Dopamine News and Research

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Dopamine is a hormone and neurotransmitter occurring in a wide variety of animals, including both vertebrates and invertebrates. In the brain, this phenethylamine functions as a neurotransmitter, activating the five types of dopamine receptors — D1, D2, D3, D4 and D5, and their variants. Dopamine is produced in several areas of the brain, including the substantia nigra and the ventral tegmental area. Dopamine is also a neurohormone released by the hypothalamus. Its main function as a hormone is to inhibit the release of prolactin from the anterior lobe of the pituitary. Dopamine has many functions in the brain, including important roles in behavior and cognition, motor activity, motivation and reward, inhibition of prolactin production (involved in lactation), sleep, mood, attention, and learning. Dopaminergic neurons (i.e., neurons whose primary neurotransmitter is dopamine) are present chiefly in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) of the midbrain, substantia nigra pars compacta, and arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus.

Synosia's SYN-118 HPPD inhibitor beneficial for Parkinson's patients: Study

Synosia Therapeutics today announced the first clinical study results showing that SYN-118 provides clinically meaningful benefits to Parkinson's patients, has a good safety profile and is well tolerated. Results from an open-label, proof-of-mechanism study of SYN-118 (CL02) were presented at the World Parkinson Congress in Glasgow, Scotland.

29 Sep 2010

XenoPort to present XP21279 clinical trial data at World Parkinson Congress meeting

XenoPort, Inc. announced today that new data from its first clinical trial of XP21279, a Transported Prodrug of L-Dopa, in Parkinson's disease patients will be presented at the upcoming World Parkinson Congress meeting in Glasgow, Scotland.

29 Sep 2010

Higher education levels increases need for symptomatic control of Parkinson's disease

Individuals who have higher levels of education and who are more impaired by Parkinson's disease appear to require treatment for their symptoms earlier than do other patients, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the September print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

28 Sep 2010

Researchers explain how nerve cells transmit electrical signals

Billions of brain cells are communicating at any given moment. Like an organic supercomputer they keep everything going, from breathing to solving riddles, and "programming errors" can lead to serious conditions such as schizophrenia, Parkinson's disease and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.

22 Sep 2010

NIDA awards 5-year, $3.7M research grant for development of drug to treat cocaine addiction

The University of Maryland School of Pharmacy has received a prestigious $3.7 million grant to develop a drug to treat cocaine addiction based on an active ingredient found in some Chinese prescription medicines.

21 Sep 2010

Santarus, VeroScience enter agreement to commercialize CYCLOSET drug for type 2 diabetes

Santarus, Inc., S2 Therapeutics, Inc. and VeroScience LLC today announced that they have entered into a distribution and license agreement granting Santarus exclusive rights to manufacture and commercialize CYCLOSET (bromocriptine mesylate) tablets in the U.S.

9 Sep 2010

Yeast can be simple model to study molecular basis of Parkinson’s disease

Yeast could be a powerful ally in the discovery of new therapeutic drugs to treat Parkinson's disease says a scientist presenting his work at the Society for General Microbiology's autumn meeting in Nottingham today.

8 Sep 2010

Rexahn submits Phase IIb protocol to FDA for study of Serdaxin for major depressive disorder

Rexahn Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical stage pharmaceutical company developing and commercializing potential best in class oncology and CNS therapeutics, today announced that it has submitted a Phase IIb protocol to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the clinical study of Serdaxin for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD).

7 Sep 2010

European Commission approves MSD's MAA for SYCREST in manic episodes associated with bipolar I disorder

MSD announced today that the European Commission has approved the Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for SYCREST® (asenapine) sublingual tablets for the treatment of moderate to severe manic episodes associated with bipolar I disorder in adults. Today's decision was based on recommendations from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP). The Commission Decision applies to all 27 European Member States.

3 Sep 2010

Nabi Biopharmaceuticals, Diosynth sign long-term commercial manufacturing agreement

Nabi Biopharmaceuticals announced today that it has entered into a long-term commercial manufacturing agreement with Diosynth RTP, Inc. for the manufacture of Drug Substance integral to the production of NicVAX, Nabi's innovative and proprietary investigational vaccine for the treatment of nicotine addiction and prevention of smoking relapse.

