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.

New online vision therapy program from Infinite Mind

Infinite Mind, a Salt Lake City based software company, announces the launch of a new online vision therapy program eyeQ, the software program is to be used in conjunction with existing in-office therapy methods.

25 Nov 2009

Medical care in Germany for children with cancer is very good: IQWiG report

Internationally viewed, medical care in Germany for children with cancer is very good as far as survival is concerned. However, other aspects, such as quality of life, pain, and long-term consequences of the disease are still insufficiently investigated in studies. This is the conclusion of the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) in its final report published on 16 October 2009.

25 Nov 2009

LRI awards $3.6 million grants to drive innovative science in lupus and related diseases

The Lupus Research Institute (LRI) today named 12 new grant recipients for 2009. The awards, totaling $3.6 million, recognize innovative work across a broad spectrum of lupus research. All were selected for their creativity, novelty, and potential to drive scientific discovery to ultimately prevent, treat, and cure the complex disease of systemic lupus.

24 Nov 2009

Alzheimer's disease research leads to more effective UTI treatments

Research into Alzheimer's disease seems an unlikely approach to yield a better way to fight urinary tract infections (UTIs), but that's what scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and elsewhere recently reported.

24 Nov 2009

Second-quarter fiscal 2010 results announced by Medtronic

Medtronic, Inc. today announced financial results for its second quarter of fiscal year 2010, which ended Oct. 30, 2009.

24 Nov 2009

Withheld anger in MS patients can have adverse effect on health

People with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) feel more than twice as much withheld anger as the general population and this could have an adverse effect on their relationships and health, according to a study published in the December issue of the European Journal of Neurology.

24 Nov 2009

New findings shake the foundations of Alzheimer's research

Alzheimer's disease is caused by the build-up of a brain peptide called amyloid-beta. That's why eliminating the protein has been the focus of almost all drug research pursuing a cure for the devastating neurodegenerative condition.

24 Nov 2009

StemCells commences patient recruitment for a Phase I clinical trial of HuCNS-SC in PMD

StemCells, Inc. announced today that it has commenced patient recruitment for a Phase I clinical trial designed to test the safety and preliminary efficacy of its HuCNS-SC® purified human neural stem cells in Pelizaeus-Merzbacher Disease (PMD), a neurological disorder that primarily afflicts children. The study is being conducted at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Children’s Hospital, one of the leading medical centers in the United States for neonatology, pediatric neurology and neurosurgery.

24 Nov 2009

DSS sets evidence-based guidelines and definitions to treat type 2 diabetes

A first-of-its-kind consensus statement on diabetes surgery is published online today in the Annals of Surgery. The report illustrates the findings of the first international consensus conference -- Diabetes Surgery Summit (DSS) -- where an international group of more than 50 scientific and medical experts agreed on a set of evidence-based guidelines and definitions that are meant to guide the use and study of gastrointestinal surgery to treat type 2 diabetes. The document is considered to be the foundation of diabetes surgery as a medical discipline of its own.

24 Nov 2009

NFL's new concussion policy welcomed by American Academy of Neurology

The American Academy of Neurology, the world's largest professional association of neurologists, is encouraged by news reports that the National Football League will soon implement a new policy requiring an independent neurologist to evaluate players who have suffered a concussion.

24 Nov 2009

Multidisciplinary pediatric neurosurgery program launched

Responding to a growing need in central and northeast Pennsylvania for highly specialized care of pediatric brain tumors and other central nervous system disorders, Geisinger's Janet Weis Children's Hospital has launched a state-of-the-art and comprehensive pediatric neurosurgery program. The multidisciplinary program is led by pediatric neurosurgeon Amir Kershenovich, M.D., who says he is pleased to accept his challenging role.

24 Nov 2009

LFAGW celebrates 35th anniversary

The Lupus Foundation of America Greater Washington Chapter (LFAGW) will celebrate 35 years of success providing free day-to-day education, advice and resources for the 75,000+ people with lupus and their families in the greater D.C. area.

24 Nov 2009

Exposure to gas fumes can increase aggressive behavior

Outrageous prices may not be the only thing causing anger at the petrol pumps. A new study, published in the open access journal BMC Physiology, has shown that rats exposed to fumes from leaded and unleaded gasoline become more aggressive.

24 Nov 2009

Human-derived UCB stem cell transplant has positive therapeutic effects on specific lung and heart disorders

Two separate studies published in the current issue of Cell Transplantation (18:8), - now freely available on-line at http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cog/ct - have shown that transplanted human-derived umbilical cord blood (UCB) stem cells transplanted in an animal model had positive therapeutic effects on specific lung and heart disorders the animal models.

24 Nov 2009

AmKor and Hengdian Group sign license agreement to develop and market new drug candidate in China

AmKor (AmKor Pharma, Inc.) and Hengdian Group (Hengdian Group Ltd) today announced the signing of licensing agreement for further development and commercialization of Neu2000 in China.

24 Nov 2009

Study: Men who do moderate-to-heavy intensity exercise are less likely to have stroke

Men who regularly take part in moderate-to-heavy intensity exercise such as jogging, tennis or swimming may be less likely to have a stroke than people who get no exercise or only light exercise, such as walking, golfing, or bowling, according to a study published in the November 24, 2009, print issue of Neurology ®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

24 Nov 2009

Research suggests common oral bacterium may exacerbate autoimmune disease

Current research suggests that a common oral bacterium may exacerbate autoimmune disease. The related report by Nichols et al, "Unique Lipids from a Common Human Bacterium Represent a New Class of TLR2 Ligands Capable of Enhancing Autoimmunity," appears in the December 2009 issue of The American Journal of Pathology.

23 Nov 2009

Mutated IDH1 gene linked to the progression of gliomas

23 Nov 2009

C3a peptide regulates the generation of new nerve cells in the brain: Study

The generation of new nerve cells in the brain is regulated by a peptide known as C3a, which directly affects the stem cells' maturation into nerve cells and is also important for the migration of new nerve cells through the brain tissue, reveals new research from the Sahlgrenska Academy published in the journal Stem Cells.

23 Nov 2009

Mutated IDH1 gene has novel enzyme activity consistent with cancer-causing gene: Study

Agios Pharmaceuticals today announced that its scientists have established, for the first time, that the mutated IDH1 gene has a novel enzyme activity consistent with a cancer-causing gene, or oncogene. This breakthrough discovery shows that the mutated form of IDH1 produces a metabolite, 2-hydroxyglutarate (2HG), which may contribute to the formation and malignant progression of gliomas, the most common type of brain cancers.

23 Nov 2009