Epilepsy News and Research

Latest Epilepsy News and Research

Licensing arrangement reached for antiepileptic drug developed at Hebrew University

A worldwide licensing arrangement for development, production and marketing of an antiepileptic drug created at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has been signed by Shire Pharmaceuticals with Yissum, the Hebrew University's technology transfer company.

5 Sep 2006

$1M Myers Fellowship brings US research techniques to Melbourne

The Howard Florey Institute's inaugural Allan and Maria Myers Travel Fellowship has been awarded to world renowned neuroscientist, Prof Gerard Shaw, from the McKnight Brain Institute, University of Florida College of Medicine.

20 Aug 2006

The endocannabinoid system controls key epileptogenic circuits in the hippocampus

The same brain machinery that responds to the active substance in marijuana provides a central "on-demand" protection against seizures, researchers have found. They said their discoveries suggest that the "endocannabinoid" system might constitute a prime target for drugs against seizures of epilepsy and other neurodegenerative diseases.

16 Aug 2006

New understanding of how our brains process sensory information

The same chemical in the body that is targeted by the drug Viagra. also helps our brains "boot up" in the morning so we can process sights, sound, touch and other sensory information.

8 Aug 2006

A new discovery shows that the brain rewires itself following an experience

The research further shows that this process of creation, testing, and reconfiguring of brain circuits takes place on a scale of just hours, suggesting that the brain is evolving considerably even during the course of a single day.

8 Aug 2006

Valproate poses high risk for fetal death and birth defects

The epilepsy drug valproate poses a higher risk for fetal death and birth defects than other commonly used epilepsy drugs, according to a study published in the August 8, 2006, issue of Neurology.

8 Aug 2006

Genetic mutations may be responsible for schizophrenia

The higher risk of schizophrenia among offspring of expectant mothers living through famine could help us understand the genetic basis for that debilitating mental disorder.

2 Aug 2006

FDA approves Keppra (levetiracetam) for epilepsy treatment

UCB has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Keppra (levetiracetam) injection for use as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial-onset seizures in adults with epilepsy.

2 Aug 2006

High rates of off-label prescriptions for antidepressant, anticonvulsant and antipsychotic drugs

A University of Georgia study has found that three-quarters of people prescribed antidepressant drugs receive the medications for a reason not approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration.

26 Jul 2006

New nerve-stimulation treatment for epilepsy helps!

A unique nerve-stimulation treatment for epilepsy developed at UCLA offers a potential new alternative for tens of thousands of individuals unable to control their seizures with medication and ineligible for surgery.

26 Jul 2006

Belfer Foundation funds new translational cancer institute

The Arthur and Rochelle Belfer Foundation has pledged $8 million to create the Arthur and Rochelle Belfer Institute of Hematology and Medical Oncology at Weill Medical College of Cornell University.

25 Jul 2006

Researchers identify earliest neuron in the embryonic human cerebral cortex

Researchers at Yale School of Medicine and the University of Oxford have identified the very first neurons in what develops into the cerebral cortex, the part of the brain that makes humans human.

24 Jul 2006

New guidelines for antiepileptic drugs

The International League Against Epilepsy has set new treatment guidelines for antiepileptic drugs, as published in the journal Epilepsia.

19 Jul 2006

Neurosurgical treatment of anxiety disorders effective

Severely ill patients with anxiety disorders or Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder undergoing neurosurgical treatment risk serious complications.

19 Jul 2006

Children with eczema have the same impaired quality of life as those with kidney disease

Children with serious skin conditions feel their quality of life is impaired to the same extent as those with chronic illnesses such as epilepsy, renal disease and diabetes, according to research published in the July issue of British Journal of Dermatology.

18 Jul 2006