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Scientists reveal how TREX proteins act as passport for transfer of cell blueprints

Decoded process could hold the key to future treatments for a wide range of chronic health problems including Motor Neuron Disease, myotonic dystrophy and a wide range of cancers, University of Sheffield scientists have revealed.

16 Aug 2012

Schizophrenia and the immune system: an interview with Prof Cyndi Shannon Weickert

Schizophrenia is the most disabling disease impacting youth today. It impacts 1% of the total population and typically causes withdrawal from society, loss in IQ, disordered thought and speech, hallucinations and delusions.

14 Aug 2012

Chronic nerve pain: researchers identify which sensory nerve cells are responsible

New research, led by academics at the University of Bristol and published in the journal Pain, has identified the subtypes of sensory nerve cells that are likely to contribute to long-term nerve pain from partial nerve injury. It is hoped this will aid in development of more effective pain killers.

13 Aug 2012

Molecular missteps disrupt brain function in adult-onset muscular dystrophy

The molecular missteps that disrupt brain function in the most common form of adult-onset muscular dystrophy have been revealed in a new study published by Cell Press. Myotonic dystrophy is marked by progressive muscle wasting and weakness, as well as excessive daytime sleepiness, memory problems, and mental retardation.

10 Aug 2012

NSF awards Yale University and UCSD collaborative grant to develop Neuroscience Gateway

The University of California, at San Diego and Yale University have been awarded a collaborative grant by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to develop a Neuroscience Gateway (NSG) that gives neuroscientists broadened access to essential high-performance computing (HPC) and storage resources.

9 Aug 2012

Two major classes of brain cells repress neural activity in specific mathematical ways

The brain has billions of neurons, arranged in complex circuits that allow us to perceive the world, control our movements and make decisions. Deciphering those circuits is critical to understanding how the brain works and what goes wrong in neurological disorders.

9 Aug 2012

Studies in mice reveal how mood-altering drugs may affect brain stem cells

Working with mice, Johns Hopkins researchers say they have figured out how stem cells found in a part of the brain responsible for learning, memory and mood regulation decide to remain dormant or create new brain cells. Apparently, the stem cells "listen in" on the chemical communication among nearby neurons to get an idea about what is stressing the system and when they need to act.

7 Aug 2012

Anacardic acid can rescue some ALS phenotypes in vitro

A research group at the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA) at Japan's Kyoto University has successfully recapitulated amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)-associated abnormalities in motor neurons differentiated from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) obtained from patients with familial ALS, a late-onset, fatal disorder which is also known for Lou Gehrig's disease. In a drug screening assay using the disease model, the team further found that the chemical compound anacardic acid can rescue some ALS phenotypes in vitro.

3 Aug 2012

Advanced understanding of neurodegenerative diseases achieved by Trophos

Trophos SA, a clinical stage pharmaceutical company developing innovative therapeutics from discovery to clinical validation for indications with under-served needs in neurology and cardiology, announces today the conclusion of the pan-European MitoTarget Project, the EU funded orphan disease project, with submission of the final report to the EC.

31 Jul 2012

Parkinson’s disease treatment: an interview with Ted Dawson

Parkinson’s disease is a disorder which usually affects people in their 60’s and older. It is caused by the loss of dopamine neurons in the brain leading to rigidity, slowness of movement, tremor, problems with balance and so forth.

31 Jul 2012

New research indicates molecular signaling from end to end in peripheral nerve cells

When the longest cells in the body are injured at their farthest reaches, coordinating the cells' repair is no easy task. This is in part because these peripheral nerve cells can be extremely long - up to one meter in adult humans - which is a lot of distance for a molecular distress signal to cover in order to reach the "command center" of the cell's nucleus.

30 Jul 2012

Study extends scientific understanding of how pheromones activate the vomeronasal organ

The vomeronasal organ (VNO) is one of evolution's most direct enforcers. From its niche within the nose in most land-based vertebrates, it detects pheromones and triggers corresponding basic-instinct behaviors, from compulsive mating to male-on-male death matches. A new study from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, published online in Nature Neuroscience on July 29, 2012, extends the scientific understanding of how pheromones activate the VNO, and has implications for sensory transduction experiments in other fields.

