Cognitive Function News and Research

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Cognition is a concept used in different ways by different disciplines, but is generally accepted to mean the process of thought. For example, in psychology and cognitive science it refers to an information processing view of an individual's psychological functions.

Dementia diagnostic panel for treatable forms of cognitive impairment launched by Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX), the world’s leading provider of diagnostic information services, announced the availability of the first clinical test panel for aiding the diagnosis of suspected dementia due to treatable forms of cognitive impairment. The test panel is believed to be the first commercial service from a clinical laboratory to combine several guideline-recommended tests for identifying secondary, treatable causes of dementia as a single blood test and report.

From Quest Diagnostics 19 Mar 2013

Study challenges role of serotonin in depression, opens possibilities for new therapies

A new study from the University of Maryland School of Medicine suggests that depression results from a disturbance in the ability of brain cells to communicate with each other.

19 Mar 2013

Luminex collaborates with Merck to design companion diagnostic device for Alzheimer’s disease

WHITEHOUSE STATION known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, and Luminex Corporation have signed a collaboration and license agreement to develop a companion diagnostic device that will be evaluated to help screen patients for recruitment into Merck's clinical development program for MK-8931, a novel oral beta amyloid precursor protein site cleaving enzyme (BACE) inhibitor and Merck's lead investigational candidate for Alzheimer's disease (AD).

From Luminex 15 Mar 2013

Prescribing attention-boosting drugs for healthy kids is misguided

The American Academy of Neurology (AAN), the world's largest professional association of neurologists, is releasing a position paper on how the practice of prescribing drugs to boost cognitive function, or memory and thinking abilities, in healthy children and teens is misguided.

14 Mar 2013

Researchers turn concepts about head injuries in sports upside down

In the British Medical Journal, concepts about head injuries in sports are now being turned upside down by a group of researchers at Umeå University: Impaired brain function is rather a risk factor for incurring such injuries than a result of them.

14 Mar 2013

Stimulating brain using magnetic stimulation may improve cognitive function, say scientists

Cognitive impairments are disabling for individuals with schizophrenia, and no satisfactory treatments currently exist. These impairments affect a wide range of cognition, including memory, attention, verbal and motor skills, and IQ.

14 Mar 2013

New computer-based process helps diagnose conditions that lead to concussion-related injuries

Concussions can occur in sports and in combat, but health experts do not know precisely which jolts, collisions and awkward head movements during these activities pose the greatest risks to the brain. To find out, Johns Hopkins engineers have developed a powerful new computer-based process that helps identify the dangerous conditions that lead to concussion-related brain injuries.

13 Mar 2013

Combination of INF and glatiramer acetate does not reduce MS progression

A recent clinical trial found that interferonβ-1a (INF) and glatiramer acetate (GA), two of the most commonly prescribed drugs for multiple sclerosis (MS), provide no additional clinical benefit when taken together.

12 Mar 2013

KMO gene variant associated with increased production of kynurenic acid

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have found an explanation for why the level of kynurenic acid (KYNA) is higher in the brains of people with schizophrenia or bipolar disease with psychosis. The study, which is published in the scientific periodical Molecular Psychiatry, identifies a gene variant associated with an increased production of KYNA.

5 Mar 2013

Calcium channel risk allele linked to executive function in bipolar disorder

Researchers have found an allele in a voltage-gated calcium gene that is associated with an increased risk for poor executive function in patients with bipolar disorder.

27 Feb 2013

Cognitive impairments in bipolar disorder 'stable'

Impaired cognitive function among bipolar disorder patients seems to be stable over time, suggesting it is an enduring feature of the condition, show the results of a longitudinal study.

26 Feb 2013

Adjustable shunt effectively alleviates hydrocephalus pressure

Using a shunt with an adjustable Strata valve that is initially set at the highest setting so it can be titrated down is a worthwhile approach to treat idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus.

25 Feb 2013

Visual processing clue to schizophrenia risk

An element of the event-related potential response to visual stimuli is impaired in patients with prodromal symptoms of schizophrenia, research suggests.

25 Feb 2013

Teaching older adults to use Facebook could help improve their cognitive performance

For older adults looking to sharpen their mental abilities, it might be time to log on to Facebook. Preliminary research findings from the University of Arizona suggest that men and women older than 65 who learn to use Facebook could see a boost in cognitive function.

22 Feb 2013

Fibromyalgia prevalence is 2.1% of the general population in Germany

Researchers have determined that fibromyalgia prevalence is 2.1% of the general population in Germany. Results appearing in Arthritis Care & Research, a journal published by Wiley on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), suggest that fibromyalgia is a spectrum disorder rather than a categorical illness. Additionally, a number of fibromyalgia cases in the general population satisfy proposed criteria for physical symptom disorder—the presence of one or more physical symptoms that impair function, which cannot be explained by another clinical or psychiatric illness.

19 Feb 2013

Valproate, pregnancy and IQ: an interview with Professor Kimford Meador

Valproate (sodium salt of valproic acid) is an anticonvulsant used in the treatment of epilepsy, migraine and bipolar disorder as well as some other off label psychiatric indications.

11 Feb 2013

Four-month instructional dance program can improve health of Latino seniors

Vigorous activity can improve the physical and mental health of older adults, but for many, particularly Latinos, exercise is not a regular part of their lives, according to a University of Illinois at Chicago researcher.

11 Feb 2013

Migraine, epilepsy and genetics: an interview with Dr. Melodie Winawer

This work is the product of an extraordinary consortium called the Epilepsy Phenome/Genome project (EPGP). It is a consortium of 27 centres in the U.S. and internationally with several hundred physicians and staff who have worked together to enrol more than 4000 patients with epilepsy and their family members.

7 Feb 2013

Teva initiates enrollment in AZILECT Phase IV clinical study for PD-MCI

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. announced today enrollment of the first patient in the MODERATO study - a Phase IV clinical study designed to evaluate the effect of AZILECT (rasagiline tablets) on cognitive function in adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in Parkinson's disease (PD-MCI).

6 Feb 2013

Nitric oxide shuts down brain's repair mechanisms

Nitric oxide, a gaseous molecule produced in the brain, can damage neurons. When the brain produces too much nitric oxide, it contributes to the severity and progression of stroke and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's. Researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute recently discovered that nitric oxide not only damages neurons, it also shuts down the brain's repair mechanisms.

5 Feb 2013