Synapse News and Research

RSS

Lipid may be vital to learning

Saturated fats have a deservedly bad reputation, but Johns Hopkins scientists have discovered that a sticky lipid occurring naturally at high levels in the brain may help us memorize grandma's recipe for cinnamon buns, as well as recall how, decades ago, she served them up steaming from the oven.

31 Oct 2009

APP balance critical for normal neuronal development

New data about amyloid precursor protein, or APP, a protein implicated in development of Alzheimer's disease, suggests it also may have a positive role -- directly affecting learning and memory during brain development. So is APP good or bad? Researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center say both, and that a balance of APP is critical.

19 Oct 2009

Brain researcher finds how the epilepsy and pain drug works

A Duke University Medical Center researcher who spent years looking for the signals that prompt the brain to form new connections between neurons has found one that may explain precisely how a well-known drug for epilepsy and pain actually works.

14 Oct 2009

Mechanism by which gene associated with autism and schizophrenia influences behavior identified

A Stanford University School of Medicine researcher has pinpointed the mechanism by which a gene associated with both autism and schizophrenia influences behavior in mice. And just recently, he received a $1.65 million government grant to expand his efforts to include many more such genes.

13 Oct 2009

Scientists make significant advance towards a solution for neuronal repair

The repair of damaged nerve cells is a major problem in medicine today. A new study by researchers at the Montreal NeurologicaI Institute and Hospital (The Neuro) and McGill University, is a significant advance towards a solution for neuronal repair.

8 Oct 2009

New study sheds light on memory formation

A new study from the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital (The Neuro) of McGill University reveals that different patterns of training and learning lead to different types of memory formation.

5 Oct 2009

Neuroscience professor receives Institutes of Health Director's New Innovator Award

Leon Reijmers, PhD, assistant professor of neuroscience at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, is one of 55 recipients of the National Institutes of Health Director's New Innovator Award. Reijmers is investigating the way memories are stored in the brain, specifically focusing on the proteins involved in long-term memory storage.

25 Sep 2009

Carolinas HealthCare System implements Radware's application delivery solutions to prevent network downtime

Radware (Nasdaq: RDWR), the leading provider of integrated application delivery solutions for business-smart networking, today announced that Carolinas HealthCare System (CHS), the largest healthcare system in North and South Carolina, has leveraged Radware's suite of application delivery solutions in an effort to maintain a secure network environment with advanced load balancing capabilities for its extensive hospital system.

22 Sep 2009

Researchers link plasticity related gene-1 to lipid phosphates

In mice that are missing a protein found only in the brain, neural signals "go crazy," leaving the animals with epileptic seizures from a young age, researchers have found. The report in the September 18th Cell, a Cell Press publication, details what it is that happens when the protein encoded by plasticity related gene-1 (PRG-1) gets lost, revealing an important fine-tuning mechanism for brain function.

18 Sep 2009

Link between a key molecular player and human chromosomal birth defects established

Using yeast genetics and a novel scheme to selectively remove a single protein from the cell division process called meiosis, a cell biologist at The Florida State University found that when a key molecular player known as Pds5 goes missing, chromosomes fail to segregate and pair up properly, and birth defects such as Down syndrome can result.

17 Sep 2009

Study describes neuron's two-layer integration model

A new Northwestern University study provides evidence that supports the "two-layer integration model," one of several competing models attempting to explain how neurons integrate synaptic inputs. The findings are published in the journal Neuron.

15 Sep 2009

Phase 3 clinical trials of BHR-100 infusion to be initiated by BHR Pharma

BHR Pharma, LLC (BHR) announced today that it will initiate a global, Phase 3, multi-center pivotal trial (www.synapse-trial.com) to evaluate the effectiveness of its proprietary BHR-100 intravenous progesterone infusion product as a neuroprotective agent for treating severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients in early 2010.

9 Sep 2009

Clinical trial of Cerebroprotein Hydrolysate for Injection completes

Hard to Treat Diseases (the "Company") announced today, that its China based subsidiary Mellow Hope, has just finished (August 2009) the clinical trial of Cerebroprotein Hydrolysate for Injection (Brand name: NUTRIPROTEIN) in India.

5 Sep 2009

Researchers find the method involved in setting up communications network of connections in the brain

In a new study, researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital (The Neuro), McGill University have found an important mechanism involved in setting up the vast communications network of connections in the brain.

27 Aug 2009

Research study links partial epilepsy to the disruption of brain development during early childhood

A form of partial epilepsy associated with auditory and other sensory hallucinations has been linked to the disruption of brain development during early childhood, according to a study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC).

24 Aug 2009

Research shows how long-lasting memories form in the brain

A new study by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine may reveal how long-lasting memories form in the brain.

12 Aug 2009

Scientists investigate health benefits of molecule associated with male sexual arousal

Medical scientists at the University of Leicester are investigating how signalling molecules known to control blood pressure and penile erection act to regulate brain function and which have potential for treatments of migraine, chronic pain, epilepsy and Alzheimer's disease.

24 Jun 2009

New imaging technique: toward spinal cord regeneration?

The axon is a part of the neuron through which nerve impulses are transmitted, and at the end of which is located the synapse, which connects it to another neuron. In the event of a lesion, the axon is the component which must be regenerated in order to restore the connections between the different neurons and re-form the nerve.

5 Jun 2009

Oligophrenin-1 signaling protein linked to mental retardation controls synapse maturation, plasticity

A team of neuroscientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has demonstrated the mechanism by which a signaling protein found throughout the brain controls the maturation and strength of excitatory synapses, the tiny gaps across which the majority of neurons communicate.

1 Jun 2009

Protein synaptotagmin-IV helps maintain an efficient brain

The instruction manual for maintaining an efficient brain may soon include a section on synaptotagmin-IV (Syt-IV), a protein known to influence learning and memory, thanks to a study by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers.

18 May 2009