Myelin News and Research

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Myelin is the fatty substance that covers and protects nerves.

Transplanted neural stem cells may serve not only as replacement cells for tissue repair, but in some circumstances may also protect the brain from inflammation

Researchers at the San Raffaele Hospital (Milan, Italy) published unexpected results of studies in which immature nerve cells (adult mouse neural stem cells) injected into the blood of mice with MS-like disease were able to suppress the immune attacks that damage the brain and spinal cord tissues.

13 Jul 2005

Study proves Lorenzo's Oil prevents rare disease in boys

U.S. researchers have confirmed that a treatment called Lorenzo's Oil can prevent the onset of a rare but devastating neurological disease in young boys, X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy or X-ALD.

12 Jul 2005

Researchers find molecule ephrin-B3 inhibits regrowth of spinal nerve cells

A molecule that helps the body's motor nerve cells grow along proper paths during embryonic development also plays a major role in inhibiting spinal-cord neurons from regenerating after injury, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.

11 Jul 2005

Lorenzo's oil prevents onset of pediatric neurological disorder

Use of Lorenzo's Oil in young boys who have been diagnosed with but are not yet showing signs of a pediatric neurological disorder known as X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) may prevent the disease from developing in the body. According to a study of male children published today in the Archives of Neurology, use of the oil prevented onset of the disease in a majority of cases.

11 Jul 2005

Research explains one of the fundamental mysteries of multiple sclerosis

Scientists have pinpointed a chemical messenger that frees some white blood cells from the body's normal constraints, allowing the cells to act like renegades that could damage nerves in the central nervous system. The work, to be published in the July 15 issue of the Journal of Immunology and just published on-line, helps explain one of the fundamental mysteries of multiple sclerosis (MS).

11 Jul 2005

OHSU scientists say low FOXP3 means fewer disease-fighting cells, but new drug may help multiple sclerosis

Oregon Health & Science University researchers have measured genetic changes reflecting a drop in the body's ability to suppress inflammatory cells that attack nerve fibers and promote progression of multiple sclerosis.

27 Jun 2005

Causes, consequences and clinical implications of alcohol-related brain shrinkage

Previous studies have demonstrated that the brains of alcoholics are smaller, lighter and "shrunken" when compared to nonalcoholic brains.

14 Jun 2005

Medical Research Council funds research to look at cannabis based medicines in multiple sclerosis treatment

A trial to determine whether cannabis-based medicines can reduce disability in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) has been funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC).

24 May 2005

Infants with Krabbe disease saved by cord blood stem cells

Children with a fatal genetic disorder called Krabbe Disease can be saved and their brain development preserved if they receive stem cells from umbilical cord blood before symptoms of the disease develop, according to a study published in the current issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

20 May 2005

Discovery reveals how stem cells can be used to help repair acute spinal cord damage

A treatment derived from human embryonic stem cells improves mobility in rats with spinal cord injuries, providing the first physical evidence that the therapeutic use of these cells can help restore motor skills lost from acute spinal cord tissue damage.

10 May 2005

Important new finding about the brain and its stem cells

A family's bravery and generosity in the face of their son's death three years ago has enabled researchers to make an important new finding about the brain and its stem cells.

25 Apr 2005

Cigarette smoking may contribute to the progression of multiple sclerosis

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) recently discovered that cigarette smoking may contribute to the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS), suggesting that quitting smoking could limit or delay central nervous system deterioration.

20 Apr 2005

Novel findings in Balo's concentric sclerosis may shed light on pathology of MS

Researchers partly funded through the National MS Society’s “MS Lesion Project” report that a novel mechanism known as “tissue preconditioning” may explain the pattern of tissue damage that occurs in Baló’s concentric sclerosis, a rare, severe disease similar to MS, and may offer clues to a similar phenomenon in MS. Hans Lassmann, MD (Medical University of Vienna, Wien) and colleagues, including Society grantee Claudia Lucchinetti, MD (Mayo Clinic and Foundation, Rochester, MN), report their findings in Brain.

12 Apr 2005

How and why people become addicted to alcohol

Virginia Commonwealth University researchers have identified several genetic changes in the brains of mice caused by ethanol, which may help researchers better understand how and why people become addicted to alcohol.

2 Mar 2005

Gene dynamin 2 underlies one form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

A gene that plays many fundamental roles in cells throughout the body has, for the first time, been implicated in human disease, according to researchers at the Duke Center for Human Genetics.

31 Jan 2005

Lifting weights can help people with multiple sclerosis

Lifting weights can improve muscle strength and quality of life for people afflicted with the degenerative disease multiple sclerosis, a new University of Florida study finds.

17 Jan 2005

Researchers have identified the cellular receptor for the JC virus

Researchers funded in part by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) have identified the cellular receptor for the JC virus, which causes the fatal neurological disease progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML).

17 Jan 2005

New research may lead to new treatments for spinal cord injury and multiple sclerosis

For the first time, researchers have used human embryonic stem cells to create new insulating tissue for nerve fibers in a live animal model – a finding that has potentially important implications for treatment of spinal cord injury and multiple sclerosis.

23 Nov 2004

New imaging technology gathers valuable information about the brains of people with schizophrenia

Researchers at the Boston Veterans Affairs Health Care System – Brockton Division, Harvard Medical School, and the University of Massachusetts-Boston are using new imaging technology to gather valuable information about the brains of people with schizophrenia.

24 Oct 2004

Intravenous immunoglobulin therapy may reduce the risk of a second attack of symptoms related to multiple sclerosis

Anat Achiron, M.D., Ph.D., of Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel, and colleagues assessed the effect of IVIg treatment in patients after the first neurological event suggestive of MS and evaluated the occurrence of a second attack.

11 Oct 2004

Myelin News and Research

Further Reading

Transplanted neural stem cells may serve not only as replacement cells for tissue repair, but in some circumstances may also protect the brain from inflammation

Study proves Lorenzo's Oil prevents rare disease in boys

Researchers find molecule ephrin-B3 inhibits regrowth of spinal nerve cells

Lorenzo's oil prevents onset of pediatric neurological disorder

Research explains one of the fundamental mysteries of multiple sclerosis

OHSU scientists say low FOXP3 means fewer disease-fighting cells, but new drug may help multiple sclerosis

Causes, consequences and clinical implications of alcohol-related brain shrinkage

Medical Research Council funds research to look at cannabis based medicines in multiple sclerosis treatment

Infants with Krabbe disease saved by cord blood stem cells

Discovery reveals how stem cells can be used to help repair acute spinal cord damage

Important new finding about the brain and its stem cells

Cigarette smoking may contribute to the progression of multiple sclerosis

Novel findings in Balo's concentric sclerosis may shed light on pathology of MS

How and why people become addicted to alcohol

Gene dynamin 2 underlies one form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

Lifting weights can help people with multiple sclerosis

Researchers have identified the cellular receptor for the JC virus

New research may lead to new treatments for spinal cord injury and multiple sclerosis

New imaging technology gathers valuable information about the brains of people with schizophrenia

Intravenous immunoglobulin therapy may reduce the risk of a second attack of symptoms related to multiple sclerosis

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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