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The human brain is the center of the human nervous system and is a highly complex organ. Enclosed in the cranium, it has the same general structure as the brains of other mammals, but is over three times as large as the brain of a typical mammal with an equivalent body size.

Glutamate linked to suicidal behavior

Researchers have found the first proof that a chemical in the brain called glutamate is linked to suicidal behavior, offering new hope for efforts to prevent people from taking their own lives.

15 Dec 2012

Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute and Courage Center announce merger agreement

In a bold move meant to advance the care and services provided to the disability community, Courage Center and Allina Health announced today that their boards of directors have approved a proposed merger between the Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute and Courage Center.

15 Dec 2012

MDx, Amarantus sign license agreement for LymPro Alzheimer's disease diagnostic blood test

Amarantus BioScience, Inc., a biotechnology company discovering and developing treatments for diseases associated with protein misfolding and apoptosis, today announced that it has licensed the LymPro Alzheimer's Disease Diagnostic Blood Test (LymPro) from Memory Dx, LLC (MDx), formerly known as Provista Life Sciences, Inc.

14 Dec 2012

FDA approves GSK’s raxibacumab to treat inhalational anthrax

GlaxoSmithKline plc announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved raxibacumab for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients with inhalational anthrax due to Bacillus anthracis in combination with appropriate antibacterial drugs and for prophylaxis of inhalational anthrax when alternative therapies are not available or are not appropriate.

14 Dec 2012

Cedars-Sinai physician-scientist receives grant to study Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

A Cedars-Sinai physician-scientist has been awarded a $3 million grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine to study with new stem cell technology Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, the most common inherited neurological disorder and which damages nerves that control muscles.

14 Dec 2012

FDA grants accelerated approval to ARIAD’s Iclusig for treatment of CML, Ph+ ALL

ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that following a priority review, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted accelerated approval of Iclusig (ponatinib) for the treatment of adult patients with chronic, accelerated or blast phase chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) that is resistant or intolerant to prior tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy or Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL) that is resistant or intolerant to prior TKI therapy.

14 Dec 2012

Challenge to brain injury guideline care

A randomized controlled trial has cast doubt on whether it is necessary to routinely place an intraparenchymal pressure monitor in patients with severe traumatic brain injury.

14 Dec 2012

Smoking ‘worsens hangovers’

People who smoke more than usual on the same day as drinking heavily are at increased risk for a hangover the following morning, with heavier smoking leading to a worse hangover, researchers say.

14 Dec 2012

Researchers question animal models that measure generalized anxiety disorder

Pre-clinical trials - the stage at which medications or therapies are tested on animals like laboratory mice - is a crucial part of drug development. It's only then that scientists can assess benefits and side effects before a drug is administered to patients.

14 Dec 2012

Study finds new evidence that vitamin D decreases risk of autism in children

A study just published online in the peer-reviewed journal Dermato-Endocrinology found additional evidence that vitamin D reduces the risk of developing autism.

14 Dec 2012

Administration of N2O + ISO appears to have negative effect on fetal development

An anesthetic regimen typically used during surgery on pregnant mothers appears to have a negative effect on the development of the fetus, according to a new study on mice conducted by neurobiologists from the National Center for Toxicological Research, in Arizona.

14 Dec 2012

Cedars-Sinai scientist to study Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

14 Dec 2012

TUBB5 gene responsible for microcephaly: IMP study

Neurobiologists at the Research institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP) in Vienna have discovered one of the key genes required to make a brain. Mutations in this gene, called TUBB5, cause neurodevelopmental disease in children.

14 Dec 2012

SLU researchers to study physiological and biochemical functions in lupus

Two researchers at Saint Louis University's division of rheumatology in the department of internal medicine have been awarded a $1.8 million NIH grant to study the physiological and biochemical functions in lupus, an autoimmune disease, and develop possible new medications for its treatment.

14 Dec 2012

MicroRNA-218 especially low in medulloblastoma

Between the blueprint of the genome and the products of its expression lie microRNAs, which can boost or lower the rate at which genes become stuff. In fact, many cancers use microRNA to magnify the expression of faulty genes or shrink the expression of helpful genes that would otherwise suppress tumors. A University of Colorado Cancer Center study published in the December issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry shows that in medulloblastoma, a malignant brain tumor of children, microRNA-218 is especially low.

14 Dec 2012

Scientists isolate cancer stem cells that lead to growth of Wilms' tumours

Scientists have isolated cancer stem cells that lead to the growth of Wilms' tumours, a type of cancer typically found in the kidneys of young children. The researchers have used these cancer stem cells to test a new therapeutic approach that one day might be used to treat some of the more aggressive types of this disease.

13 Dec 2012

Massage could ease distress of brain cancer

Massage therapy can significantly reduce distress levels in individuals with brain tumors, indicating its potential use to improve quality of life in this population, report US researchers.

13 Dec 2012

Relatives of schizophrenia patients show cortical thinning

Patients with schizophrenia and their unaffected relatives show significant cortical thinning compared with mentally healthy individuals without such a family history, researchers report.

13 Dec 2012

Fingolimod associated with modest, rapid increase in macular volume

Patients with multiple sclerosis treated with fingolimod undergo a modest but rapid increase in macular volume, research shows.

13 Dec 2012

LED light instantly triggers or reverses depression-like behavior in rodents

A specific pattern of neuronal firing in a brain reward circuit instantly rendered mice vulnerable to depression-like behavior induced by acute severe stress, a study supported by the National Institutes of Health has found. When researchers used a high-tech method to mimic the pattern, previously resilient mice instantly succumbed to a depression-like syndrome of social withdrawal and reduced pleasure-seeking - they avoided other animals and lost their sweet tooth.

13 Dec 2012