30 Jul 2012

Study validates importin beta1 protein's crucial role in nerve repair

Several years ago, Prof. Michael Fainzilber and his group in the Biological Chemistry Department made a surprising discovery: Proteins thought to exist only near the cell nucleus could also be found in the far-off regions of the body's longest cells - peripheral nerve cells that extend processes called axons, reaching up to a meter in length in adult humans.

27 Jul 2012

Researchers develop piglet model to study infant brain development

Events that take place early in life almost certainly have consequences for later cognitive development. Establishing the connections is difficult, however, because human infants cannot be used as laboratory subjects. Rodney Johnson and his collaborators have developed an alternative model for studying infant brain development. "Assistant professor Ryan Dilger and I became interested in establishing the neonatal piglet as a model of human brain and cognitive development 3 or 4 years ago," he said.

26 Jul 2012

Insomnia: an interview with Dr Darryle Schoepp

Insomnia is a very common disorder. In medical terms it can affect a third of people. It affects elderly as well as non-elderly people, and is more common in women.

26 Jul 2012

AAQ chemical temporarily restores vision in blind mice

A team of University of California, Berkeley, scientists in collaboration with researchers at the University of Munich and University of Washington in Seattle has discovered a chemical that temporarily restores some vision to blind mice, and is working on an improved compound that may someday allow people with degenerative blindness to see again.

26 Jul 2012

Vanderbilt researchers receives new $2.1M grant to develop microbrain bioreactor

Take a millionth of a human brain and squeeze it into a special chamber the size of a mustard seed. Link it to a second chamber filled with cerebral spinal fluid and thread both of them with artificial blood vessels in order to create a microenvironment that makes the neurons and other brain cells behave as if they were in a living brain. Then surround the chambers with a battery of sensors that monitor how the cells respond when exposed to minute quantities of dietary toxins, disease organisms or new drugs under development.

25 Jul 2012

Scientists uncover how internal mechanisms in nerve cells wire the brain

Scientists at the University of Manchester have uncovered how the internal mechanisms in nerve cells wire the brain. The findings open up new avenues in the investigation of neurodegenerative diseases by analysing the cellular processes underlying these conditions.

21 Jul 2012

Studies report on therapeutic efficacy of stem cell transplantation in animal models of ALS, SCI

Two studies published in a recent issue of Cell Medicine report on the therapeutic efficacy of stem cell transplantation in animal models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and spinal cord injury (SCI).

20 Jul 2012

Epithilone D effective in preventing Alzheimer's in animal models

While clinical trial results are being released regarding drugs intended to decrease amyloid production - thought to contribute to decline in Alzheimer's disease - clinical trials of drugs targeting other disease proteins, such as tau, are in their initial phases.

20 Jul 2012

Neuron News and Research

Scientists reveal how TREX proteins act as passport for transfer of cell blueprints

Schizophrenia and the immune system: an interview with Prof Cyndi Shannon Weickert

Chronic nerve pain: researchers identify which sensory nerve cells are responsible

Molecular missteps disrupt brain function in adult-onset muscular dystrophy

NSF awards Yale University and UCSD collaborative grant to develop Neuroscience Gateway

Two major classes of brain cells repress neural activity in specific mathematical ways

Studies in mice reveal how mood-altering drugs may affect brain stem cells

Anacardic acid can rescue some ALS phenotypes in vitro

Advanced understanding of neurodegenerative diseases achieved by Trophos

Parkinson’s disease treatment: an interview with Ted Dawson

New research indicates molecular signaling from end to end in peripheral nerve cells

Study extends scientific understanding of how pheromones activate the vomeronasal organ

Study validates importin beta1 protein's crucial role in nerve repair

Researchers develop piglet model to study infant brain development

Insomnia: an interview with Dr Darryle Schoepp

AAQ chemical temporarily restores vision in blind mice

Vanderbilt researchers receives new $2.1M grant to develop microbrain bioreactor

Scientists uncover how internal mechanisms in nerve cells wire the brain

Studies report on therapeutic efficacy of stem cell transplantation in animal models of ALS, SCI

Epithilone D effective in preventing Alzheimer's in animal models

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