Epilepsy News and Research

Latest Epilepsy News and Research

New electronically controlled drugs deliver medicine in much more targeted way

Potential side effects of many of today's therapeutic drugs can be downright frightening - just listen carefully to a drug commercial on TV. These effects often occur when a drug is active throughout the body, not just where and when it is needed.

6 Feb 2014

UCSF-led study gathers data on safety, tolerability of purified cannabinoid for children with epilepsy

A new international multi-center study led by researchers from UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital is the first to evaluate whether purified cannabinoid is effective in treating severe forms of childhood epilepsy that do not respond to standard antiepileptic drugs.

5 Feb 2014

Study shows how pesticides may contribute to development of Parkinson's disease

New research shows how pesticides may increase the risk of Parkinson's disease and that people with certain gene variants may be more susceptible to the disease. The research is published in the February 4, 2014, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

4 Feb 2014

UC San Diego researchers uncover causes for hereditary spastic paraplegia

In a study published in the January 31, 2014 issue of Science, an international team led by scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine report doubling the number of known causes for the neurodegenerative disorder known as hereditary spastic paraplegia. HSP is characterized by progressive stiffness and contraction of the lower limbs and is associated with epilepsy, cognitive impairment, blindness and other neurological features.

31 Jan 2014

State highlights: Will doc cuts like those in Conn. become more common?; Calif. health plans criticized over chronic condition treatment; Vt. drug addiction

A selection of health policy stories from Connecticut, California, Vermont, Minnesota, Virginia and Georgia.

30 Jan 2014

Johns Hopkins researchers discover epilepsy drug reduces obesity-related blood sugar levels

Johns Hopkins researchers have discovered that valproic acid, a widely prescribed drug for treating epilepsy, has the additional benefits of reducing fat accumulation in the liver and lowering blood sugar levels in the blood of obese mice.

30 Jan 2014

Staged surgery for most complex cases of childhood epilepsy

A staged approach to epilepsy surgery-with invasive brain monitoring followed by surgery in a single hospital stay-is a safe and beneficial approach to treatment for complex cases of epilepsy in children, reports the February issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

28 Jan 2014

Researchers suggest possible novel target for seizure-blocking medicines

Researchers in the biomedical engineering department at Case Western Reserve University have found that epileptic activity can spread through a part of the brain in a new way, suggesting a possible novel target for seizure-blocking medicines.

24 Jan 2014

Neuroscientists reveal how brain determines timing at which neurons take to create new memories

Neuroscientists from the University of Leicester, in collaboration with the Department of Neurosurgery at the University California Los Angeles (UCLA), are to reveal details of how the brain determines the timing at which neurons in specific areas fire to create new memories.

24 Jan 2014

People with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids may have larger brain volumes in old age

People with higher levels of the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil may also have larger brain volumes in old age equivalent to preserving one to two years of brain health, according to a study published in the January 22, 2014, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Shrinking brain volume is a sign of Alzheimer's disease as well as normal aging.

23 Jan 2014

Researchers discover new gene involved in severe childhood epilepsy

A European consortium of epilepsy researchers has reported the discovery of a new gene involved in severe childhood epilepsy. Using a novel combination of technologies, including trio exome sequencing of patient/parental DNA and genetic studies in the tiny larvae of zebrafish, the EuroEPINOMICS RES consortium found that mutations in the gene CHD2 are responsible for a subset of epilepsy patients with symptoms similar to Dravet syndrome - a severe form of childhood epilepsy that is in many patients resistant to currently available anti-epileptic drugs.

23 Jan 2014

Scientists identify specific enzyme essential for brain development

Scientists from the Max F. Perutz Laboratories (MFPL) of the University of Vienna and the Medical University of Vienna have identified a specific enzyme, histone deacetylase 2 (HDAC2), as essential for brain development. The findings published in Development are important to advance the development of new drugs to treat neurological diseases.

22 Jan 2014

Magnetoencephalography can be used to control and train specific targeted brain regions

A new brain-imaging technique enables people to 'watch' their own brain activity in real time and to control or adjust function in pre-determined brain regions. The study from the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital - The Neuro, McGill University and the McGill University Health Centre, published in NeuroImage, is the first to demonstrate that magnetoencephalography can be used as a potential therapeutic tool to control and train specific targeted brain regions.

