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New study on transmitophagy process may help treat diverse disorders

It's broadly assumed that cells degrade and recycle their own old or damaged organelles, but researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Kennedy Krieger Institute have discovered that some neurons transfer unwanted mitochondria - the tiny power plants inside cells - to supporting glial cells called astrocytes for disposal.

18 Jun 2014

Yale researchers find that hormone leptin may help treat metabolic disorders

Twenty years after the hormone leptin was found to regulate metabolism, appetite, and weight through brain cells called neurons, Yale School of Medicine researchers have found that the hormone also acts on other types of cells to control appetite.

2 Jun 2014

Researchers use computer simulations to identify drugs most likely to kill cancer cells

Researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Moores Cancer Center have used computer simulations of cancer cells - cancer avatars - to identify drugs most likely to kill cancer cells isolated from patients' brain tumors.

22 May 2014

Glial cells promise as new target to modulate retinal synaptic plasticity after retinal injury

Different types of retinal damage could induce plastic changes of retinal synapses, which might precede the serious damage of neuron soma.

7 May 2014

Acupuncture protects brain neurons against injury in rats following heroin relapse

Heroin abuse can damage many brain areas, including the pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus of the midbrain, the ventral tegmental area, and nucleus accumbens. Persistent use of heroin induced irreversible damage to the nervous system.

11 Apr 2014

Researchers investigate how gene regulation affects evolution and development

Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) has received EUR 900,000 for three years to investigate, jointly with the Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB), how gene regulation affects evolution and development.

3 Apr 2014

High levels of GDNF protein could help body resist weight gain despite high-fat diet

More than one-third of people in the US are obese. Obesity and its related health problems-including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, insulin resistance, and belly fat-affect so many, yet effective treatments are very few.

2 Apr 2014

Chronic stress generates long-term changes in brain that lead to mental problems

University of California, Berkeley, researchers have shown that chronic stress generates long-term changes in the brain that may explain why people suffering chronic stress are prone to mental problems such as anxiety and mood disorders later in life.

12 Feb 2014

Study shows endoplasmic reticulum stress plays important role in diabetic retinopathy

Endoplasmic reticulum stress is closely involved in the early stage of diabetic retinopathy. According a study published in the Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 8, No. 33, 2013), endoplasmic reticulum stress played an important role in the hyperglycemia-induced death of ganglion cells and impairment of retinal microvessels.

5 Jan 2014

Doctors should consider underlying inflammatory conditions when selecting anti-epilepsy drugs, say researchers

Physicians at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB) have been investigating if established anti-epilepsy drugs have anti-inflammatory or pro-inflammatory properties - an effect for which these pharmaceutical agents are not usually tested.

20 Dec 2013

Researchers identify first biomarker that appears to be associated with duration of delirium

Researchers from the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University Center for Aging Research have identified the first biomarker that appears to be linked to the duration of delirium.

16 Dec 2013

Using morphine to fight surgical pain may prolong patient's suffering

Using morphine to fight the pain associated with abdominal surgery may paradoxically prolong a patient's suffering, doubling or even tripling the amount of time it takes to recover from the surgical pain, according to researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder.

13 Nov 2013

Just 13 days in space may cause changes in eye structure, gene expression

Just 13 days in space may be enough to cause profound changes in eye structure and gene expression, report researchers from Houston Methodist, NASA Johnson Space Center, and two other institutions in the October 2013 issue of Gravitational and Space Research.

25 Oct 2013

Study reveals that glial cells are integral to brain function

New research by scientists at UC San Francisco shows that one of the brain's fundamental self-protection mechanisms depends on coordinated, finely calibrated teamwork among neurons and non-neural cells knows as glial cells, which until fairly recently were thought to be mere support cells for neurons.

23 Oct 2013

Diverse Neurological Disorders Appear To Share Tangled Metabolic Roots

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10 Oct 2013

Gene mutation offers clues to development of diverse neurological disorders

A research team, headed by Theodore Friedmann, MD, professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, says a gene mutation that causes a rare but devastating neurological disorder known as Lesch-Nyhan syndrome appears to offer clues to the developmental and neuronal defects found in other, diverse neurological disorders like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's diseases.

10 Oct 2013

Glutamergic agents may be used as novel treatment for mood and anxiety disorders

Glutamergic agents may one day be used as a novel treatment for mood and anxiety disorders, new research presented at the 26th ECNP Congress suggests.

7 Oct 2013

Research: Treatment with antioxidants may help reduce behavioral issues linked to NF1

New research in mouse models suggests that treatment with antioxidants may help reduce behavioral issues linked to the genetic nervous system disorder Neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) and an associated condition called Costello syndrome.

12 Sep 2013

NIH budget slashing may stall future pain research funding

Multi-faceted pain research discoveries within the last decade are bringing new hope for the estimated 100 million Americans with chronic pain. Unfortunately, translation of these scientific advances into clinical practice could be stalled without sufficient funding for both basic science and clinical pain research, according to the American Pain Society.