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.

LRI's innovative discovery to predict lupus receives license for clinical laboratory development

A discovery made by Lupus Research Institute-funded investigator Emily Baechler Gillespie, PhD, at the University of Minnesota has been licensed to a major clinical laboratory for development and could soon result in a test that quickly and easily enables patients and their physicians to determine when a lupus flare is imminent.

29 Oct 2010

Fast Neutron Radiotherapy safe and effective for treatment of non-small cell lung cancer: Study

Scientists from the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute and Wayne State University School of Medicine (WSU SOM) in Detroit are presenting two research studies that found the use of Fast Neutron Radiotherapy (FNRT) – a form of radiation that is about three times more powerful than typical photon radiotherapy – is highly effective and safe for patients who are dealing with non-small cell lung cancer. The findings are being formally presented Monday, Nov. 1, at the American Society of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) Annual Meeting.

29 Oct 2010

International Congress at Spain highlights advances in neuroimmunological disease treatment

The complexity of the immune system and nervous system turn Neuroimmunology into one of the most exciting fields of modern biomedicine. Between October 26th and 30th takes place in Sitges (Barcelona, Spain) the X International Congress of Neuroimmunology of the International Society of Neuroimmunology.

29 Oct 2010

Scientists develop new method to analyze early detection of virus

The virus, called enterovirus 71, is closely related to poliovirus, and was first detected in California in the 1960s. Since then the virus has spread across Asia, affecting mostly children and some adults. Serious cases of the disease can include neurological disorders such as meningitis, paralysis and encephalitis.

29 Oct 2010

Scientists identify potential new treatment for Nipah and Hendra viruses

Scientists at Weill Cornell Medical College have identified a potential new treatment for the Nipah and Hendra viruses, two lethal and emerging viruses for which there is currently no treatment or vaccine available. The approach could also lead to new therapies for measles, mumps and the flu. The new research appears in today's edition of the prestigious journal Public Library of Science (PLoS) Pathogens.

29 Oct 2010

Boston Scientific's Neurovascular business to be acquired by Stryker

Boston Scientific Corporation today announced the execution of a definitive agreement under which Stryker Corporation will acquire Boston Scientific's Neurovascular business. The purchase price is $1.5 billion, payable in cash, of which $1.4 billion is payable at closing and $100 million will be payable following the closing and upon the occurrence of the commercialization of the next-generation Target™ Detachable Coils and the transfer or separation of certain manufacturing facilities, which is anticipated to occur over a period of approximately 24 months.

From Stryker 29 Oct 2010

StemCells initiates HuCNS-SC second clinical trial for Batten disease in children

StemCells, Inc. announced today that it has initiated a second clinical trial of its HuCNS-SC product candidate (purified human neural stem cells) in neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL, also often referred to as Batten disease), a fatal neurodegenerative disorder in children.

29 Oct 2010

Stryker enters agreement to acquire assets of Neurovascular division of Boston Scientific

Stryker Corporation announced today a definitive agreement to acquire the assets of the Neurovascular division of Boston Scientific in an all cash transaction for $1.5 billion, which includes $100 million of milestone payments.

From Stryker 29 Oct 2010

Common psychiatric drugs could slow dementia

Researchers say commonly used psychiatric drugs could be effective in slowing the progression of certain types of dementia. Dr John Kwok and colleagues from Neuroscience Research Australia have discovered a mutant gene that causes abnormal proteins build up in the brains of people with frontotemporal dementia, a disease that affects people in their 50s and 60s.

28 Oct 2010

Antigenics third quarter net loss decreases from $10.8 million to $5.9 million

Antigenics Inc. reported today its results for the quarter ended September 30, 2010. The company incurred a net loss attributable to common stockholders of $5.9 million, or $0.06 per share, basic and diluted, for the third quarter of 2010, compared with a net loss attributable to common stockholders of $10.8 million, or $0.13 per share, basic and diluted, in the third quarter of 2009.

