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.

Experimental drug that targets macrophages decreases cancer's growth

An experimental drug that targets macrophages, a type of immune cells, in the microenvironment surrounding the lethal brain tumor glioblastoma multiforme decreased the cancer's growth and extended survival of laboratory mice with the cancer, scientists will report on Tuesday Dec. 17, at the American Society for Cell Biology annual meeting in New Orleans.

16 Dec 2013

Drug abuse appears to foster brain changes that resemble schizophrenia

Teens who were heavy marijuana users -- smoking it daily for about three years -- had abnormal changes in their brain structures related to working memory and performed poorly on memory tasks, reports a new Northwestern Medicine- study.

16 Dec 2013

Robotic trolley system helps overcome falling fear for patients who recovering from stroke, brain injury

The risk and fear of falling often affects patients who are recovering from a stroke, spinal cord or brain injury, and orthopaedic injuries, and that fear may inhibit their progress in rehabilitation.

16 Dec 2013

Nucletron installs first Esteya electronic brachytherapy system for skin cancer treatment

The first Esteya electronic brachytherapy system in the United States has been installed at New York's Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Esteya by Nucletron, an Elekta company, is a new approach for skin cancer treatment that relies on a small, high dose rate (HDR) X-ray source to apply high precision radiotherapy directly to the cancer site.

From Elekta 16 Dec 2013

NIH Stroke Trials Network includes UC San Diego Health System as grant recipient

A network of 25 nationally recognized stroke centers has been created to rapidly address the three core features of stroke research and care: prevention, treatment and recovery. The regional coordinating centers, working with nearby satellite facilities, will span the country and have teams of researchers representing every stroke-related medical specialty, with the primary goal of bringing new therapies and strategies to the stroke community more rapidly.

16 Dec 2013

Hockey players who trained with strobe eyewear show improvement in practice drills

Professional hockey players who trained with special eyewear that only allowed them to see action intermittently showed significant improvement in practice drills, according to a Duke University study with the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes.

16 Dec 2013

Researchers gain better understanding of neurochemical basis of addiction with optogenetics

Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center researchers are gaining a better understanding of the neurochemical basis of addiction with a new technology called optogenetics.

16 Dec 2013

Four U.S. researchers to receive grants to improve cognition in individuals living with Down syndrome

The Scientific Advisory Board of the Jerome Lejeune Foundation USA has recommended 4 U.S. researchers to receive grants from the Foundation for its second funding cycle of 2013.

15 Dec 2013

UTHealth professor wins Founders' Laurel Award for exceptional service in the field of medical education

Arthur L. Day, M.D., professor of neurosurgery at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and a neurosurgeon at the Mischer Neuroscience Institute at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, has received one of the top honors awarded by the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

14 Dec 2013

Neuroscientists use new technique to enhance a form of self-control through brain stimulation

If you have ever said or done the wrong thing at the wrong time, you should read this. Neuroscientists at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and the University of California, San Diego, have successfully demonstrated a technique to enhance a form of self-control through a novel form of brain stimulation.

14 Dec 2013

Scientists reveal how two genes interact to kill broad range of cancer cells

Scientists from Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center have revealed how two genes interact to kill a wide range of cancer cells. Originally discovered by the study's lead investigator Paul B. Fisher, M.Ph., Ph.D., the genes known as mda-7/IL-24 and SARI could potentially be harnessed to treat both primary and metastatic forms of brain, breast, colon, lung, ovary, prostate, skin and other cancers.

14 Dec 2013

NIH publishes new informational booklet on Lewy body dementias

A new informational booklet on Lewy body dementias has been published by the National Institutes of Health for people living with LBD, their families and healthcare providers. The booklet was a collaboration among the Lewy Body Dementia Association, the Shiley-Marcos Alzheimer's Disease Research Center at the University of California, San Diego, the National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

14 Dec 2013

Study: Brain blood vessel cells may be therapeutic targets for Alzheimer's disease

A study in mice shows how a breakdown of the brain's blood vessels may amplify or cause problems associated with Alzheimer's disease. The results published in Nature Communications suggest that blood vessel cells called pericytes may provide novel targets for treatments and diagnoses.

