Dopaminergic News and Research

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New research on dopamine-containing neurons could pave way for treating neurological disorders

Scientists studying hatchling fish have made a new advance in studying a chemical in the brain that impacts on movement.

2 Feb 2015

Altered dopamine signaling may contribute to autism

Newly discovered genetic variations linked to autism spectrum disorder (ASD) disrupt the function of the dopamine transporter, suggesting that altered dopamine signaling contributes to this common developmental condition, according to a Vanderbilt University-led research team.

31 Jan 2015

Study helps develop better understanding of how dopamine influences behaviour

Scientists studying hatchling fish have made a new advance in studying a chemical in the brain that impacts on movement.

29 Jan 2015

Study: Placental cells may possibly treat damaged nerves

New findings suggest that placental cells may potentially treat damaged nerves possibly leading the way to new treatment for stroke patients.

5 Jan 2015

Mexican study shows mobility can be restored in patients with Parkinson's disease

Mexican scientists demonstrated experimentally, with adult rats, that mobility can be restored in patients with Parkinson's disease, the major degenerative disease of the motor system worldwide.

22 Dec 2014

Interacting neurodegenerative changes promote Parkinson’s cognitive decline

Research indicates that neurodegeneration in the cholinergic system in the brain is a major contributor to cognitive decline in patients with Parkinson’s disease.

17 Dec 2014

IRCM researchers uncover mechanism that regulates dopamine levels in the brain

Researchers in Montréal led by Jacques Drouin, D.Sc., uncovered a mechanism regulating dopamine levels in the brain by working on a mouse model of late onset Parkinson's disease.

12 Dec 2014

Cue processing altered in siblings of schizophrenia patients

The siblings of patients with schizophrenia have altered activity in the ventral striatum during reward anticipation and receipt, a study shows.

6 Nov 2014

Researchers define the process of Parkinson's disease using genetic mouse model

Parkinson's Disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder. In Germany alone, almost half a million people are affected. The focus of the disease is the progressive degeneration of dopamine-producing nerve cells in a certain region of the midbrain, the substantia nigra. Misfolded proteins are the cause. Until recently, it was unclear why damage is confined to specific nerve cells.

16 Oct 2014

Brain structure changes differ between schizophrenia symptoms

The specific areas of the brain with reduced grey matter in patients with schizophrenia differ according to whether they have predominant positive, negative or disorganised symptoms, research suggests.

2 Oct 2014

HSP90 suggested as potential therapeutic target in PD

Heat shock protein (HSP90) has been suggested to be involved in neuronal protein misfolding and accumulation in Parkinson's disease (PD) brains leading to dopaminergic neuronal death and the eventual dopamine depletion.

28 Aug 2014

In vivo dopaminergic imaging strongly correlates with brain pathology

Striatal dopamine transporter binding, assessed using single-photon emission computed tomography, is strongly correlated with substantia nigra cell counts assessed at postmortem, say the authors of a study.

11 Aug 2014

Zhichan decoction promotes dopaminergic neurons following NSC transplantation in PD rats

There is an increasing interest in Parkinson's disease (PD) treatment by increasing dopamine content and reducing dopaminergic metabolites in the brain.

17 Jul 2014

Imaging biomarker proposed for Parkinson’s disease

Reduced off-medication connectivity in the basal ganglia network separates patients with early Parkinson’s disease from healthy controls with high accuracy, preliminary findings suggest.

15 Jul 2014

Sleep problems in PD patients can worsen in later stages of disease

Up to 70% of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients experience sleep problems that negatively impact their quality of life.

11 Jul 2014

Low accuracy of clinical diagnosis for early Parkinson’s disease

About three-quarters of patients suspected to have early Parkinson’s disease eventually prove to have other conditions, a study shows.

3 Jul 2014

Dopamine transporter availability predicts ICDs

Reduced striatal dopamine transporter availability is already present in patients with Parkinson’s disease who go on to develop impulse control disorders, a study shows.

5 Jun 2014

Neuroscientists explain how miswiring in brain area can potentially contribute to ADHD

Neuroscientists at Mayo Clinic in Florida and at Aarhus University in Denmark have shed light on why neurons in the brain's reward system can be miswired, potentially contributing to disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

5 Jun 2014

Duke researchers identify first piece of new brain-repair circuit

Duke researchers have found a new type of neuron in the adult brain that is capable of telling stem cells to make more new neurons. Though the experiments are in their early stages, the finding opens the tantalizing possibility that the brain may be able to repair itself from within.

3 Jun 2014

Presynaptic dopaminergic lesion predicts drug-induced dyskinesia

Research suggests that the extent of presynaptic dopaminergic denervation before starting therapy may predict which patients with Parkinson’s disease will later develop levodopa-induced dyskinesia.

19 May 2014