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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.

Menstrual stem cells may help in treatment of stroke and central nervous system disorders

Cryo-Cell International, Inc. today announced results of a study published this month in the cover article of Stem Cells and Development showing that stem cells found in menstrual blood may one day be a potential source for stem cell therapies in stroke and other central nervous system disorders.

5 Apr 2010

Rexahn Pharmaceuticals submits Phase II protocol for study of Serdaxin in treatment of PD

Rexahn Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical stage pharmaceutical company commercializing potential best in class oncology and CNS therapeutics, today announced that it has submitted a Phase II protocol to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the clinical study of Serdaxin® for the treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD).

5 Apr 2010

Juventas Therapeutics commences enrollment in Phase I trial of JVS-100 for treatment of Class III heart failure

Juventas Therapeutics, a privately held, clinical-stage regenerative medicine company announced it has started enrolling patients in a Phase I clinical trial for JVS-100 to evaluate safety and efficacy in the treatment of patients with Class III heart failure. JVS-100 encodes Stromal Cell-derived Factor-1 (SDF-1) and has been shown in pre-clinical studies to significantly increase cardiac function by promoting cell survival and increasing new blood vessel formation in the damaged organ.

5 Apr 2010

Plexiglas robot sees in the dark much like blind cave fish Astyanax

Clever as a blind fish, the underwater robot "Snookie" can orient itself in murky waters with an artificial sensory organ inspired by the so-called lateral-line system, found in fish and some amphibians. The experimental vehicle was developed by researchers at the Technische Universitaet Muenchen within the framework of the CoTeSys (Cognition for Technical Systems) excellence cluster. In the future, the researchers expect such capabilities to enable underwater robots to work autonomously in operations ranging from deep sea exploration to inspection of sewer pipes.

5 Apr 2010

Donate Life America survey reveals pervasive donation myths

According to a new survey by Donate Life America, 43 percent of people are undecided, reluctant or do not wish to have their organs and tissue donated after their deaths. While an improvement over findings from a similar survey last year in which 50 percent reported the same, the statistic illustrates a critical need to continue to increase the level of support for organ donation to save the lives of the more than 105,000 adults and children on the transplant waiting list in the U.S., an average 18 of whom die each day waiting.

5 Apr 2010

H70 study: People become more and more different as they age

The older we get, the more different we become. This is the conclusion of a study that followed people from their 70th to their 90th year of life. 'Old people are usually thought of as a rather homogenous group - they are considered to be ill, lonely and unable to take care of themselves. But the truth is that the differences among people grow with age,' says Bo G Eriksson, University of Gothenburg.

5 Apr 2010

Rebirth of the cursed drug Thalidomide

Thalidomide was once a dreaded name in the Pharmaceutical industry. It was initially marketed in some European countries nearly 5 decades back as a sedative and after millions of pregnant women took it for morning sickness it had devastating results on the babies. The babies were born with flippers instead of limbs a condition known as phocomelia. Since then it has been under strict control.

5 Apr 2010

Is relief round the corner for multiple sclerosis patients in the form of bee stings?

A recent development can raise the hopes of many sufferers of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) – a dreaded, debilitating, fatal nerve disorder. Charity worker Sami Chugg, 45, claims to have overcome her condition after being stung by bees.

5 Apr 2010

Inflammation has a role to play in premature births and brain injury: Sahlgrenska Academy thesis

Researchers have gone some way to explaining what happens during premature births and how brain injury develops in premature babies. New findings show that inflammation in both the amniotic fluid and the baby's brain has a role to play, reveals a thesis from the Sahlgrenska Academy.

5 Apr 2010

Research may help develop new ways to diagnose and treat communication disorders

An international research consortium has identified more than 800 genes that appear to play a role in the male zebra finch's ability to learn elaborate songs from his father. The researchers also found evidence that song behavior engages complex gene regulatory networks within the brain of the songbird- networks that rely on parts of the genome once considered junk.

5 Apr 2010

Why is the genome project not yielding results faster?

As the genome projects reaches the 10 year landmark scientists are defending it. While the sequencing of the 3 billion letters in the human DNA took a long time the first draft of the human genome was presented ten years ago. Today it is possible to have your individual DNA mapped in a day and at the low cost of $5,000.

