Dopaminergic News and Research

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Newly discovered compound shows potential for treating Parkinson's disease

A joint research group centered around Professor Hideyuki Okano and Associate Professor Jun Kohyama, Department of Physiology of the Keio University School of Medicine, together with a research group of Eisai Co., Ltd. has identified a compound that has the potential to be a treatment for Parkinson's disease by using dopaminergic neurons differentiated from induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells from patients with familial Parkinson's disease.

19 Oct 2018

Study: Alterations in genes encoding proteins contribute to ADHD development

A team from I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University together with foreign colleagues analyzed the genomes of several families that have members with ADHD.

12 Oct 2018

Scientists reprogram mature inhibitory neurons into dopaminergic cells

Attempting to make dopamine-producing neurons out of glial cells in mouse brains, a group of researchers instead converted mature inhibitory neurons into dopaminergic cells.

12 Oct 2018

Study: Brain's neurons are more changeable in adulthood than previously thought

UT Southwestern researchers attempting to transform supporting brain cells into neurons instead reprogrammed mature inhibitory neurons into a different type of neuron that creates the neurotransmitter lost in Parkinson's disease.

12 Oct 2018

Change in short-term beliefs related to dopamine function, study shows

For the first time, scientists have been able to image brain activity when people change their short-term beliefs, and to relate this brain activity to dopamine function in humans.

9 Oct 2018

Fruit fly protein shows protective effect on dopamine-producing neurons

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder that affects dopamine-producing or dopaminergic neurons. The progressive loss of these neurons is what leads to impairment in movement coordination in those suffering from the illness.

3 Oct 2018

Center for BrainHealth secures $225,000 grant to study motor learning deficits in cannabis users

The research lab at the Center for BrainHealth led by Dr. Francesca M. Filbey, the Bert Moore Chair in BrainHealth, Professor in Cognition and Neuroscience and Associate Provost at UT Dallas, has recently secured $225,000 in funding to study motor learning deficits in cannabis users.

28 Sep 2018

Researchers find molecule that halts, reverts neurodegeneration caused by Parkinson's disease

The small SynuClean-D molecule interrupts the formation of the alpha-synuclein amyloid fibers responsible for the onset of Parkinson's disease, and reverts the neurodegeneration caused by the disease.

25 Sep 2018

Study: Optimizing dopaminergic treatment improves non-motor symptoms and quality of life

Non-motor symptoms are common in late-stage Parkinson's disease as the frequency and severity of most of these symptoms increase with advancing disease. Optimizing dopaminergic treatment in the most severe stages can affect non-motor symptoms and improve quality of life, report scientists in the Journal of Parkinson's Disease.

25 Sep 2018

Sea squirt model reveals key molecules in dopaminergic neuron differentiation

The human brain is exceedingly complex, consisting of various regions with particular functions and approximately 100 billion neurons. This complexity has presented a major challenge in understanding this organ and how it develops, particularly in view of the ethical issues associated with research on humans.

20 Sep 2018

New screening strategy identifies novel inhibitors that may help develop cure for Parkinson's

Parkinson's disease is the most common movement disorder in the world. PD patients suffer from shaking, rigidity, slowness of movement and have difficulties walking.

10 Sep 2018

Finding ways to improve cell replacement therapy for Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disease that affects dopamine signaling neurons in patients' brains. Cell-replacement therapy shows some promise as a treatment for Parkinson's. A recent paper in the journal Molecular & Cellular Proteomics reports a technical advance in selecting cells to use in this therapy.

24 Aug 2018

Scientists are one step closer to understanding autistic disorders

Autism spectrum disorders are a heterogeneous group of neurodevelopmental disorders, one of the main characteristics of which is impaired social communication.

10 Aug 2018

Social environment influences individuality of mice

Individuality is not exclusive to humans. Though this idea was previously rebutted by biologists, today it is accepted that individuality is found in all animal species. It is defined as all the behavior differences between individuals of a single species that are relatively stable over time.

6 Aug 2018

Computational platform predicts how to convert one cell type into another

Researchers have developed a computational platform that predicts how one subtype of cells can be converted into another subtype.

30 Jul 2018

Researchers uncover why people with Parkinson's disease suffer from sleep disturbances

A team of researchers at VIB and KU Leuven has uncovered why people with a hereditary form of Parkinson's disease suffer from sleep disturbances.

8 Jun 2018

Scientists find key biomarker of Parkinson's disease in the retina

A research involving scientists from the University of Alicante and the United States notes that the accumulation of a protein known as alpha-synuclein in the retina is a key Parkinson's biomarker that could help detect the degree of severity of the disease.

8 Jun 2018