Degenerative Disease News and Research

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Research could help eventual treatment of degenerative muscle, brain diseases

Our genetic information is stored in DNA, tiny strands of nucleic acid that contain instructions for the functioning of our bodies. To express this genetic data, our DNA is copied into RNA molecules, which then translate the instructions into proteins that perform tasks in our cells.

19 Sep 2014

Researchers develop novel technique to promote tissue repair in damaged muscles

Researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) have developed a novel technique to promote tissue repair in damaged muscles.

8 Sep 2014

People with increased yellow in macula could maintain better vision: Study

Human eyes naturally contain yellow pigment in the macula, a spot near the center of the retina responsible for high-resolution vision. Those with more yellow in their macula may have an advantage when it comes to filtering out atmospheric particles that obscure one's vision, commonly known as haze.

5 Sep 2014

New chemical compound protects against blindness and diabetes in animals

In a new study led by UC San Francisco scientists, a chemical compound designed to precisely target part of a crucial cellular quality-control network provided significant protection, in rats and mice, against degenerative forms of blindness and diabetes.

11 Jul 2014

Scientists discover why cerebellar granule cell neurons in A-T patients fail to repair DNA damage

A team of scientists, led by Stuart Lipton, M.D., Ph.D., professor and director of the Neuroscience and Aging Research Center at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, recently discovered why cerebellar granule cell neurons in patients suffering from ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) were unable to repair DNA damage and thus died.

26 Mar 2014

Study: Stem cell transplant effective in halting degenerative disc disease of spine

Stem cell transplant was viable and effective in halting or reversing degenerative disc disease of the spine, a meta-analysis of animal studies showed, in a development expected to open up research in humans.

10 Mar 2014

Researchers identify high levels of certain protein in brains of people suffering from essential tremor

A team of researchers from Universit- Laval and CHU de Qu-bec identified unusually high levels of a certain protein in the brains of people suffering from essential tremor (ET), a movement disorder that affects 4% of the adult population.

5 Mar 2014

Research shows biological link between paternal diet and health of offspring

Research involving rats suggests that there is a biological link between paternal diet, bodyweight and health at the time of conception and the health of his offspring. In a new research report published online in The FASEB Journal, scientists show that if male rats ate a high fat diet, had diabetes and were obese, their offspring had altered gene expression in two important metabolic tissues--pancreas and fat (even though they were not yet obese).

16 Jan 2014

RegeneRx's Tβ4 gets FDA Orphan Drug designation for treatment of Neurotrophic Keratopathy

RegeneRx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. announced that it has received Orphan Drug designation from U.S. FDA's Office of Orphan Products Development for its drug candidate, Thymosin beta 4 (Tβ4), for the treatment of Neurotrophic Keratopathy, a serious degenerative disease of the corneal epithelium (the outside layer of the eye).

5 Jan 2014

Research findings point to possible new strategy for treating ALS

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a devastating illness that gradually robs sufferers of muscle strength and eventually causes a lethal, full-body paralysis. The only drug available to treat the disease extends life spans by a meager three months on average.

17 Dec 2013

PRP therapy improves functionality of tendons in athletes with degenerative disease

Ultrasound-guided delivery of platelet-rich plasma improves functionality and reduces recovery time in athletes with degenerative disease in their tendons, according to a study being presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.

2 Dec 2013

Scientists join patients to address Friedreich's Ataxia

The Spanish Federation of Ataxia (FEDAES)—in representation of the GENEFA Platform for a Friedreich's Ataxia cure—, the Babel Family association for biomedical research into Friedreich's Ataxia, the "Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa" (CMBSO), and the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) have signed an agreement through which these patients' associations will fund, by means of donations, a 3-year research project addressing Friedreich's Ataxia.

16 Nov 2013

Retinitis pigmentosa test identifies mutation found in Ashkenazi Jewish population

You might not think to look to a urine test to diagnose an eye disease. But a new Duke University study says it can link what is in a patient's urine to gene mutations that cause retinitis pigmentosa, or RP, an inherited, degenerative disease that results in severe vision impairment and often blindness. The findings appear online in the Journal of Lipid Research.

9 Oct 2013

Decompression surgery: An effective procedure for cervical spondylotic myelopathy

In a world-first, decompression surgery has been shown to be an effective procedure to treat cervical spondylotic myelopathy - a common progressive, degenerative disease of the spine that can lead to paralysis - according to the results of a multi-centre clinical trial published today.

19 Sep 2013

Scientists shed new light on molecular causes of age related degenerative disease

An international collaboration jointly led by scientists from Trinity College Dublin has shed new light on the origins and molecular causes of age related degenerative conditions including Motor Neurone Disease (MND). The new perspective provided by this work may lead the way to new treatments and early diagnoses.

16 Aug 2013

Kinetin stops the effects of Parkinson's disease on brain cells, say scientists

The active ingredient in an over-the-counter skin cream might do more than prevent wrinkles. Scientists have discovered that the drug, called kinetin, also slows or stops the effects of Parkinson's disease on brain cells.

16 Aug 2013

Vanderbilt offers first FDA-approved bionic eye for treatment of retinitis pigmentosa

Vanderbilt University Medical Center has been chosen as one of 12 sites in the United States to offer the first FDA-approved bionic eye for the treatment of retinitis pigmentosa (RP).

30 Jul 2013

Joints of children with chronic inflammatory arthritis contain premature aging of immune cells

The joints of children with the most common form of chronic inflammatory arthritis contain immune cells that resemble those of 90-year-olds, according to a new study led by researchers at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

30 Jul 2013

NeuRA study demonstrate that FTD patients lose emotional content/colour of memories

A study by researchers at Neuroscience Research Australia is the first to demonstrate that patients with frontotemporal dementia lose the emotional content/colour of their memories. These findings explain why FTD patients may not vividly remember an emotionally charged event like a wedding or funeral.

15 Jul 2013

Penn researchers find ALS disease progresses in a stepwise, sequential pattern

The motor neuron disease Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, progresses in a stepwise, sequential pattern which can be classified into four distinct stages, report pathologists with the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in the Annals of Neurology.

20 Jun 2013