21 Jan 2014

Researchers find that we use both sides of our brain for speech

We use both sides of our brain for speech, a finding by researchers at New York University and NYU Langone Medical Center that alters previous conceptions about neurological activity. The results, which appear in the journal Nature, also offer insights into addressing speech-related inhibitions caused by stroke or injury and lay the groundwork for better rehabilitation methods.

17 Jan 2014

CSHL professor identifies two proteins that control structure of chandelier cells

Chandelier cells are neurons that use their unique shape to act like master circuit breakers in the brain's cerebral cortex. These cells have dozens, often hundreds, of branching axonal projections - output channels from the cell body of the neuron - that lend the full structure of a chandelier-like appearance.

17 Jan 2014

Cedars-Sinai researcher to receive 2014 Troland Research Award

Ueli Rutishauser, PhD, assistant professor of neurosurgery and director of human neurophysiology research in the Department of Neurosurgery and the Department of Neurology at Cedars-Sinai, will receive a 2014 Troland Research Award at the National Academy of Sciences annual meeting April 27.

16 Jan 2014

FDA-regulated study investigates use of child's stem cells for acquired sensorineural hearing loss

Cord Blood Registry, the world's largest and most experienced newborn stem cell company, announces the start of a U.S. Food and Drug-regulated study being conducted at Florida Hospital for Children in Orlando to investigate the use of a child's stem cells from their own stored umbilical cord blood as a treatment for acquired sensorineural hearing loss.

16 Jan 2014

Study shows direct link between metabolism in brain cells and ability to signal information

A new study by scientists at McGill University and the University of Zurich shows a direct link between metabolism in brain cells and their ability to signal information. The research may explain why the seizures of many epilepsy patients can be controlled by a specially formulated diet.

16 Jan 2014

People who suffer from brain injuries, strokes often have problems paying attention, concentrating

The brain appears to synchronize the activity of different brain regions to make it possible for a person to pay attention or concentrate on a task, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have learned.

16 Jan 2014

Heavy drinking associated with faster decline in cognitive function in middle-aged men

Middle-aged men who drink more than 36 grams of alcohol, or two and a half US drinks per day, may speed their memory loss by up to six years later on, according to a study published in the January 15, 2014, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

16 Jan 2014

Epilepsy News and Research

Latest Epilepsy News and Research

New electronically controlled drugs deliver medicine in much more targeted way

UCSF-led study gathers data on safety, tolerability of purified cannabinoid for children with epilepsy

Study shows how pesticides may contribute to development of Parkinson's disease

UC San Diego researchers uncover causes for hereditary spastic paraplegia

State highlights: Will doc cuts like those in Conn. become more common?; Calif. health plans criticized over chronic condition treatment; Vt. drug addiction

Johns Hopkins researchers discover epilepsy drug reduces obesity-related blood sugar levels

Staged surgery for most complex cases of childhood epilepsy

Researchers suggest possible novel target for seizure-blocking medicines

Neuroscientists reveal how brain determines timing at which neurons take to create new memories

People with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids may have larger brain volumes in old age

Researchers discover new gene involved in severe childhood epilepsy

Scientists identify specific enzyme essential for brain development

Magnetoencephalography can be used to control and train specific targeted brain regions

Researchers find that we use both sides of our brain for speech

CSHL professor identifies two proteins that control structure of chandelier cells

Cedars-Sinai researcher to receive 2014 Troland Research Award

FDA-regulated study investigates use of child's stem cells for acquired sensorineural hearing loss

Study shows direct link between metabolism in brain cells and ability to signal information

People who suffer from brain injuries, strokes often have problems paying attention, concentrating

Heavy drinking associated with faster decline in cognitive function in middle-aged men

Everything you need to know about epilepsy eBook

How microRNA is transforming science: From discovery to diagnostics

Advancing benzodiazepine detection

The Surgeon-Scientist Pioneering Regenerative Engineering

Epilepsy News and Research

Latest Epilepsy News and Research

Everything you need to know about epilepsy eBook

How microRNA is transforming science: From discovery to diagnostics

Advancing benzodiazepine detection

The Surgeon-Scientist Pioneering Regenerative Engineering

Newsletters you may be interested in