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.

Activation of protein P300 plays central role in DNA repair in hippocampal neurons

Various medications have been developed to treat neurodegenerative disorders, and drugs without significant side effects are gaining widespread interest such disorders.

27 Dec 2013

Research shows that human brains stumble on even the simplest rule-based calculations

Even scientists are fond of thinking of the human brain as a computer, following sets of rules to communicate, make decisions and find a meal.

24 Dec 2013

Schizophrenia brain marker matches genetic risk

Polygenic risk for schizophrenia correlates with neural inefficiency in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, say researchers.

24 Dec 2013

State highlights: Minn. to cut elderly Medicaid benefits; Calif.'s Insurance Commissioner finds fault with Obamacare, seeks re-election

Starting in January, thousands of low-income elderly Minnesotans could lose government benefits intended to help them stay in their homes and out of nursing care. In an effort to constrain runaway Medicaid spending, Minnesota is implementing stricter rules that will make it harder for senior citizens to qualify for home-based services, potentially leaving them with reduced care or no care at all (Serres, 12/21).

24 Dec 2013

Transplanting self-donated Schwann cells aids hind limb functional recovery

A study carried out at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine for "The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis" has found that transplanting self-donated Schwann cells (SCs, the principal ensheathing cells of the nervous system) that are elongated so as to bridge scar tissue in the injured spinal cord, aids hind limb functional recovery in rats modeled with spinal cord injury.

24 Dec 2013

Changes to LZTR1 gene predispose people to develop schwannomas

Changes to a gene called LZTR1 predispose people to develop a rare disorder where multiple tumors called schwannomas form near nerve pathways, according to a study published today in the journal Nature Genetics and led by researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

24 Dec 2013

Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition beneficial to cardiac regeneration

Cell-based therapies have been shown to enhance cardiac regeneration, but autologous (patient self-donated) cells have produced only "modest results." In an effort to improve myocardial regeneration through cell transplantation, a research team from Germany has taken epithelial cells from placenta (amniotic epithelial cells, or AECs) and converted them into mesenchymal cells. After transplanting the transitioned cells into mice modelling a myocardial infarction, the researchers found that the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition was beneficial to cardiac regeneration by lowering infarct size.

24 Dec 2013

Variation in oxytocin receptor gene influences face recognition skills, study finds

New findings suggest the oxytocin receptor, a gene known to influence mother-infant bonding and pair bonding in monogamous species, also plays a special role in the ability to remember faces. This research has important implications for disorders in which social information processing is disrupted, including autism spectrum disorder. In addition, the finding may lead to new strategies for improving social cognition in several psychiatric disorders.

24 Dec 2013

ANP reports positive interim results from ATL1103 Phase II clinical trial for acromegaly

Antisense Therapeutics Limited is pleased to advise that positive results have been achieved from the interim analysis of a subset of available data from its Phase II clinical trial of ATL1103 in patients with the growth disorder, acromegaly.

23 Dec 2013

Research proves effectiveness of computerized neurocognitive testing for concussions

Computerized neurocognitive testing for concussions is widely used in amateur and professional sports, but little research over the past decade proves its effectiveness, a paper published this month in the journal Neuropsychology Review says.

23 Dec 2013

Icahn School of Medicine receives $1.3M grant to build collaborative research infrastructure for stroke center

23 Dec 2013

Kessler Foundation scientists awarded subcontract to study ways to improve disability statistics

Kessler Foundation scientists John O'Neill, PhD, CRC and Amanda Botticello, PhD, MPH, were awarded a subcontract on the University of New Hampshire's Rehabilitation Research and Training Center grant on Disability Statistics and Demographics. The five-year grant is funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research under cooperative agreement H133B130015. Economist Andrew Houtenville, PhD, of UNH's Institute on Disability, is project director of the StatsRRTC grant, which totals $4.3 million.

22 Dec 2013

Small molecule nonsense suppression strategy for aniridia-associated defects

Congenital aniridia is a progressive disease that is associated with improper development of eye structures as well as abnormalities in the brain and pancreas. A variety of nonsense mutations in the PAX6 gene are linked with aniridia; however, despite understanding the genetic basis of the disease, few treatment and prevention strategies are available.

