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Tetanus toxin may help fight depression, anxiety, anorexia and Parkinson's

A team of researchers from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Institute of Neuroscience at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona has discovered that tetanus toxin, which causes tetanus, could be extremely useful as a therapy against psychological disorders such as depression, anxiety and anorexia, and to slow the progress of neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's disease.

14 Jun 2005

Causes, consequences and clinical implications of alcohol-related brain shrinkage

Previous studies have demonstrated that the brains of alcoholics are smaller, lighter and "shrunken" when compared to nonalcoholic brains.

14 Jun 2005

US scientists find "mother of all brain stem cells"

Scientists at the University of Florida have been able grow brain cells in the laboratory.

14 Jun 2005

Scientists create new brain cells - in a dish

Regenerative medicine scientists at the University of Florida's McKnight Brain Institute have created a system in rodent models that for the first time duplicates neurogenesis - the process of generating new brain cells - in a dish.

13 Jun 2005

Study of glial cells in the roundworm C. elegans may provide insight into a variety of human brain diseases

The key to understanding our brains may lie within a one-millimeter long worm, new research from Rockefeller University indicates. Reporting in the June issue of Developmental Cell, Shai Shaham, Ph.D., and graduate student Elliot Perens use the roundworm, C. elegans, to investigate the mysterious glial cell, which makes up 90 percent of the human brain and, when it malfunctions, can contribute to diseases like Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia.

9 Jun 2005

Fundamental insights in how amyloid fibers form

Amyloid fibers are best known as the plaque that gunks up neurons in people with neurodegenerative illnesses such as Alzheimer's and Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease--the human analog of mad cow disease.

9 Jun 2005

Neuroscientists redefine the dyslexic brain

The dyslexic brain may have a general problem forming perceptual categories, including the templates for printed letters and speech sounds, say University of Southern California (USC) neuroscientists.

5 Jun 2005

Research moves us closer to understanding how complicated network connections are wired up during embryonic development

A newborn baby moves, breathes and cries in part because a network of nerves called motor neurons carry signals from the infant's brain and spinal cord to muscles throughout its body.

3 Jun 2005

Novel insights into how prion and other neurodegenerative diseases develop

Abnormal prion proteins are little understood disease agents involved in causing horrific brain-wasting diseases such as Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease in people, mad cow disease in cattle and chronic wasting disease in deer and elk.

3 Jun 2005

A protein found naturally in the brain may protect against Parkinson's disease

The findings also may lead to an improved understanding of a disorder called early-onset torsion dystonia.

2 Jun 2005

New technique will enhance understanding of little-understood vision phenomenon

Look at something red in the room, and you'll be more likely to notice something red out of the corner of your eye, elsewhere in the room. Researchers have known that this "implicit attentional selection" is outside conscious control and that we are unaware of its functioning.

1 Jun 2005

Scientists develop a way to block the signals responsible for neuropathic pain

Remember how it felt the last time you burned your finger on a hot stove? Imagine what it's like to have that burning pain in your hands or feet all the time and know there's virtually nothing you can do about it.

1 Jun 2005

New clue to understanding how fatty acids work in the brain

Scientists in Cambridge have discovered that a brain protein called syntaxin enables fatty molecules, used widely in health supplements, to work in the brain to make it function properly. Lead Scientist, Dr Bazbek Davletov and his colleague Dr Colin Rickman from the Medical Research Council (MRC) Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, UK report their findings in the journal Chemistry and Biology.

1 Jun 2005

New evidence for cause of dyslexia

Addressing a persistent debate in the field of dyslexia research, scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Southern California (USC) have disproved the popular theory that deficits in certain visual processes cause the spelling and reading woes commonly suffered by dyslexics.

29 May 2005

Retina and its circuits are much more pliable than scientists previously thought

A new Oregon Health & Science University study is opening scientists' eyes to the retina's ability to rewire itself so it can adapt to different levels of ambient light.

26 May 2005

Researchers pinpoint circuit in the brain responsible for encoding decision-making

Researchers at The Johns Hopkins University have pinpointed a circuit in the brain responsible for encoding decision-making behavior, a circuit that - if damaged - appears to prevent a person from altering that behavior when circumstances change.

26 May 2005

Researchers have succeeded in mapping the unique patterns of neural activity produced by a wide range of odors

Revealing these distinct - but often overlapping - patterns of neural activity represents a significant step in understanding how the brain translates complex signals from odorant receptors in the nose into odor perception in the brain, the researchers said.

26 May 2005