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.

Mayo Clinic scientists conduct clinical study on functional dyspesia patients

"Nerve cells are found throughout the body, and just as their dysfunction in the brain can cause depression, we suspect overly sensitive nerves in the gut can produce this very uncomfortable indigestion," says Nicholas Talley, M.D., Ph.D., chair of the trial and chair of the Department of Internal Medicine at the Mayo Clinic campus in Florida.

18 Sep 2009

Early detection of Alzheimer's can prevent disease progression

More than 5.3 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's, and every 71 seconds someone in America develops the disease.

18 Sep 2009

Biomaterial gel for treating spinal cord injury

Research led by a scientist at the Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center has shown injecting biomaterial gel into a spinal cord injury site provides significantly improved healing.

18 Sep 2009

AFA welcomes inclusion of cognitive impairment screening in healthcare reform proposal

The Alzheimer's Foundation of America (AFA) today applauded Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) and Senator Tom Carper (D-DE), who spearheaded the provision, for including cognitive impairment screening for Medicare beneficiaries in Baucus' healthcare reform proposal, "America's Healthy Future Act of 2009."

18 Sep 2009

Deterioration in brain function following breast cancer therapy has negative effects on quality of life

One of the most problematic side effects of cancer treatment, chemobrain - a range of symptoms including memory loss, inability to concentrate, difficulty thinking and other subtle cognitive changes following chemotherapy - seriously diminishes women's quality of life and daily functioning.

18 Sep 2009

Nimotuzumab drug approved for Mexican distribution

YM BioSciences Inc. (NYSE Amex:YMI, TSX:YM, AIM:YMBA), a life sciences product development company that identifies and advances a diverse portfolio of promising cancer-related products at various stages of development, today reported that nimotuzumab has been approved for marketing in Mexico.

17 Sep 2009

Deterioration in brain function following breast cancer therapy affects quality of life: Study

17 Sep 2009

NIH to fund grants for epigenetic research

The National Institutes of Health announced today that it will fund 22 grants on genome-wide studies of how epigenetic changes -- chemical modifications to genes that result from diet, aging, stress, or environmental exposures -- define and contribute to specific human diseases and biological processes.

17 Sep 2009

Infections due to handwashing failures cause 100,000 deaths annually

At Bay Medical Center in Panama City, Florida, Compirion Healthcare Solutions, a healthcare consulting firm that was engaged to help improve ED Throughput, Finance and Core Measures compliance, found only 30% of the staff regularly washed their hands between visits with patients.

17 Sep 2009

Advanced radiosurgery technology utilized by Cyberknife for effective cancer treatment

Cyberknife of Long Island has become the first cancer center in New York to treat tumors with the most advanced radiosurgery technology available to date.

17 Sep 2009

Findings may lead to drugs that destroy TB in dormant stage of lifecycle

Attempts to eradicate tuberculosis (TB) are stymied by the fact that the disease-causing bacteria have a sophisticated mechanism for surviving dormant in infected cells. Now, a team of scientists led by researchers from Weill Cornell Medical College has identified compounds that inhibit that mechanism -- without damaging human cells.

17 Sep 2009

Adolescents are less susceptible to drug withdrawal than adults

As part of efforts to understand drug abuse, Georgia State University researchers are finding that adolescent rats appear to be less vulnerable to the long-term effects of withdrawal and relapse in certain types of drug use than rats that take the drugs in adulthood.

17 Sep 2009

Study: Therapy addition reduces risk of stroke and other cardiovascular events

Data from the independent KYOTO HEART study, presented recently at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress in Barcelona, Spain, and published online in the European Heart Journal demonstrated the addition of the angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) Diovan (valsartan) to a non-ARB-based treatment regimen for high blood pressure provided a significant 45% relative risk reduction in cardiovascular events(1) including stroke, compared to conventional non-ARB treatment regimen.(1)

17 Sep 2009

Genentech releases Phase III PRIMA study findings

Genentech, Inc., a wholly-owned member of the Roche Group and Biogen Idec, today announced that a Phase III study (PRIMA) showed that patients with follicular lymphoma who continued receiving Rituxan (rituximab) alone after responding to Rituxan and chemotherapy lived longer without their disease worsening (progression-free survival or PFS) than those who did not continue to receive Rituxan.

17 Sep 2009

Clinical trial focuses on healing diabetic foot ulcers with stem cells

Fortis Healthcare, one of India's leading private hospital groups, has announced it will broaden inclusion criteria for its upcoming diabetic foot clinical trial. The study will use stem cells derived from peripheral blood to treat critical limb ischemia (diabetic foot).

17 Sep 2009

New research shows that physical and psychological factors affect food choices

New research suggests that there are important psychological factors to consider when making a food choice.

17 Sep 2009

Molecular link between intelligence and curiosity discovered

Scientists from the Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute of Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto have discovered a molecular link between intelligence and curiosity, which may lead to the development of drugs to improve learning.

17 Sep 2009

New intraoperative nerve integrity monitors from Medtronic

Medtronic (NYSE: MDT) recently announced the launch of the NIM-Response® 3.0 and NIM-Neuro® 3.0 intraoperative nerve integrity monitors designed for a variety of surgeons, including ear, nose, and throat (ENT); endocrine; general; and peripheral surgeons.

17 Sep 2009

Premion commences cancer treatment with Varian's RapidArc radiotherapy technology

Cancer patients in Australia have gained access to advanced RapidArc(R) radiotherapy treatments from Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR) with its introduction by the leading radiation oncology provider in Queensland. Premion, which operates five cancer centers in Queensland, has treated more than a dozen prostate cancer patients to date with this fast, precise and efficient technique at its Chermside treatment center in Brisbane.

16 Sep 2009

UJI's current research study on early detection of Alzheimer's Disease using fMRI

The Universitat Jaume I (UJI) of Castelló is working on the early detection of Alzheimer's Disease by using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) techniques. The study is being carried out within the framework of a national project called MIND, which approaches Alzheimer's disease from a multidisciplinary perspective and involves twelve biomedicine companies and the corresponding public research organisations associated with them.

16 Sep 2009