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.

New findings can lead to better understanding of neurological development, cancer metastasis

By shedding new light on how cells migrate in the developing brain, researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center also may have found a new mechanism by which other types of cells, including cancer cells, travel within the body.

25 Apr 2011

Canadians join hands in fight against meningitis on April 24th

Canadians can join hands in a virtual community with the Meningitis Research Foundation of Canada and become a member of the global family by visiting www.comoonline.org and "joining hands" in the fight against meningitis, and to show support for meningitis awareness and prevention.

25 Apr 2011

Pfizer comments on abstract concerning ORAL Sync tofacitinib Phase 3 study in RA

Pfizer Inc. commented on an abstract concerning the ORAL Sync Phase 3 study of tofacitinib in patients with rheumatoid arthritis which has been posted for the European League Against Rheumatism conference.

25 Apr 2011

Noninvasive Masimo carboxyhemoglobin can effectively screen ED patients for CO poisoning

Masimo announced today that a new study published in this month's issue of the peer-reviewed journal, Annals of Emergency Medicine, demonstrates that noninvasive Masimo carboxyhemoglobin measurements provide an "effective means for screening at-risk populations for CO poisoning" with "acceptable bias and precision" compared to invasive blood gas analysis.

25 Apr 2011

Research sheds light on molecular movements of neural transporters

A team of scientists from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and Weill Cornell Medical College has shed light on the molecular workings of transporter proteins, molecular machines embedded in the cell membranes of neurons that modulate the transfer of signals between cells and recycle neurotransmitters.

25 Apr 2011

GM-CSF appears to be key culprit in multiple sclerosis onset

Reporting in Nature Immunology, Jefferson neuroscientists have identified a driving force behind autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, and suggest that blocking this cell-signaling molecule is the first step in developing new treatments to eradicate these diseases.

25 Apr 2011

Symposium to explore energy balance in physiologically maladaptive Homo sapiens

In the human body, an incessant competition is raging between energy storing-anabolic-processes and the less abundant energy using-catabolic-processes. In most people, energy balance varies within a narrow range.

25 Apr 2011

Medtronic's English Channel swimming competition to raise awareness on ALS

In August 2011, Doug McConnell of Barrington, Illinois, expects to be the 48th person over age 50 to successfully swim across the English Channel. He will be swimming more than 21 grueling miles in memory of his father, David, who passed away from ALS.

From Medtronic 25 Apr 2011

Study shows neutralizing antibodies against GM-CSF can halt MS development

The neutralization of the cytokine GM-CSF could halt the development of multiple sclerosis. This was demonstrated by the research team of the immunologist Burkhard Becher at the University of Zurich in an animal model.

25 Apr 2011

Sanofi Pasteur receives FDA approval for Menactra to prevent meningococcal disease

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the use of Menactra in children as young as 9 months for the prevention of invasive meningococcal disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroups A, C, Y and W-135. Menactra already is approved for use in people ages 2 through 55 years.

24 Apr 2011

Transplanting cells from healthy adult livers may help treat genetic liver-lung disorder

Transplanting cells from healthy adult livers may work in treating a genetic liver-lung disorder that affects millions of people worldwide, according to an animal study in the April 18 online edition of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

22 Apr 2011

TJX commits $1 million to advance mission of Alzheimer's Association

According to the 2011 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures report, as many as 5.4 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's disease. Given the prevalence of Alzheimer's, approximately one in every three people knows someone with the disease.

22 Apr 2011

Giffords' office: Close gap in traumatic brain-injury care

Staff members for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, R-Ariz., have become key advocates in a campaign to ensure that the health law guarantees high levels of care for people who suffer traumatic brain injuries.

22 Apr 2011

'Iceman' influences autonomic nervous system and immune response

At the Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, professor of experimental intensive care medicine dr. Peter Pickkers and his team have performed research on "Iceman" Wim Hof. Hof claims that he can influence his autonomic nervous system and immune response through concentration and meditation.

22 Apr 2011

First Edition: April 22, 2011

Today's headlines include a variety of reports about the political reactions to the Democratic and Republican deficit proposals as well as plans for Medicare.

22 Apr 2011

Study finds link between musical activity and high cognitive aging

A study conducted by Brenda Hanna-Pladdy, PhD, a clinical neuropsychologist in Emory's Department of Neurology, and cognitive psychologist Alicia MacKay, PhD, found that older individuals who spent a significant amount of time throughout life playing a musical instrument perform better on some cognitive tests than individuals who did not play an instrument.

22 Apr 2011

Human placenta plays an active role in serotonin synthesis

Research at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California's Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute shows for the first time that the human placenta plays an active role in synthesizing serotonin, paving the way to new treatment strategies that could mitigate health impacts such as cardiovascular disease and mental illness.

22 Apr 2011

Coquitlam student earns top prize in 2011 British Columbia SABC competition

Ground-breaking research by a 17-year-old Coquitlam student who found a way to observe the effects of ethanol on early brain development in an intact and awake brain has earned him the top prize in the 2011 British Columbia sanofi-aventis BioTalent Challenge.

22 Apr 2011

Engineering researchers use carbon nanotubes to create synthetic brain

Engineering researchers the University of Southern California have made a significant breakthrough in the use of nanotechnologies for the construction of a synthetic brain. They have built a carbon nanotube synapse circuit whose behavior in tests reproduces the function of a neuron, the building block of the brain.

22 Apr 2011

Roundtable to discuss about advances in neuroscience

Jamie Tyler, assistant professor in the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute and the Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, has been invited to speak at a Royal Society of London high level workshop on May 11-12 on the security implications of advances in neuroscience.

22 Apr 2011