Neurodegenerative Disease News and Research

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Scientists uncover surprising link between brain development and gene tied to breast cancer

Scientists at the Salk Institute have uncovered details into a surprising-and crucial-link between brain development and a gene whose mutation is tied to breast and ovarian cancer.

9 Apr 2014

Study explores relationship between genetics and lifestyle in development of AD

A global study involving more than one million people worldwide will explore the relationship between genetics and lifestyle in the development of Alzheimer's disease.

4 Apr 2014

UCSF/Daiichi Sankyo establish drug-discovery collaboration focused on neurodegenerative diseases

Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. (hereafter, Daiichi Sankyo) and UC San Francisco (UCSF) announced today that they have established a drug-discovery collaboration focused on developing novel therapeutics and molecular diagnostics for multiple neurodegenerative diseases.

4 Apr 2014

Findings may help develop targeted drugs to fight cancer, neurodegenerative diseases

The molecular details of how zinc, an essential trace element of human metabolism, interacts with the enzyme caspase-3, which is central to apoptosis or cell death, have been elucidated in a new study led by researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University. The study is featured on the cover of the April issue of the journal Angewandte Chemie's International Edition.

3 Apr 2014

Leading researchers to convene at 4th Annual Traumatic Brain Injury Conference

The world's leading researchers in the field of traumatic brain injury research are meeting on April 16 & 17, 2014 in Washington DC for the 4th Annual Traumatic Brain Injury Conference.

2 Apr 2014

Northwestern University awarded NIH grant to conduct phase III Parkinson's neuroprotective study

Tanya Simuni, M.D., medical director of Northwestern University's Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Center, was awarded a grant from the National Institutes of Health to conduct a $16 million phase III study of the safety and efficacy of the drug isradipine as a potential neuroprotective agent in Parkinson's disease.

2 Apr 2014

New research implicates that RNA processing is central to ALS disease process

In work supported by The ALS Association, researchers have discovered a new ALS-causing gene and have linked its function to that of another prominent disease gene. The study was published in the journal Nature Neuroscience.

1 Apr 2014

GE announces winners of the GE Healthcare 2013 Cell Imaging Competition

GE Healthcare Life Sciences (NYSE:GE) today announced Vanessa Auld from Canada, Martin Barr from Ireland and Graham Wright from Singapore as the winners of the GE Healthcare 2013 Cell Imaging Competition.

12 Mar 2014

Parkinson's patients under risk of developing dementia can be identified quickly, say researchers

It may now be possible to identify the first-stage Parkinson's patients who will go on to develop dementia, according to a study conducted at the Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal by Dr. Oury Monchi, PhD, and his postdoctoral student, Dr. Alexandru Hanganu, MD, PhD, both of whom are affiliated with Université de Montréal.

11 Mar 2014

Trophos' olesoxime shows beneficial effect on maintaining motor function in SMA patients

Trophos today announces that top-line results from a pivotal clinical trial of its lead product candidate olesoxime in spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) show a beneficial effect on the maintenance of motor function in SMA patients. If approved, olesoxime could be the first treatment specifically developed for SMA patients.

10 Mar 2014

Intra-Cellular Therapies initiates Phase I/II clinical trial to evaluate pharmacokinetics in patients with dementia

Intra-Cellular Therapies, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of therapeutics for central nervous system (CNS) disorders, today announced the initiation of ITI-007-200, a Phase I/II clinical trial designed to evaluate the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of low doses of its lead drug candidate, ITI-007, in healthy geriatric subjects and in patients with dementia, including Alzheimer's disease.

4 Mar 2014

Neuroscientists unlock a piece of puzzle in fight against Lou Gehrig's disease

Keck School of Medicine of USC neuroscientists have unlocked a piece of the puzzle in the fight against Lou Gehrig's disease, a debilitating neurological disorder that robs people of their motor skills.

4 Mar 2014

Deficiency in SNX27 explains learning impairment in Down's syndrome

Scientists at A*STAR's Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB) have identified the precise role of the protein, SNX27, in the pathway leading to memory and learning impairment.

20 Feb 2014

Study to examine effectiveness of using video calls to deliver care for people with Parkinson's disease

People living with Parkinson's disease today often face challenges when seeking care, including disability, distance from medical centers, and distribution of doctors. In fact, 42 percent of those diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, and more living with the condition, do not see a neurologist for their care. Now, a national study will attempt to disrupt the status quo and bring expert Parkinson's care directly into patients' homes using video visit technology.

12 Feb 2014

Researchers find link between mutations in gene called RAB 24 and inherited neurodegenerative disease

Researchers from North Carolina State University have found a link between a mutation in a gene called RAB 24 and an inherited neurodegenerative disease in Old English sheepdogs and Gordon setters. The findings may help further understanding of neurodegenerative diseases and identify new treatments for both canine and human sufferers.

7 Feb 2014

Exposure to DDT may increase likelihood of developing Alzheimer's disease later in life

Exposure to DDT may increase the likelihood of developing Alzheimer's disease later in life, a study with researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center suggests. While previous studies have linked chronic diseases such as cancer and diabetes to DDT, this is the first clinical study to link the U.S.-banned pesticide to Alzheimer's disease.

30 Jan 2014

FARA funds gene therapy-based research project to tackle Friedreich's ataxia

The gene therapy-based research project to tackle Friedreich's ataxia launched in November in labs at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine, in Barcelona, and the "Centro de Biolog-a Molecular Severo Ochoa", in Madrid, has received 100,000 US$ per year for two years from the Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance.

29 Jan 2014

Researchers identify unique area of human brain associated with cognitive powers

Oxford University researchers have identified an area of the human brain that appears unlike anything in the brains of some of our closest relatives.

29 Jan 2014

Scientists identify molecules that block accumulation of toxic eye protein responsible for early onset of glaucoma

Using a novel high-throughput screening process, scientists have for the first time identified molecules with the potential to block the accumulation of a toxic eye protein that can lead to early onset of glaucoma.

24 Jan 2014

CUMC researchers identify gene that appears to play major role in motor neuron degeneration in ALS

Columbia University Medical Center researchers have identified a gene, called matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), that appears to play a major role in motor neuron degeneration in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The findings, made in mice, explain why most but not all motor neurons are affected by the disease and identify a potential therapeutic target for this still-incurable neurodegenerative disease. The study was published today in the online edition of the journal Neuron.

23 Jan 2014