Parkinson's Disease News and Research

Latest Parkinson's Disease News and Research

Cell therapy for Parkinson's

Parkinson's disease is one of the commonest afflictions caused by damage to the nerve cells of the brain. Patients suffer from muscular tremors and rigidity, and their movements are severely impaired.

8 Jan 2007

56% of adults support easing federal embryonic stem cell research funding restrictions

About 56% of U.S. adults support easing restrictions on federal funding for human embryonic stem cell research, according to an Associated Press-AOL poll conducted from Dec. 19, 2006, to Dec. 21, 2006, the AP/Washington Post reports (Superville, AP/Washington Post, 1/3).

7 Jan 2007

Uric acid holds potential for central nervous system damage

Uric acid is commonly associated with the excruciatingly painful joint disease known as gout, but it can also play a crucial role in the treatment of spinal cord injury and other central nervous system disorders, such as stroke, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease, according to Rutgers' Bonnie Firestein.

3 Jan 2007

Levodopa improves tremors, involuntary movements in Parkinson patients

A drug used to treat epilepsy has been found to significantly improve tremors, motor fluctuations, and other involuntary movements, or dyskinesias, in patients with Parkinson disease, according to a study published in Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

2 Jan 2007

Research offers hope for alcoholics

Scientists at Melbourne's Howard Florey Institute have discovered a system in the brain that stops an alcoholic's craving for alcohol, as well as prevent relapse once they have recovered from alcohol addiction.

12 Dec 2006

Human embryonic stem cells show potential in treating rats with Parkinson's symptoms

Brain cells derived from human embryonic stem cells improved the condition of rats with Parkinson's-like symptoms dramatically, but the treatment caused a significant problem - the appearance of brain tumors - that scientists are now working to solve.

2 Dec 2006

Whoever said people were much the same was wrong!

An international research team have come up with a new genetic map which could demand a fundamental shift in how we think genes work.

22 Nov 2006

New protein structure found - important for drug discovery

Understanding and replicating the diverse ways in which cellular proteins fold and interconnect is key to understanding life processes and major disorders, such as Parkinson's disease.

15 Nov 2006

Researchers identify risk factors for healthy survival in men

Avoiding health risk factors in midlife such as smoking, being overweight, excessive drinking and hypertension is associated with a longer and healthier life in men, according to a study in the November 15 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, a theme issue on men's health.

14 Nov 2006

Scientists discover how brain turns on system designed to protect nerve cells from toxic "free radicals"

Scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute report they have found how the brain turns on a system designed to protect its nerve cells from toxic "free radicals," a waste product of cell metabolism that has been implicated in some degenerative brain diseases, heart attacks, strokes, cancer, and aging.

20 Oct 2006

PGC-1 alpha implicated in Huntington's disease neurodegeneration

A metabolic disorder underlies the brain effects found in those with Huntington's disease, researchers report in an advance article publishing online October 19, 2006. The article will appear in the November 2006 issue of the journal Cell Metabolism, published by Cell Press.

20 Oct 2006

Parkinson's disease affects more than just motor control

Although Parkinson's disease is most commonly viewed as a "movement disorder," scientists have found that the disease also causes widespread abnormalities in touch and vision - effects that have now been verified using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) of the brain.

17 Oct 2006

New techniques give hope to brain damaged victims

Scientists at the annual Society for Neuroscience meeting in Atlanta have been demonstrating just how clever new techniques have become and what they are able to achieve.

16 Oct 2006

Green tea slows down plaque formation in Huntington's disease

Green tea can apparently inhibit the formation of the lethal protein aggregates that are a characteristic feature of Huntington's disease (HD).

13 Sep 2006

Study compares delivery methods of schizophrenia medicines

More than half of schizophrenia patients don't take their medication as directed and a new study will determine whether biweekly physician visits and injectable drugs can change that.

12 Sep 2006

Nicotine shows potential medical benefits

Nicotine may improve the symptoms of depression in people who do not smoke, Duke University Medical Center scientists have discovered.

12 Sep 2006

Scientists identifiy key compounds that stimulate stem cell growth in the brain

Scientists at Harvard University have identified key compounds that stimulate stem cell growth in the brain, which may one day lead to restored function for people affected by Parkinson's disease, strokes, multiple sclerosis, and a wide range of neurological disorders.

4 Sep 2006