22 Dec 2013

Studies yield new insights into molecular mechanisms that underlie learning process

Learning requires constant reconfiguration of the connections between nerve cells. Two new studies now yield new insights into the molecular mechanisms that underlie the learning process.

22 Dec 2013

Manipulating epigenetic mechanism may promote cell death in pediatric brain cancer

Researchers at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, the university hospital (Hospital de Cl-nicas de Porto Alegre, HCPA) and the Children's Cancer Institute (Instituto do C-ncer Infantil do Rio Grande do Sul, ICI-RS) in Porto Alegre, Brazil, have shown that manipulating an epigenetic mechanism, which regulates gene expression, may promote cell death and favor maturation towards less malignant-prone phenotypes in pediatric brain cancer cell lines.

22 Dec 2013

CUMC researchers clarify three fundamental issues about Alzheimer's disease

Using high-resolution functional MRI imaging in patients with Alzheimer's disease and in mouse models of the disease, Columbia University Medical Center researchers have clarified three fundamental issues about Alzheimer's: where it starts, why it starts there, and how it spreads. In addition to advancing understanding of Alzheimer's, the findings could improve early detection of the disease, when drugs may be most effective.

22 Dec 2013

Intrexon enters into definitive agreement to acquire Medistem

Intrexon Corporation, a leader in synthetic biology, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire, for approximately $26 million, San Diego-based Medistem, Inc. a pioneer in the development of Endometrial Regenerative Cells, universal donor adult stem cells that stimulate new blood vessel formation and are capable of generating different tissues including heart, brain, pancreas, liver, bone, cartilage and lung.

21 Dec 2013

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai joins NIH Stroke Trials Network

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai joins a top-flight network of 25 regional stroke centers announced by the National Institute of Health that will focus on prevention, treatment, and recovery from stroke. As part of the NIH Stroke Trials Network (NIHStrokeNet), the medical school will receive a 5-year, $1.3 million grant to build a collaborative research infrastructure for a regional coordinating stroke center.

20 Dec 2013

Periodic meetings with lactation consultant improves chances of breastfeeding

In two separate clinical trials, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have found that periodic meetings with a lactation consultant encourages women traditionally resistant to breastfeeding to do so, at least for a few months—long enough for mother and child to gain health benefits.

20 Dec 2013

Newly-discovered selective process may explain why brain function does not deteriorate

As we grow older, our brains undergo a major reorganisation reducing the connections in the brain. Studying people up to the age of 40, scientists led by Dr Marcus Kaiser and Ms Sol Lim at Newcastle University found that while overall connections in the brain get streamlined, long-distance connections that are crucial for integrating information are preserved.

20 Dec 2013

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

Activation of protein P300 plays central role in DNA repair in hippocampal neurons

Research shows that human brains stumble on even the simplest rule-based calculations

Schizophrenia brain marker matches genetic risk

State highlights: Minn. to cut elderly Medicaid benefits; Calif.'s Insurance Commissioner finds fault with Obamacare, seeks re-election

Transplanting self-donated Schwann cells aids hind limb functional recovery

Changes to LZTR1 gene predispose people to develop schwannomas

Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition beneficial to cardiac regeneration

Variation in oxytocin receptor gene influences face recognition skills, study finds

ANP reports positive interim results from ATL1103 Phase II clinical trial for acromegaly

Research proves effectiveness of computerized neurocognitive testing for concussions

Icahn School of Medicine receives $1.3M grant to build collaborative research infrastructure for stroke center

Kessler Foundation scientists awarded subcontract to study ways to improve disability statistics

Small molecule nonsense suppression strategy for aniridia-associated defects

Studies yield new insights into molecular mechanisms that underlie learning process

Manipulating epigenetic mechanism may promote cell death in pediatric brain cancer

CUMC researchers clarify three fundamental issues about Alzheimer's disease

Intrexon enters into definitive agreement to acquire Medistem

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai joins NIH Stroke Trials Network

Periodic meetings with lactation consultant improves chances of breastfeeding

Newly-discovered selective process may explain why brain function does not deteriorate

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