drugs to treat neurological disorders, scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have been awarded an innovative grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke to help people break their addiction to nicotine.

28 Mar 2013

TSRI scientists awarded innovative grant to develop anti-smoking drug candidates

As part of an unprecedented national effort to develop new drugs to treat neurological disorders, scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have been awarded an innovative grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke to help people break their addiction to nicotine.

28 Mar 2013

Study identifies neural pathways tied to eating for pleasure

New research from the University of Georgia has identified the neural pathways in an insect brain tied to eating for pleasure, a discovery that sheds light on mirror impulsive eating pathways in the human brain.

1 Mar 2013

Study investigates biology of emotional sharing

Therapists have long known that people who've had a traumatic experience feel the need to talk about what they've been through. This process is called 'social sharing' and can take place for days, weeks, months or years after the event.

19 Dec 2012

New way to effectively make designer drugs that hit collections of protein targets simultaneously

An international research collaboration led by scientists at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and the University of Dundee, in the U.K., have developed a way to efficiently and effectively make designer drugs that hit multiple protein targets at once.

13 Dec 2012

Oxytocin administration to fathers increases parental engagement with their infants

A large body of research has focused on the ability of oxytocin to facilitate social bonding in both marital and parenting relationships in human females. A new laboratory study, led by Dr. Ruth Feldman from Bar-Ilan University in Israel and published in the current issue of Biological Psychiatry, has found that oxytocin administration to fathers increases their parental engagement, with parallel effects observed in their infants.

11 Dec 2012

Highlights for December 2012 issue of GSA’s Genetics journal

Listed below are the selected highlights for the December 2012 issue of the Genetics Society of America's journal, Genetics.

5 Dec 2012