Neurodegeneration News and Research

RSS

Neurodegeneration is the umbrella term for the progressive loss of structure or function of neurons, including death of neurons.

Novogen receives funding support to commence studies in muscular dystrophy

The Australian biotechnology company, Novogen Limited today announced receipt of funding from the FSHD Global Research Foundation as part of the Company’s efforts to find effective treatments for a range of musculo-degenerative diseases including facioscapulohumeral dystrophy (FSHD).

11 Aug 2014

Nigral neuronal loss and α-synuclein pathology scrutinised in PD

The severity of neurodegeneration and local burden of α-synuclein are closely coupled during disease progression in Parkinson’s disease, a post-mortem study has found.

11 Aug 2014

Penn physiologist receives Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award from NIH

Erika Holzbaur, PhD, a professor of Physiology in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, has received the Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award from the National Institutes of Health.

6 Aug 2014

Small molecule may be able to convince damaged nerves to effectively rewire circuits

Frogs, dogs, whales, snails can all do it, but humans and primates can't. Regrow nerves after an injury, that is—while many animals have this ability, humans don't.

6 Aug 2014

Researchers at NIH-FEI Living Lab for Structural Biology achieve breakthrough biological results

FEI is pleased to announce that researchers at the NIH-FEI Living Lab for Structural Biology have achieved breakthrough biological results, using FEI’s Titan Krios™ transmission electron microscope (TEM), to elucidate the structural mechanism by which glutamate receptors participate in the transmission of signals between neurons in the brain. Their work is described in Nature, “Structural Mechanism of Glutamate Receptor Activation and Desensitization,” by Meyerson, et al., (DOI: 10.1038/nature13603), http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nature13603.html .

From Thermo Fisher Scientific – Electron Microscopy Solutions 4 Aug 2014

Researchers find promising technique for type 1 diabetics to restore insulin producing cells

A new study by researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) has found that a peptide called caerulein can convert existing cells in the pancreas into those cells destroyed in type 1 diabetes-insulin-producing beta cells.

31 Jul 2014

XPro1595 drug can protect vulnerable neurons, reduce motor deficits in Parkinson's model

An experimental anti-inflammatory drug can protect vulnerable neurons and reduce motor deficits in a rat model of Parkinson's disease, researchers at Emory University School of Medicine have shown.

26 Jul 2014

Astrocytes may be behind mental disorders, new research reveals

Astrocytes, the cells that make the background of the brain and support neurons, might be behind mental disorders such as depression and schizophrenia, according to new research by a Portuguese team from the ICVS at the University of Minho.

23 Jul 2014

Study finds microglia increase neuronal firing and enhance brain cell survival after injury

A type of immune cell widely believed to exacerbate chronic adult brain diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease and multiple sclerosis (MS), can actually protect the brain from traumatic brain injury (TBI) and may slow the progression of neurodegenerative diseases, according to Cleveland Clinic research published today in the online journal Nature Communications.

22 Jul 2014

Elevated ASM activity linked to Alzheimer's disease

Unclogging the body's protein disposal system may improve memory in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), according to a study from scientists at Kyungpook National University in Korea published in The Journal of Experimental Medicine.

22 Jul 2014

Chemoprevention and colon cancer: an interview with Dr. John Letterio, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine

The basic idea of cancer chemoprevention is to arrest or reverse the progression of premalignant cells towards full malignancy, using physiological mechanisms that do not kill healthy cells.

16 Jul 2014

Eye exam for beta-amyloid correlates with levels in brain, detects people with Alzheimer's

A decreased ability to identify odors might indicate the development of cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease, while examinations of the eye could indicate the build-up of beta-amyloid, a protein associated with Alzheimer's, in the brain, according to the results of four research trials reported today at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference- 2014 (AAIC- 2014) in Copenhagen.

14 Jul 2014

Rockefeller scientists identify protein that makes breast cancer cells more likely to metastasize

Using an innovative tool that captures heretofore hidden ways that cells are regulated, scientists at Rockefeller University have identified a protein that makes breast cancer cells more likely to metastasize.

10 Jul 2014

Dental pulp stem cells can protect retinal ganglion cells from death following injury

Researchers at the University of Birmingham, UK, led by Dr. Ben Scheven, Dr. Wendy Leadbeater and Ben Mead have discovered that stem cells isolated from the teeth, termed dental pulp stem cells (DPSC), can protect retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) from death following injury and promote regeneration of their axons along the optic nerve.

7 Jul 2014

MEF2 gene: A potential therapeutic target to protect neuronal loss in Alzheimer's, Parkinson's

A new study by researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) has identified a chemical "switch" that controls both the generation of new neurons from neural stem cells and the survival of existing nerve cells in the brain.

4 Jul 2014

Loss of p62 protein in cells and tissue surrounding a tumor can influence tumor growth

A team of scientists from Sanford Burnham Medical Research Institute has found that the loss of a protein called p62 in the cells and tissue surrounding a tumor can enhance the growth and progression of tumors.

4 Jul 2014

Low accuracy of clinical diagnosis for early Parkinson’s disease

About three-quarters of patients suspected to have early Parkinson’s disease eventually prove to have other conditions, a study shows.

3 Jul 2014

NEI researchers describe functions of gene responsible for anchoring cilia

Researchers at the National Eye Institute (NEI) have described the functions of a gene responsible for anchoring cilia - sensory hair-like extensions present on almost every cell of the body.

2 Jul 2014

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in veterans: an interview with Milan Michael Karol, The Robert Packard Center for ALS Research at Johns Hopkins

ALS stands for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, better known as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease”. It is a progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by the death of motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord.

30 Jun 2014

Researchers identify two oncogenes that drive the development of medulloblastoma

A new collaborative study carried out by researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, UC San Diego, the German Cancer Research Center, the University of Heidelberg (Germany), and 33 other research institutions has identified two oncogenes, called GFI1 and GFI1B, that drive the development of medulloblastoma, the most common malignant brain tumor in children.

23 Jun 2014