5 Apr 2010

Researchers identify three new genetic variants that increase risk of intracranial aneurysms

In the largest genome-wide study of brain aneurysms ever conducted, an international team led by researchers at the Yale School of Medicine have identified three new genetic variants that increase a person's risk for developing this deadly disease.

5 Apr 2010

KMI receives 2-year Phase II SBIR grant to study new treatment for TBI

Kinetic Muscles Inc., a leading innovator of neurorehabilitation technology, announced it has received a 2-year Phase II SBIR grant to study a new treatment for veterans returning from active duty with traumatic brain injury.

5 Apr 2010

Some therapies being investigated for Alzheimer's disease may cause cell death: UCSD

Some current therapies being investigated for Alzheimer's disease may cause further neural degeneration and cell death, according to a breakthrough discovery by UC San Diego researchers. By combining three dimensional computer simulations with high resolution atomic force microscopy membrane protein and cell imaging, electrical recording and various cellular assays, UCSD nano-biophysicist Ratnesh Lal and his colleagues investigated the structure and function of truncated peptides, known as nonamyloidgenic peptides, formed by some Alzheimer's drug candidates.

5 Apr 2010

Clinical utility and pharmacological action of MN-166 in treatment of MS

MediciNova, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company publicly traded on the Nasdaq Global Market and the Hercules Market of the Osaka Securities Exchange, today reported that this week's issue of Neurology includes two articles related to the potential clinical utility and unique pharmacological action of MN-166 in treating multiple sclerosis (MS).

3 Apr 2010

Therapeutic hypothermia helps save marathon cardiac arrest victim

Jay Yim, 21, had worked on improving his fitness since age 15. In preparation for this year's Los Angeles Marathon on March 21, the University of Southern California pre-med student had been training with a marathon club and regularly did 10-mile runs on his own.

3 Apr 2010

Cancer research at Georgia Tech: Report

Cancer treatment typically involves surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy or biological therapy. An oncologist may use one therapy or a combination of methods, depending on the type and location of the cancer, whether the disease has spread, the patient's age and general health, and other factors.

3 Apr 2010

Growing problem of prescription drug abuse

Prescription painkiller abuse is a rapidly growing and widespread problem, recently coming into full view due to high profile stories and tragic celebrity deaths.

3 Apr 2010

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital installs high-tech imaging systems for heart and vascular surgeries

In a move that could change the way many patients undergo surgery, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital has installed five state-of-the-art Siemens Artis zeego- medical imaging systems that provide faster, more accurate 3-D images of the body with a quality never before attainable.

3 Apr 2010

Notch pathway may be a good target for drug development, study says

Working with mice, Johns Hopkins scientists who tested drugs intended to halt growth of brain cancer stem cells -- a small population of cells within tumors that perpetuate cancer growth -- conclude that blocking these cells may be somewhat effective, but more than one targeted drug attack may be needed to get the job done.

3 Apr 2010

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

Menstrual stem cells may help in treatment of stroke and central nervous system disorders

Rexahn Pharmaceuticals submits Phase II protocol for study of Serdaxin in treatment of PD

Juventas Therapeutics commences enrollment in Phase I trial of JVS-100 for treatment of Class III heart failure

Plexiglas robot sees in the dark much like blind cave fish Astyanax

Donate Life America survey reveals pervasive donation myths

H70 study: People become more and more different as they age

Rebirth of the cursed drug Thalidomide

Is relief round the corner for multiple sclerosis patients in the form of bee stings?

Inflammation has a role to play in premature births and brain injury: Sahlgrenska Academy thesis

Research may help develop new ways to diagnose and treat communication disorders

Why is the genome project not yielding results faster?

Researchers identify three new genetic variants that increase risk of intracranial aneurysms

KMI receives 2-year Phase II SBIR grant to study new treatment for TBI

Some therapies being investigated for Alzheimer's disease may cause cell death: UCSD

Clinical utility and pharmacological action of MN-166 in treatment of MS

Therapeutic hypothermia helps save marathon cardiac arrest victim

Cancer research at Georgia Tech: Report

Growing problem of prescription drug abuse

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital installs high-tech imaging systems for heart and vascular surgeries

Notch pathway may be a good target for drug development, study says

Industry Focus eBook - Neurology/Neuroscience - 2nd 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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