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New imaging method could better assess extent of nerve damage

A new imaging technique could help doctors and researchers more accurately assess the extent of nerve damage and healing in a live patient. Researchers at Laval University in Qu-bec and Harvard Medical School in Boston aimed lasers at rats' damaged sciatic nerves to create images of the individual neurons' insulating sheath called myelin.

14 Sep 2011

Electron microscope reveals minute morphology of dendritic trees

Neurons in the brain play a role as an electric wire conveying an electrical signal. Because this electric wire is connected with various joints, various brain functions can occur. A neuron which has dendritic trees on it, receives the signals with many synapses located on those dendritic trees, and carries out functions by combining the received signals.

14 Sep 2011

UC Berkeley scientists offer treatment hope for patients with tinnitus

Neuroscientists at the University of California, Berkeley, are offering hope to the 10 percent of the population who suffer from tinnitus - a constant, often high-pitched ringing or buzzing in the ears that can be annoying and even maddening, and has no cure.

13 Sep 2011

Chronic pain gene discovered

Scientists have found the gene responsible for chronic pain. It said that this could lead to drugs for treating long-lasting back pain.

12 Sep 2011

USC team produces world's first high-resolution images of α7 neuroreceptor

For the first time, USC scientists have mapped out a neuroreceptor. This scientific breakthrough promises to revolutionize the engineering of drugs used to treat ailments such as Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia.

12 Sep 2011

Human gliomas release excess levels of glutamate and trigger seizures

Glioma, one of the most deadly and common types of brain tumor, is often associated with seizures, but the origins of these seizures and effective treatments for them have been elusive. Now a team funded by the National Institutes of Health has found that human gliomas implanted in mice release excess levels of the brain chemical glutamate, overstimulating neurons near the tumor and triggering seizures.

12 Sep 2011

WSU researcher receives $418,000 NINDS grant to study spinal muscular atrophy

Graham Parker, Ph.D., assistant professor of research in the Department of Pediatrics at Wayne State University's School of Medicine, was awarded $418,000 from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke of the National Institutes of Health to study how a particular gene might be involved in the progression of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) - the number one genetic killer of children younger than 2 years old.

12 Sep 2011

Study pinpoints relationship between primary brain tumors and onset of epileptic seizures

New research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham pinpoints the relationship between primary brain tumors and the onset of epileptic seizures and reveals that a drug used to treat Crohn's disease inhibits those seizures and may be able to slow a tumor's growth.

12 Sep 2011

Ultrasonic neuromodulation can be quickly applied in neurocritical care situations

The discovery that low-intensity, pulsed ultrasound can be used to noninvasively stimulate intact brain circuits holds promise for engineering rapid-response medical devices.

9 Sep 2011

PKC epsilon enzyme might be target for treatment of nicotine addiction, alcohol abuse

An enzyme that appears to play a role in controlling the brain's response to nicotine and alcohol in mice might be a promising target for a drug that simultaneously would treat nicotine addiction and alcohol abuse in people, according to a study by researchers at the Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center, affiliated with the University of California, San Francisco.

9 Sep 2011

Dysregulated neuronal RNA transport may cause Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome

SUNY Downstate scientist Ilham Muslimov, MD, PhD, along with senior author Henri Tiedge, PhD, professor of physiology and pharmacology and of neurology, published a study suggesting that cellular dysregulation associated with certain neurodegenerative disorders may result from molecular competition in neuronal RNA transport pathways.

8 Sep 2011

Scientist identifies how lack of dopamine leads to symptoms of Parkinson's

A scientist at the Gladstone Institutes has identified how the lack of a brain chemical known as dopamine can rewire the interaction between two groups of brain cells and lead to symptoms of Parkinson's disease.

8 Sep 2011

Social engagement transforms white fat into energy-burning brown fat

When mice are given a more engaging place to live with greater opportunities for social stimulation, some of their energy-storing white fat is transformed to energy-burning brown fat. As a result, the animals expend more energy and lose weight even as they eat more. The findings reported in the September Cell Metabolism, a Cell Press publication, point to the powerful effect that animals' social and physical environments can have on their metabolisms.

