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.

New findings link obesity and dietary factors to late-life dementias

Difficulties learning, remembering, and concentrating. An inability to resist environmental temptations to eat. A lifetime of progressive deterioration in the brain.

9 Oct 2014

Study shows rats, mice perform similarly in cognitive tests; offers implications for cognition research

It's one of those ideas that seems to make perfect sense: the bigger the brain, the more intelligent the creature.

9 Oct 2014

Neuroscientists solve mystery of ‘chemo brain’

It is estimated that as many as half of patients taking cancer drugs experience a decrease in mental sharpness.

9 Oct 2014

VAL-083 drug compound shows promise against non-small cell lung cancer

DelMar Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage oncology company, today announced the presentation of promising new data supporting the activity of its lead drug compound, VAL-083, in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) at the AACR's New Horizons in Cancer Research: Harnessing Breakthroughs – Targeting Cures. The conference takes place October 9th to 12th in Pudong, Shanghai.

9 Oct 2014

CytRx begins Phase 1b trial of aldoxorubicin plus gemcitabine in patients with metastatic solid tumors

CytRx Corporation, a biopharmaceutical research and development company specializing in oncology, today announced the initiation of enrollment in an open-label Phase 1b clinical trial designed to investigate the preliminary safety and activity of aldoxorubicin plus gemcitabine in subjects with metastatic solid tumors.

9 Oct 2014

Stretch sensors respond weakly to muscle stretch caused by external forces

Stretch sensors in our muscles participate in reflexes that serve the subconscious control of posture and movement. According to a new study published in the Journal of Neuroscience, these sensors respond weakly to muscle stretch caused by one's voluntary action, and most strongly to stretch that is imposed by external forces. The ability to reflect causality in this manner can facilitate appropriate reflex control and accurate self-perception.

9 Oct 2014

Women with healthy diet and lifestyle less likely to have stroke

Women with a healthy diet and lifestyle may be less likely to have a stroke by more than half, according to a study published in the October 8, 2014, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

9 Oct 2014

Specific perceptual learning deficit associated with Fragile X Syndrome

Researchers at Children's Hospital Los Angeles have described for the first time a specific perceptual learning deficit in mice with a mutation of the same gene as found in children with Fragile X Syndrome (FXS).

9 Oct 2014

Discovery could lead to treatments for alcohol-related liver diseases

Researchers at the University of Missouri School of Medicine have identified epigenetic protein changes caused by binge drinking, a discovery that could lead to treatments for alcohol-related liver diseases.

9 Oct 2014

UCI to receive $8 million from NIH to study brain cell activity in motor neuron disorders

UC Irvine will receive $8 million from the National Institutes of Health to establish one of six national centers dedicated to creating a database of human cellular responses that will accelerate efforts to develop new therapies for many diseases.

9 Oct 2014

AT2101 drug, evaluated for Gaucher disease, slows progression of Parkinson's disease in mice

A new study from UCLA found that a drug being evaluated to treat an entirely different disorder helped slow the progression of Parkinson's disease in mice.

9 Oct 2014

Large-scale study results of cardiac arrest cases now available on ScienceDirect

The results of a four-year international study of 2060 cardiac arrest cases across 15 hospitals published and available now on ScienceDirect.

8 Oct 2014

Surgical treatment of strabismus can be carried out at any age

Around four per cent of all newborn children have a squint. In about 50 per cent of cases, this can be corrected with appropriate glasses, however the other half require treatment for their squint and in some cases even squint surgery.

8 Oct 2014

New partners join Grand Challenges Canada to help protect early brain development

Grand Challenges Canada, funded by the Government of Canada, today welcomed three new partners to the Saving Brains Grand Challenge: Aga Khan Foundation Canada, Norlien Foundation and World Vision Canada. These organizations strengthen the existing partnership with the Bernard van Leer Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Maria Cecilia Souto Vidigal Foundation.

8 Oct 2014

Swedish woman gives birth to world's first womb-transplant baby

In a ground-breaking research project at the University of Gothenburg, seven Swedish women have had embryos reintroduced after receiving wombs from living donors. Now the first transplanted woman has delivered a baby – a healthy and normally developed boy. The world-unique birth was acknowledged in The Lancet on 5 October.

8 Oct 2014

USC researchers develop new methods to advance study of human brains, epilepsy

USC biomedical engineers, neurologists and neurosurgeons develop new methods to advance the study of human brains and epilepsy. Studying the human brain is logistically complicated. Living samples of the complex and sensitive organ are limited and difficult to preserve, which means that research on them must be conducted quickly before they expire.

8 Oct 2014

Viewpoints: Relatively few face insurance cancellations; new doctor payment site is 'impenetrable'

People are starting to get letters telling them their health insurance plans have been canceled because of the Affordable Care Act. Because the letters will go out just before the midterm congressional elections, they are likely to get a lot of attention. There have been several stories this past week. But the people affected will represent only a small fraction of the population with health insurance (Margot Sanger-Katz, (10/6).

8 Oct 2014

Pitt researchers awarded $1.25 million DOD grant to establish whole-eye transplantation program

University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers have been awarded $1.25 million from the U.S. Department of Defense to fund two projects that aim to establish the groundwork for the nation's first whole-eye transplantation program.

8 Oct 2014

Sugar consumption linked to memory problems, brain inflammation in adolescent rats

Studying rats as model subjects, scientists found that adolescents were at an increased risk of suffering negative health effects from sugar-sweetened beverage consumption.

8 Oct 2014

BIDMC researcher receives Director's New Innovator award to study roots of hunger, cravings

Mark Andermann, PhD, a neuroendocrinology investigator at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, has been awarded a prestigious Director's New Innovator award as part of the High Risk-High Reward grant program sponsored by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disorders and the National Institutes of Health Common Fund.

8 Oct 2014

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

New findings link obesity and dietary factors to late-life dementias

Study shows rats, mice perform similarly in cognitive tests; offers implications for cognition research

Neuroscientists solve mystery of ‘chemo brain’

VAL-083 drug compound shows promise against non-small cell lung cancer

CytRx begins Phase 1b trial of aldoxorubicin plus gemcitabine in patients with metastatic solid tumors

Stretch sensors respond weakly to muscle stretch caused by external forces

Women with healthy diet and lifestyle less likely to have stroke

Specific perceptual learning deficit associated with Fragile X Syndrome

Discovery could lead to treatments for alcohol-related liver diseases

UCI to receive $8 million from NIH to study brain cell activity in motor neuron disorders

AT2101 drug, evaluated for Gaucher disease, slows progression of Parkinson's disease in mice

Large-scale study results of cardiac arrest cases now available on ScienceDirect

Surgical treatment of strabismus can be carried out at any age

New partners join Grand Challenges Canada to help protect early brain development

Swedish woman gives birth to world's first womb-transplant baby

USC researchers develop new methods to advance study of human brains, epilepsy

Viewpoints: Relatively few face insurance cancellations; new doctor payment site is 'impenetrable'

Pitt researchers awarded $1.25 million DOD grant to establish whole-eye transplantation program

Sugar consumption linked to memory problems, brain inflammation in adolescent rats

BIDMC researcher receives Director's New Innovator award to study roots of hunger, cravings

Industry Focus eBook - Cell & Gene Therapy (1st Edition) eBook

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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