28 Oct 2010

New computer program shows how brain's complex fiber tracks mature as we grow up

The brain's inner network becomes increasingly more efficient as humans mature. Now, for the first time without invasive measures, a joint study from the Ecole Polytechnique F-d-rale de Lausanne (EPFL) and the University of Lausanne (UNIL), in collaboration with Harvard Medical School, has verified these gains with a powerful new computer program. Reported in the PNAS early online edition last week, the soon-to-be-released software allows for individualized maps of vital brain connectivity that could aide in epilepsy and schizophrenia research.

28 Oct 2010

IsoRay completes Cs-131 brachytherapy seeds feasibility study for breast cancer treatment

IsoRay, Inc. announced, today, it has completed an initial feasibility study, which demonstrates the ability to use its patented Cesium-131 (Cs-131) brachytherapy seeds (internal radiation therapy) in accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) for breast cancer treatment.

28 Oct 2010

Researchers investigate relation between cortical thickness and nicotine dependence

Is there a relation between the structure of specific regions of the brain and nicotine dependence? This is the question researchers of the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin and of the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), the German National Metrology Institute, have been investigating lately. The results of these investigations extend and specify those of preceding studies: A specific region of the cerebral cortex of smokers is thinner than that of people who have never smoked in their lives.

28 Oct 2010

Monitoring glucose levels in brain can help predict second-wave of damage in head injury patients

Why do some of the one million people who sustain head injuries annually in United States experience a mysterious second wave of brain damage days after the initial injury - just when they appear to be recovering? Limited clinical trials using an innovative new device to monitor brain chemistry on a second-by-second basis are underway to answer that life-and-death question, according to an article in the current issue of Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), ACS' weekly newsmagazine. Brain injury is the leading cause of death and disability worldwide.

28 Oct 2010

PFF’s national scientific conference improves clinical understanding of IPF

The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation (PFF) today announced that it is establishing a national scientific conference for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) physicians and patients beginning in 2011. IPF Summit 2011 From Bench to Bedside, will be held at the Marriott Magnificent Mile in Chicago, IL on December 1-3, 2011.

28 Oct 2010

Individuals can consciously control neurons inside the head, study finds

Five years ago, neuroscientist Christof Koch of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), neurosurgeon Itzhak Fried of UCLA, and their colleagues discovered that a single neuron in the human brain can function much like a sophisticated computer and recognize people, landmarks, and objects, suggesting that a consistent and explicit code may help transform complex visual representations into long-term and more abstract memories.

28 Oct 2010

Researchers develop software tool to study wiring of brains

A team of researchers at the Eindhoven University of Technology has developed a software tool that physicians can use to easily study the wiring of the brains of their patients. The tool converts MRI scans using special techniques to three-dimensional images. This now makes it possible to view a total picture of the winding roads and their contacts without having to operate.

28 Oct 2010

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

LRI's innovative discovery to predict lupus receives license for clinical laboratory development

Fast Neutron Radiotherapy safe and effective for treatment of non-small cell lung cancer: Study

International Congress at Spain highlights advances in neuroimmunological disease treatment

Scientists develop new method to analyze early detection of virus

Scientists identify potential new treatment for Nipah and Hendra viruses

Boston Scientific's Neurovascular business to be acquired by Stryker

StemCells initiates HuCNS-SC second clinical trial for Batten disease in children

Stryker enters agreement to acquire assets of Neurovascular division of Boston Scientific

Common psychiatric drugs could slow dementia

Antigenics third quarter net loss decreases from $10.8 million to $5.9 million

New computer program shows how brain's complex fiber tracks mature as we grow up

IsoRay completes Cs-131 brachytherapy seeds feasibility study for breast cancer treatment

Researchers investigate relation between cortical thickness and nicotine dependence

Monitoring glucose levels in brain can help predict second-wave of damage in head injury patients

PFF’s national scientific conference improves clinical understanding of IPF

Individuals can consciously control neurons inside the head, study finds

Researchers develop software tool to study wiring of brains

Curemark adds two sites in California for CM-AT Phase III clinical trial program

World's largest free-standing proton therapy center opens

Scientists suggest E-cadherin can function as oncogene in some cancers

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

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

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