8 Sep 2011

BioLineRx, Tel Aviv University sign license agreement to develop and commercialize BL-7050

BioLineRx, a biopharmaceutical development company, today announced that it has signed a worldwide, exclusive license agreement with Ramot at Tel Aviv University Ltd., the technology transfer company of Tel Aviv University, for the development and commercialization of BL-7050, a novel, orally-available treatment for neuropathic and inflammatory pain.

7 Sep 2011

Scientists discover two opposing neuronal regulatory circuits for generation, elimination of fear

Emotional balance is regulated by molecular factors behind stress response. When healthy people are faced with threatening situations, they react with a suitable behavioural response and do not descend into a state of either panic or indifference, as is the case, for example, with patients who suffer from anxiety.

7 Sep 2011

Researchers reveal mechanism behind how cells communicate

Cell communication is essential for the development of any organism. Scientists know that cells have the power to "talk" to one another, sending signals through their membranes in order to "discuss" what kind of cell they will ultimately become - whether a neuron or a hair, bone, or muscle. And because cells continuously multiply, it's easy to imagine a cacophony of communication.

6 Sep 2011

New medicines to target LPA receptors may prevent serious developmental brain diseases

Examining brain damage that occurs when fetuses in the womb are deprived of oxygen, researchers at The Scripps Research Institute have discovered that damage does not occur randomly but is linked to the specific action of a naturally occurring fatty molecule called LPA, acting through a receptor that transfers information into young brain cells.

2 Sep 2011

Two ALS-associated genes work in tandem to support long-term survival of motor neurons

Although several genes have been linked to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), it is still unknown how they cause this progressive neurodegenerative disease. In a new study, Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers have demonstrated that two ALS-associated genes work in tandem to support the long-term survival of motor neurons.

2 Sep 2011

Johns Hopkins researchers reveal neuronal cell survival mechanism

Nerve cells that regulate everything from heart muscle to salivary glands send out projections known as axons to their targets. By way of these axonal processes, neurons control target function and receive molecular signals from targets that return to the cell body to support cell survival. Now, Johns Hopkins researchers have revealed a molecular mechanism that allows a signal from the target to return to the cell body and fulfill its neuron-sustaining mission.

31 Aug 2011

New study pinpoints areas of the brain used exclusively for language

New research from MIT suggests that there are parts of our brain dedicated to language and only language, a finding that marks a major advance in the search for brain regions specialized for sophisticated mental functions.

31 Aug 2011

Neurons News and Research

New imaging method could better assess extent of nerve damage

Electron microscope reveals minute morphology of dendritic trees

UC Berkeley scientists offer treatment hope for patients with tinnitus

Chronic pain gene discovered

USC team produces world's first high-resolution images of α7 neuroreceptor

Human gliomas release excess levels of glutamate and trigger seizures

WSU researcher receives $418,000 NINDS grant to study spinal muscular atrophy

Study pinpoints relationship between primary brain tumors and onset of epileptic seizures

Ultrasonic neuromodulation can be quickly applied in neurocritical care situations

PKC epsilon enzyme might be target for treatment of nicotine addiction, alcohol abuse

Dysregulated neuronal RNA transport may cause Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome

Scientist identifies how lack of dopamine leads to symptoms of Parkinson's

Social engagement transforms white fat into energy-burning brown fat

BioLineRx, Tel Aviv University sign license agreement to develop and commercialize BL-7050

Scientists discover two opposing neuronal regulatory circuits for generation, elimination of fear

Researchers reveal mechanism behind how cells communicate

New medicines to target LPA receptors may prevent serious developmental brain diseases

Two ALS-associated genes work in tandem to support long-term survival of motor neurons

Johns Hopkins researchers reveal neuronal cell survival mechanism

New study pinpoints areas of the brain used exclusively for language

Neuroscience - Second Edition eBook

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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