Neurology News and Research

Latest Neurology News and Research

Mental exercises: do they work?

It has been long believed and aggressively drilled into our brains that computer programs and games that are targeted towards memory enhancement improve memory, mental health, intelligence and prevent age related memory loss and dementia. In a new study such claims have been found to be empty.

21 Apr 2010

Elan's first-quarter total revenue up by 27% to $310.5M

Elan Corporation, plc, today reported its first quarter 2010 financial results.

21 Apr 2010

Obesity related FTO gene linked to Alzheimer’s disease.

If you are an American of European origin and carry the FTO gene which causes obesity, you have a much higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. A recent study conducted at the University of California, Los Angeles claimed that 'A commonly carried allele of the obesity-related FTO gene is associated with reduced brain volume in healthy elderly'.

21 Apr 2010

TYSABRI drives Biogen Idec's first-quarter revenues of $1.1 billion

Biogen Idec Inc., a global biotechnology leader in the discovery, development, manufacturing, and commercialization of innovative therapies, today announced its first quarter 2010 results.

20 Apr 2010

Acorda Therapeutics to initiate Phase 1 clinical trial of GGF2 for heart failure in mid-2010

Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. today announced plans to initiate a Phase 1 single-dose clinical trial of the Company's compound, Glial Growth Factor 2 (GGF2), in patients with heart failure in mid-2010, based on an IND filed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on March 19, 2010. GGF2 has been shown to protect heart muscle and restore cardiac function in preclinical models of heart failure, myocardial infarction and cardiotoxicity.

20 Apr 2010

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries presents ADAGIO study results at AAN Annual Meeting

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. today announced results from the placebo group analyses of the ADAGIO study that were presented at the 62nd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology. The ADAGIO study stands out from other Parkinson's disease trials as it is the largest clinical study conducted in patients who were still in the very early stages of their disease course (average time from PD diagnosis of 4.5 months).

20 Apr 2010

Researchers find no correlation between AED drug load and number of adverse effects in epileptic patients

Researchers have found that polytherapy with multiple anti-epileptic drugs did not result in greater adverse effects than monotherapy for patients with refractory epilepsy. This observational study also found AED load was not a factor in causing adverse effects, but suggests that individual susceptibility, type of AEDs used, and physicians' skills determine which patients suffer adverse effects.

20 Apr 2010

Study identifies protective relationship between gene variant and cognitive function in older people

New research shows a gene variant may help protect the memory and thinking skills of older people. The research will be published in the April 20, 2010, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

20 Apr 2010

Encorium Group reports 21.4% decrease in fourth-quarter net revenue

Encorium Group, Inc., a full service multinational clinical research organization conducting studies in over 30 countries for many of the world's leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, today announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2009.

20 Apr 2010

FTO gene associated with loss of brain tissue: UCLA researchers

Three years ago, geneticists reported the startling discovery that nearly half of all people in the U.S. with European ancestry carry a variant of the fat mass and obesity associated gene, which causes them to gain weight - from three to seven pounds, on average - but worse, puts them at risk for obesity.

20 Apr 2010

Caliper Life Sciences introduces Quantum FX stand-alone microCT system for preclinical imaging

Caliper Life Sciences, Inc., a leading provider of tools and services for drug discovery, life sciences research and molecular diagnostics, today announced the Quantum FX, a stand-alone microCT system for preclinical imaging. Introduced at the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2010, the Quantum FX is a low dose, microCT system that provides researchers with a 3-dimensional anatomical view of disease activity, tumor development and therapeutic response over multiple time points during the course of a study.

19 Apr 2010

New p53 knockout rat model improves timelines for carcinogenicity screening

Sigma Life Science, the innovative biological products and services brand of Sigma-Aldrich, today introduced the world's first p53 'knockout' rat model, an important development that is expected to, due to the rat's closer physiological and metabolic similarity to humans, significantly improve timelines for carcinogenicity screening and reduce time to market for therapeutics.

19 Apr 2010

Study shows ultrathin flexible implants can effectively record brain activity

Scientists have developed a brain implant that essentially melts into place, snugly fitting to the brain's surface. The technology could pave the way for better devices to monitor and control seizures, and to transmit signals from the brain past damaged parts of the spinal cord.

19 Apr 2010

President of Tanzania emphasizes on health care in Global Health Grand Rounds lecture

President Jakaya Kikwete of the United Republic of Tanzania spoke at Weill Cornell Medical College today. In his Global Health Grand Rounds lecture, President Kikwete discussed the most significant challenges facing Tanzania, with a particular focus on health care and the advances made during his first term.

17 Apr 2010

Access to NAbs testing important for MS therapy management

Teva Neuroscience today announced results at the 62nd American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting which demonstrated that eliminating barriers to neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) testing significantly impacted multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment choices in patients receiving interferon beta (IFNβ) therapies.

17 Apr 2010

Australian study uncovers mechanisms involved in the progression of Alzheimer's disease

A major Australian study has provided new insights into the loss of structure in regions of the brain and its potential association with Alzheimer's Disease. The findings recently reported in Neurology suggest a build-up of deposits of the protein amyloid-beta in a region of the brain known as the temporal inferior cortex.

17 Apr 2010

Study shows beneficial impact of TYSABRI on QoL in MS patients

Biogen Idec and Elan Corporation, plc today announced results from a one-year, longitudinal health outcomes studys 62nd Annual Meeting in Toronto, April 10 - 17, 2010. The AAN Annual Meeting is the world's largest gathering of neurologists.

17 Apr 2010

Intensive rehabilitation therapy with robotic aids can help stroke patients regain limb movement

Patients show modest yet meaningful gains in limb movement and an improved outlook on life years after suffering a stroke, a major clinical study has found. The paper, published online this week in the New England Journal of Medicine, provides the best evidence yet that stroke sufferers in a controlled study can regain limb movement long after an injury, through intensive therapy with specially trained personnel and newly created robotic aids.

17 Apr 2010

New data on Cladribine Tablets presented at AAN annual meeting

EMD Serono, a division of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, today announced that new data providing further understanding on Cladribine Tablets as a potential new therapeutic option for relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis were presented at the 62nd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology.

17 Apr 2010

Knopp Neurosciences to initiate Phase 3 studies of KNS-760704 in AL

In an invited presentation today before the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology, Knopp Neurosciences Inc. described further encouraging trends observed in a previously reported Phase 2 study of KNS-760704 (dexpramipexole) in ALS.

17 Apr 2010