Brain News and Research

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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.

Cell phones increase testosterone level, but decrease fertility in men

Men who have been diagnosed with poor sperm quality and who are trying to have children should limit their cell phone use. Researchers have found that while cell phone use appears to increase the level of testosterone circulating in the body, it may also lead to low sperm quality and a decrease in fertility.

20 May 2011

Unigene enters Clinical Manufacturing Services Agreement with Cara Therapeutics

Unigene Laboratories, Inc. a leader in the design, delivery, manufacture and development of peptide-based therapeutics announced today that the Company signed a Clinical Manufacturing Services Agreement with Cara Therapeutics, Inc.

19 May 2011

Pitt researchers develop mouse model of major depressive disorder

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine have developed a mouse model of major depressive disorder (MDD) that is based on a rare genetic mutation that appears to cause MDD in the majority of people who inherit it.

19 May 2011

Two genes linked to worst cases of esophageal cancer

University of Rochester Medical Center researchers have pinpointed two genes that are amplified in the worst cases of esophageal cancer, providing data to support a new investigational treatment that targets those same genes.

19 May 2011

Fragile X syndrome may be treatable

Advancements over the last 10 years in understanding intellectual disability (ID, formerly mental retardation), have led to the once-unimaginable possibility that ID may be treatable, a review of more than 100 studies on the topic has concluded. It appears in ACS Chemical Neuroscience.

18 May 2011

MDxHealth reduces first quarter net loss by 17%

MDxHealth SA, a leading molecular diagnostics company in the field of personalized medicine, today issued its business update for the quarter ended March 31, 2011.

18 May 2011

New data on personalized approaches for skin, ovarian and lung cancer to be presented at ASCO meeting

Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, today announced that data showing new personalized approaches for people with skin and lung cancer, plus new data with Avastin in ovarian cancer, will be presented at the 47th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

18 May 2011

Study links video game playing with increased food intake in kids

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that almost 18% of US teens are obese. Although most experts agree that our growing obesity "epidemic" is driven by both inadequate physical activity and excessive caloric intake, implementing solutions is extraordinarily difficult.

18 May 2011

UW C4C, Pharmigene execute licensing agreement for warfarin personalized medicine technology

The University of Washington Center for Commercialization and Pharmigene, a leader in advancing personalized medicine and reducing severe adverse reactions to drugs through genetic-based diagnostic solutions, today announced the execution of a licensing agreement between the parties.

18 May 2011

New interactive website for patients with schizophrenia

Schizophrenia24x7.com is a new, interactive website featuring helpful resources, information and interactive tools for people affected by schizophrenia.

18 May 2011

Study: MMN might predict risk of developing schizophrenia

There is a significant need for objective tests that could improve clinical prediction of future psychosis. One strategy has been to determine whether physiologic measures that are abnormal in people diagnosed with schizophrenia might also be useful in estimating the risk for developing this illness. This is the strategy taken by German and Swiss researchers in the current issue of Biological Psychiatry.

18 May 2011

Novel gene associated with heart development and aging process

Researchers at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute (UOHI) have identified a novel gene in the nucleus of muscle and brain cells that affects heart development and the aging process. Their investigation brings the promise of new treatments for an old, failing heart.

18 May 2011

Neurochemical basis for sleep deprivation's effects on memory

From high-school students to surgeons, anyone who has pulled an all-nighter knows there is a price to be paid the next day: trouble focusing, a fuzzy memory and other cognitive impairments. Now, researchers at Penn have found the part of the brain and the neurochemical basis for sleep deprivation's effects on memory.

18 May 2011

Gut bacteria influences brain chemistry and behaviour: Research

For the first time, researchers at McMaster University have conclusive evidence that bacteria residing in the gut influence brain chemistry and behaviour.

18 May 2011

Treatment of chronic low back pain can reverse abnormal brain activity and function

It likely comes as no surprise that low back pain is the most common form of chronic pain among adults. Lesser known is the fact that those withchronic pain also experience cognitive impairments and reduced gray matter in parts of the brain associated with pain processing and the emotional components of pain, like depression and anxiety.

18 May 2011

Tips to get better sleep

Your life is already tense — teens rebelling, house under renovation, work life in overload, bills piling up, elderly parents declining — yet the demands requiring your attention and time continue to grow, overflowing into sleep-time territory. Oftentimes, mass marketing's solutions to women's challenging lifestyles focus on quick fixes and more consumer goods.

18 May 2011

The Incubation Factory, UMDNJ and NJIT partner to commercialize personal tonometer for glaucoma

NJIT and UMDNJ have executed a license agreement with The Incubation Factory, St. Louis, MO, covering their personal tonometer technology on which a patent is pending. The tonometer was developed by a research team led by NJIT Professor Gordon Thomas, PhD, and Robert Fechtner, MD, director of the glaucoma division at UMDNJ.

18 May 2011

Leucine deprivation triggers apoptosis in melanoma cells

Whitehead Institute researchers have found that depriving human melanoma cells of the essential amino acid leucine can be lethal to the cells, suggesting a possible strategy for therapeutic intervention.

18 May 2011

Study offers new understanding of cell signaling networks tied to diabetes and cancer

Researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and the University of California-San Diego School of Medicine have published a study that offers a new understanding of a protein critical to physiological processes involved in major diseases such as diabetes and cancer. This work could help scientists design drugs to battle these disorders.

18 May 2011

Cytonet receives FDA orphan drug designation for liver cell infusion to treat urea cycle disorders

International biotechnology firm Cytonet, which is investigating a liver cell infusion of donated human liver cells for the treatment of urea cycle disorders in young children, announced it has been granted orphan drug designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

18 May 2011