Nerve activity News and Research

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Ringing in the ears

Do your ears ring after a loud concert? Nerves that sense touch in your face and neck may be behind the racket in your brain, University of Michigan researchers say.

11 Jan 2008

New role discovered for cilia

Johns Hopkins researchers and colleagues have found a previously unrecognized role for tiny hair-like cell structures known as cilia: They help form our sense of touch.

22 Oct 2007

Simulation reveals how body repairs balance after damage

Your body goes to a lot of trouble to make sure you stay upright. But when the brain's neural pathways are impaired through injury, age or illness, muscles are deprived of the detailed sensory information they need to perform the constant yet delicate balancing act required for normal movement and standing.

26 Sep 2007

Electrical device partly restores sense of balance in animals

Hearing and balance experts at Johns Hopkins report successful testing in animals of an electrical device that partly restores a damaged or impaired sense of balance.

7 Aug 2007

Statin drugs also may help reduce risk of heart failure

Statin drugs, known primarily for their ability to lower cholesterol, also may reduce the overactive sympathetic nervous system response that contributes to the worsening of heart failure and increases the risk of sudden cardiac death, two University of Missouri-Columbia researchers have found. Heart failure is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States.

2 May 2007

Possible therapeutic target for Duchenne muscular dystrophy

In the April 1st issue of Genes & Development, Dr. Bruce Spiegelman (Dana Farber Cancer Institute) and colleagues identify a key genetic component of and possible therapeutic target for Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

2 Apr 2007

Smart bladder pacemaker

Duke University biomedical engineering researchers have moved a step closer to a "smart bladder pacemaker" that might one day restore bladder control in patients with spinal cord injury or neurological disease.

18 Feb 2007

Researchers set out to determine the effectiveness of endomorphin 1, with a painkilling capacity equal to or greater than morphine

Nearly one third of the world's adult population suffers with the pain of arthritis. While NSAIDs and COX-2 inhibitors offer the promise of relief, these drugs also bring the risk of adverse effects, from stomach ulcers to heart attack.

3 Oct 2005

Wearing a continuous positive airway pressure device helps heart failure patients with obstructive sleep apnea get a good night's rest

Wearing a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device not only helps heart failure patients with obstructive sleep apnea get a good night's rest, it lowers blood pressure and heart rate well into the morning, apparently, by reducing sympathetic nervous system activity, according to a new study (PDF) in the June 21, 2005, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

21 Jun 2005

Research proves the dangers of salt

Sydney University scientists have proved that salt has a dangerous adrenalin-inducing effect on people suffering from high blood pressure, or 'hypertension'.

10 May 2005

Ingredient present in chocolate could help stop persistent coughs

According to research published online in FASEB Journal the team have discovered that theobromine, a derivative found in cocoa, is nearly a third more effective in stopping persistent coughs when compared with codeine, currently considered the best cough medicine.

23 Nov 2004

Researchers to develop dietary agents to reduce risk of cataracts for astronauts

Astronauts are at increased risk of cataracts because of space radiation. In fact, it is estimated during a long space flight to Mars and back, about one quarter of the crew would become blind because of space radiation-induced cataracts. Other groups which are at increased risk are jet crews, radiation workers and radiation accident cleanup workers.

5 Oct 2004

British people should get out in the sun and not cover up for health reasons

British health is being put at risk by government policy that discourages sunbathing and promotes use of sunblock products. The cost of disease caused by insufficient exposure to sunlight and consequent deficiency of vitamin D is estimated to be billions of pounds per year in Britain.

5 Jul 2004