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New understanding of jet lag

A new study demonstrates that the brain’s central timekeeper - the biological clock that regulates waking and sleeping cycles - has two parts that fall out of synchrony during light schedule shifts of six hours, the time it takes to fly across the Atlantic.

3 Jun 2005

Research moves us closer to understanding how complicated network connections are wired up during embryonic development

A newborn baby moves, breathes and cries in part because a network of nerves called motor neurons carry signals from the infant's brain and spinal cord to muscles throughout its body.

3 Jun 2005

New shingles vaccine

Doctors say they have come up with a vaccine that can reduce both the incidence and the severity of shingles by more than half.

2 Jun 2005

Ageing and Health publication by the Medical Research Council highlights groundbreaking work on the ageing process

With life expectancy increasing worldwide, a new 'Ageing and Health' (PDF) publication by the Medical Research Council (MRC) highlights groundbreaking work on the ageing process, which could help elderly people not only live longer, but also lead healthier and happier lives.

2 Jun 2005

Stronger version of chickenpox vaccine cuts incidence and severity of shingles in older adults

In one of the largest adult vaccine clinical trials ever, researchers have found that an experimental vaccine against shingles (zoster vaccine) prevented about half of cases of shingles--a painful nerve and skin infection--and dramatically reduced its severity and complications in vaccinated persons who got the disease. The findings appear in the June 2 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.

1 Jun 2005

Scientists develop a way to block the signals responsible for neuropathic pain

Remember how it felt the last time you burned your finger on a hot stove? Imagine what it's like to have that burning pain in your hands or feet all the time and know there's virtually nothing you can do about it.

1 Jun 2005

Diagnostic test for Lou Gehrig's disease

Bowser is director of the ALS Tissue Bank and an Associate Professor of Pathology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine who is using a key piece of biomarker discovery equipment known as SELDI to find new ways to identify and eventually treat Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), a neurodegenerative disease.

1 Jun 2005

A sudden increase in the number of British cases of Lyme disease

Lyme disease, an infection carried by ticks causes a rash and stiffness in the joints and, if left unchecked, it can affect the central nervous system, causing tingling in hands and feet, or facial palsy. In the worst cases the disease can also affect the heart, liver and spleen and even lead to encephalitis, which can kill.

29 May 2005

Leprosy microbes lead scientists to immune discovery

With the unusual opportunity that human leprosy infections provide for study of human immune responses, scientists have discovered how the body's early warning system prompts a rapid immune response by two separate armies of defensive cells.

29 May 2005

Female sexual dysfunction (FSD) affects 48.2 percent of women

Researchers at Yale School of Medicine and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine have found that female sexual dysfunction (FSD) affects 48.2 percent of women in a new study and that these women had decreased sensation in the clitoris, which increased the risk of sexual dysfunction.

26 May 2005

Retina and its circuits are much more pliable than scientists previously thought

A new Oregon Health & Science University study is opening scientists' eyes to the retina's ability to rewire itself so it can adapt to different levels of ambient light.

26 May 2005

'Brown fat cells' hold clues for possible obesity treatments

Joslin Diabetes Center scientists have discovered a group of genes that govern the genesis of calorie-burning fat cells. This discovery may lead to novel ways to treat obesity in humans.

26 May 2005

Researchers have succeeded in mapping the unique patterns of neural activity produced by a wide range of odors

Revealing these distinct - but often overlapping - patterns of neural activity represents a significant step in understanding how the brain translates complex signals from odorant receptors in the nose into odor perception in the brain, the researchers said.

26 May 2005

Protein TRPA1 essential for hearing also vital for pain perception

The same protein that "translates" sound into nerve signals to the brain and enables individuals to hear is also required for pain perception, researchers from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine have found.

25 May 2005

Scientists watch agents of brain-wasting diseases invade and move within brain cells

Scientists for the first time have watched agents of brain-wasting diseases, called transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE), as they invade a nerve cell and then travel along wire-like circuits to points of contact with other cells.

25 May 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

Narcotic medications can safely and effectively ease severe, chronic pain in older people

Narcotic medications can safely and effectively ease severe, chronic pain in older people with little risk that these patients will seek ever-increasing doses, UCSF medical scientists have found. Younger patients, however, are likely to want to rapidly increase their medication dose, the researchers found, posing serious potential health consequences.

23 May 2005

Gene keeps neural cells on correct developmental path

Embryonic stem cells with identical genomes grow into distinctive tissues, such as heart, bone, and brain. At one time, scientists believed the differences among cell types arose from various sets of genes switched on inside developing cells.

23 May 2005

Investigational device-based therapies will lead to entirely new treatment options for chronic depression sufferers

Researchers said that developing brain stimulation techniques such as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), vagal nerve stimulation and deep brain stimulation are emerging as significant treatment options for the millions of patients "poorly served" by existing therapies.

23 May 2005

New insight into the machinery cells use to internalize cell surface receptors

Using state of the art imaging technology a team from Yale School of Medicine has glimpsed one of the cell's most important 'nano-machines' in action. The work, performed in collaboration with English and French scientists, provides new insight into the machinery cells use to internalize cell surface receptors.

22 May 2005

Nerve News and Research

New understanding of jet lag

Research moves us closer to understanding how complicated network connections are wired up during embryonic development

New shingles vaccine

Ageing and Health publication by the Medical Research Council highlights groundbreaking work on the ageing process

Stronger version of chickenpox vaccine cuts incidence and severity of shingles in older adults

Scientists develop a way to block the signals responsible for neuropathic pain

Diagnostic test for Lou Gehrig's disease

A sudden increase in the number of British cases of Lyme disease

Leprosy microbes lead scientists to immune discovery

Female sexual dysfunction (FSD) affects 48.2 percent of women

Retina and its circuits are much more pliable than scientists previously thought

'Brown fat cells' hold clues for possible obesity treatments

Researchers have succeeded in mapping the unique patterns of neural activity produced by a wide range of odors

Protein TRPA1 essential for hearing also vital for pain perception

Scientists watch agents of brain-wasting diseases invade and move within brain cells

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

Narcotic medications can safely and effectively ease severe, chronic pain in older people

Gene keeps neural cells on correct developmental path

Investigational device-based therapies will lead to entirely new treatment options for chronic depression sufferers

New insight into the machinery cells use to internalize cell surface receptors

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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

From Puberty to Menopause: Clue’s CEO, Audrey Tsang on the Power of Femtech

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