14 Dec 2013

New UCSF-led study links obesity to development of chronic kidney disease

A new UCSF-led study of nearly 3,000 individuals links obesity to the development of kidney disease. The work also shows that, when properly measured, declines in kidney function are detectable long before the emergence of other obesity-related diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

14 Dec 2013

NIH names UTHealth as one of 25 regional stroke centers

The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston has been named one of 25 regional stroke centers by the National Institutes of Health and the only one in Texas.

14 Dec 2013

Geriatrician draws specific conclusions about Santa’s health habits

Children around the world look to Santa Claus as a model of good behavior. But can this sleigh-riding bearer of goodies also be a model good health habits for adults?

13 Dec 2013

Spaceflights cause cellular-level damage and may lead to long-term vision problems

Those who travel to space are rewarded with a beautiful sight - planet Earth. But the effects of space travel on the human sense of sight aren't so beautiful. More than 30 percent of astronauts who returned from two-week space shuttle missions and 60 percent who spent six months aboard the International Space Station were diagnosed with eye problems. Two recent investigations examined mechanisms that may explain eye changes in spaceflight, help find ways to minimize this health risk to astronauts and eventually prevent and treat eye diseases on Earth.

13 Dec 2013

Polyunsaturated fatty acids play key role in embryonic development

One classical question in developmental biology is how different tissue types arise in the correct position of the developing embryo. While one signaling pathway that controls this process has been well described, unexpected findings from a team led by Carnegie's Steven Farber reveal the importance of polyunsaturated fatty acid metabolism in this process. It is published online December 12 in Developmental Cell.

13 Dec 2013

NeuroPace- Responsive Neurostimulation System treatment to be offered at Spectrum Health

Spectrum Health will be the first health system in West Michigan and among the first in the nation to offer treatment with a newly FDA-approved device that uses electric stimulation of the brain for adult epilepsy patients whose seizures have not responded to medication.

13 Dec 2013

Bioethics Commission releases ethical recommendations to manage incidental and secondary findings

Researchers conduct a memory study, scan a participant's brain, and find more than they bargain for: a tumor. What do the researchers owe the participant? What does the participant want to know?

13 Dec 2013

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

Experimental drug that targets macrophages decreases cancer's growth

Drug abuse appears to foster brain changes that resemble schizophrenia

Robotic trolley system helps overcome falling fear for patients who recovering from stroke, brain injury

Nucletron installs first Esteya electronic brachytherapy system for skin cancer treatment

NIH Stroke Trials Network includes UC San Diego Health System as grant recipient

Hockey players who trained with strobe eyewear show improvement in practice drills

Researchers gain better understanding of neurochemical basis of addiction with optogenetics

Four U.S. researchers to receive grants to improve cognition in individuals living with Down syndrome

UTHealth professor wins Founders' Laurel Award for exceptional service in the field of medical education

Neuroscientists use new technique to enhance a form of self-control through brain stimulation

Scientists reveal how two genes interact to kill broad range of cancer cells

NIH publishes new informational booklet on Lewy body dementias

Study: Brain blood vessel cells may be therapeutic targets for Alzheimer's disease

New UCSF-led study links obesity to development of chronic kidney disease

NIH names UTHealth as one of 25 regional stroke centers

Geriatrician draws specific conclusions about Santa’s health habits

Spaceflights cause cellular-level damage and may lead to long-term vision problems

Polyunsaturated fatty acids play key role in embryonic development

NeuroPace- Responsive Neurostimulation System treatment to be offered at Spectrum Health

Bioethics Commission releases ethical recommendations to manage incidental and secondary findings

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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