Neurogenesis News and Research

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Neurogenesis (birth of neurons) is the process by which neurons are generated. Most active during pre-natal development, neurogenesis is responsible for populating the growing brain.

Chronic jet lag alters brain's intricate role in memory processing

Chronic jet lag alters the brain in ways that cause memory and learning problems long after one's return to a regular 24-hour schedule, according to research by University of California, Berkeley, psychologists.

25 Nov 2010

Neuralstem files NSI-189 IND with FDA for Phase I safety trials for major depression

Neuralstem, Inc. announced that it has filed an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to begin two Phase I safety trials to test NSI-189, its first small molecule compound, for the treatment of major depression. NSI-189 is a proprietary new chemical entity discovered by Neuralstem that stimulates new neuron growth in the hippocampus, an area of the brain that is believed to be involved in depression.

18 Nov 2010

Lead exposure may reverse blindness: Research

Some unexpected effects of lead exposure that may one day help prevent and reverse blindness have been uncovered by a University of Houston (UH) professor and his team.

26 Oct 2010

Research on BMP6 protein suggests potential therapeutic target for Alzheimer's disease

Elevated levels of a growth protein in the brains of Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients is linked to impaired neurogenesis, the process by which new neurons are generated, say researchers at the University of California, San Diego in today's edition of The Journal of Neuroscience.

17 Sep 2010

Researchers discover generation of pyramidal neurons by glial cell precursors

In an unanticipated finding, researchers at the UC Davis School of Medicine have discovered that, during early adulthood, the brain produces new excitatory neurons, and that these neurons arise from non-neuronal support cells in an area of the brain that processes smell.

10 Sep 2010

Research shows mutation in Prox1 gene may lead to memory, learning problems

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators showed a gene named Prox1 is a key player in normal development of a brain structure crucial for learning and memory and remains active throughout life, nurturing the cells vital for making new memories.This study focused on a small region of the hippocampus known as the dentate gyrus, a brain structure needed for memory and learning that is home to the subgranular zone where the neural stem cells destined to become granule cells are housed. The dentate gyrus is one of two regions of the adult brain where neural stem cells continue to produce the precursor cells that ultimately differentiate into neurons.

18 Aug 2010

Tips to maintain and improve brain health

While there are still mysteries surrounding the fundamental process of memory, research has revealed activities that may enhance memory and promote overall brain health. John H. Byrne, Ph.D., professor and chairman of the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) Medical School, studies the neuronal and molecular mechanisms underlying learning and memory. Here are three tips he offers for maintaining and improving brain health.

18 Aug 2010

Research identifies abnormal huntingtin protein critical for mitosis and cell fate determination

New research finds that a protein that is often mutated in Huntington's disease (HD) plays an unexpected role in the process of neurogenesis. The research, published by Cell Press in the August 12 issue of the journal Neuron, provides new insight into HD pathology and has even broader implications for human health and disease.

12 Aug 2010

NT-020 nutrients promote adult neural stem cell growth in aged rats: Researchers

A combination of nutrients called NT-020 promoted adult neural stem cell proliferation in aged rats and boosted their memory performance, reported University of South Florida researchers studying natural therapeutic approaches to promoting the health of neurons in the aging brain.

21 Jul 2010

Research may provide key to understanding interplay between exercise, aging and neurogenesis

Stem cells in the brain remain dormant until called upon to divide and make more neurons. However, little has been known about the molecular guards that keep them quiet.

2 Jul 2010

Researchers study science and clinical treatment of FAS

It's long been known that alcohol use in pregnancy can lead to children with mental retardation and birth defects, but researchers who study fetal alcohol syndrome have not made definitive progress on preventing the disorder, detecting it early, or effectively treating it, say researchers from Georgetown University Medical Center.

16 Jun 2010

Ginkgo extract EGb 761 promotes formation of new nerve cells, cell connections in brain's memory center

US scientists have shown that the Ginkgo extract EGb 761® promotes the formation of new nerve cells and new cell connections in the hippocampus, the brain's memory center. According to Professor Yuan Luo from the University of Maryland, Baltimore, the Ginkgo constituents responsible for these effects are quercetin and bilobalide.

11 Jun 2010

Leading stem cell scientists to discuss on stem cell clinical trials for ALS and heart attack patients

The first Cedars-Sinai Regenerative Medicine Scientific Symposium, dedicated to furthering our ability to bring stem cell therapies from the laboratory to the patient bedside. The conference, led by Clive Svendsen, Ph.D., and Eduardo Marb-n, M.D., Ph.D., will highlight the most recent developments in leading-edge stem cell research and treatments for brain and heart diseases.

27 May 2010

Novavax reports positive results from Phase II study of trivalent VLP influenza vaccine in older adults

Novavax, Inc. reported today that its trivalent seasonal influenza virus-like-particle (VLP)-based vaccine candidate was safe and immunogenic against the 2009-2010 seasonal influenza virus strains in older adults 60 years or higher in age.

30 Apr 2010

New data on Cimzia for Crohn’s Disease treatment to be demonstrated at DDW 2010

Studies and analyses of the Crohn’s Disease (CD) treatment Cimzia® (certolizumab pegol) demonstrating new data will be exhibited at Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2010, taking place in New Orleans from May 1-5, 2010.

30 Apr 2010

Potential drug to annul ADAM-17 protein activity needed

Over the past four years, in the installations of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Cadiz, a group of researchers, headed by Doctor Carmen Estrada, has been studying neurogenesis - the process of forming new neurons from mother cells - in the adult mammal brain. The purpose of this research project is to contribute to the knowledge of this process with the object of finding some additional mechanism that would facilitate the treatment of pathologies of the central nervous system (CNS) that are suffered in consequence of neuronal death.

19 Apr 2010

Antidepressants and mood stabilizers may benefit stroke victims

A study in rodents shows the growth of new neurons, also known as neurogenesis, lessens the severity of stroke and dramatically improves function following a stroke. The research, undertaken at the Buck Institute for Age Research, suggests that drugs shown to promote neurogenesis in rodents could have benefits for human stroke victims and that those drugs-which include antidepressants and mood stabilizers such as lithium-may be suitable for study in human clinical trials.

13 Apr 2010

MIF molecule plays crucial role in neurogenesis

There has been little progress in the way we treat depression and anxiety for over thirty years, but a recent study at EPFL Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) may open the door to new strategies. In an article published online February 23, 2010, in Molecular Psychiatry, researchers from two laboratories at the Brain Mind Institute at EPFL (Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne) explain how understanding the functioning of a molecule called MIF, or macrophage migration inhibitory factor, may change the way we treat depression.

12 Apr 2010

New clues may help explain why some people are more susceptible to stress than others

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found new clues that might help explain why some people are more susceptible to stress than others.

31 Mar 2010

Repeated anaesthesia in children linked to memory impairment

There is a link between repeated anaesthesia in children and memory impairment, though physical activity can help to form new cells that improve memory, reveals new research from the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

8 Mar 2010