2 Sep 2010

An overview of Schizophrenia and psychotic disorders

Schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders are a chronic and often disabling condition. Despite modern treatment techniques they still present an enormous burden to the patients and their relatives and take a serious toll in terms of human suffering and societal expenditure.

30 Aug 2010

Disulfiram drug effective in treating cocaine addiction: Research

Doctors have used the drug disulfiram to help patients stay sober for several decades. It interferes with the body's ability to metabolize alcohol, giving a fierce hangover to someone who consumes even a small amount of alcohol.More recently, disulfiram was shown to be effective in treating cocaine addiction as well, even though alcohol and cocaine affect the nervous system in different ways.

27 Aug 2010

Nabi receives US patent for treatment and prevention of nicotine addiction with NicVAX conjugate vaccines

Nabi Biopharmaceuticals announced the receipt of a patent for treating and preventing nicotine addiction with NicVAX® and related nicotine conjugate vaccines. The United States Patent and Trademark office issued U.S. Patent No. 7,776,620 entitled "Hapten-carrier conjugates for treating and preventing nicotine addiction" for the exclusive use of methods for treating and preventing nicotine addiction with NicVAX and related nicotine vaccines. This patent runs through December 2018.

26 Aug 2010

Researchers find medication for diabetes, smoking cessation

The script for two research teams inducted today into the American Chemical Society (ACS) scientific "hall of fame" the ACS Heroes of Chemistry is a tale of two pills. One team invented a medication that helps people with diabetes control their blood sugar levels. The second team invented a medicine that helps people stop smoking, an addiction that experts regard as today's single greatest preventable cause of death worldwide.

23 Aug 2010

Human induced pluripotent stem cells help to treat Parkinson’s disease: Research

Researchers at the Buck Institute for Age Research have successfully used human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to treat rodents afflicted with Parkinson's Disease (PD). The research, which validates a scalable protocol that the same group had previously developed, can be used to manufacture the type of neurons needed to treat the disease and paves the way for the use of iPSC's in various biomedical applications. Results of the research, from the laboratory of Buck faculty Xianmin Zeng, Ph.D., are published August 16, 2010 in the on-line edition of the journal Stem Cells.

17 Aug 2010

Ill effects of methamphetamine

On the street it's known as meth, speed, ice, chalk, crank, fire, glass or crystal. Methamphetamine is a highly addictive drug that wreaks havoc on the entire body, including the user's oral health. Approximately 10 million Americans have tried methamphetamine, while more than 1.4 million are habitual users.

17 Aug 2010

Parkinson’s disease linked to genetic alteration of immune system: Study

Parkinson’s disease (PD), a severely crippling disease of the nerves and brain has been linked to genes that affect the immune system according to new research. In these patients the immune system may go awry attacking healthy tissues or failing to fight infections that leave people susceptible to the condition scientists say.

16 Aug 2010

Neurologix second-quarter net loss increases to $4.5 million

Neurologix, Inc., a biotechnology company developing innovative gene therapies for the brain and central nervous system, today reported its financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2010.

13 Aug 2010

Scientists identify chemical system effective in cocaine-addiction cure

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have identified a chemical system in the brain that reacts differently in cocaine addicts, findings that could result in new treatment options for individuals addicted to the drug."We found that the amount of blood flow in areas of the brain known to be involved in the rewarding effects of cocaine and craving was different in cocaine addicts, compared with healthy subjects," said Dr. Bryon Adinoff, professor of psychiatry at UT Southwestern and lead author of a study that appeared in Neuropsychopharmacology. "Now we have a new target for pharmacologic intervention."

11 Aug 2010

Transcept Pharmaceuticals second-quarter net loss decreases to $2.06 million

Transcept Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of proprietary products that address important therapeutic needs in the field of neuroscience, today announced financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2010.

10 Aug 2010