Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute scientists have discovered a protein that regulates synaptic ion channels that have been tied to bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
On July 2nd, JoVE will publish a video article showing the details of a technique developed by researchers to improve language function in stroke patients with chronic speech-language impairment.
A key brain structure that regulates emotions works differently in preschoolers with depression compared with their healthy peers, according to new research at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
The power of the brain lies in its trillions of intercellular connections, called synapses that together form complex neural "networks." While neuroscientists have long sought to map these individual connections to see how they influence specific brain functions, traditional techniques have been unsuccessful. Now, scientists at the Salk Institute and the Gladstone Institutes, using an innovative brain- tracing technique, have found a way to untangle these networks. These findings offer new insight into how specific brain regions connect to each other, while also revealing clues as to what may happen, neuron by neuron, when these connections are disrupted.
A series of studies conducted by Randy Bruno, PhD, and Christine Constantinople, PhD, of Columbia University’s Department of Neuroscience, topples convention by showing that sensory information travels to two places at once: not only to the brain’s mid-layer (where most axons lead), but also directly to its deeper layers. The study appears in the June 28, 2013, edition of the journal Science.
People who have a traumatic brain injury (TBI) may be more likely to have a future stroke, according to research that appears in the June 26, 2013, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
For the first time, researchers have restored significant bladder function through nerve regeneration in rats with the most severe spinal cord injuries (SCI). The breakthrough paired a traditional nerve bridge graft with a novel combination of scar degrading and growth factor treatments to grow new nerve cells from the thoracic level to the lower spinal cord region.
Researchers have demonstrated that a protein called caspase-2 is a key regulator of a signaling pathway that leads to cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease. The findings, made in a mouse model of Alzheimer's, suggest that inhibiting this protein could prevent the neuronal damage and subsequent cognitive decline associated with the disease. The study was published this month in the online journal Nature Communications.
Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have shown in animal models that brain damage caused by the loss of a single copy of a gene during very early childhood development can cause a lifetime of behavioral and intellectual problems.
Duke Medicine researchers have identified a receptor in the nervous system that may be key to preventing epilepsy following a prolonged period of seizures.
Their findings from studies in mice, published online in the journal Neuron on June 20, 2013, provide a molecular target for developing drugs to prevent the onset of epilepsy, not just manage the disease’s symptoms.
Neuroscientists at The Scripps Research Institute have filled in a significant gap in the scientific understanding of how neurons mature, pointing to a better understanding of some developmental brain disorders.
Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have found a compound that could counter Parkinson’s disease in two ways at once. In a new study published recently online ahead of print by the journal ACS Chemical Biology, the scientists describe a “dual inhibitor” that attacks a pair of proteins closely associated with development of Parkinson’s disease.
One in four people who survive a stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) suffer from symptoms of PTSD within the 1st year post-event, and one in nine experience chronic PTSD more than a year later. The data, e-published by PLOS ONE, suggest that each year nearly 300,000 stroke/TIA survivors will develop PTSD symptoms as a result of their health scare.
People who experience any stroke symptoms—but do not have a stroke—may also be more likely to develop problems with memory and thinking, according to new research published in the June 19, 2013, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
A team of Vanderbilt researchers has provided important validation of maps of the brain at rest that may offer insights into changes in the brain that occur in neurological and psychiatric disorders.
The motor neuron disease Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, progresses in a stepwise, sequential pattern which can be classified into four distinct stages, report pathologists with the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in the Annals of Neurology.
A team led by UCLA researchers has conducted a major study on the importance of the speed of treatment when using a clot-busting drug, and found that treatment time has a profound influence on outcome.
The lipidation states (or modifications) in certain proteins in the brain that are related to the development of Alzheimer disease appear to differ depending on genotype and cognitive diseases, and levels of these protein and peptides appear to be influenced by diet, according to a report published Online First by JAMA Neurology, a JAMA Network publication.
NitroMemantine is the first drug to halt the progression of synaptic loss and to even restore these connections between nerve cells. The combination drug is now headed for clinical trials.
How does a social animal gain dominance over its fellows? A unique experiment conducted by Weizmann scientists provides insight into the behavior that enables a social hierarchy, complete with a leader, to form. Their system may be especially useful for understanding the societal aspects of disorders like schizophrenia and autism.
A new University of Florida study suggests a promising brain-imaging technique has the potential to improve diagnoses for the millions of people with movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease.
A deep brain stimulation trial in treatment-resistant obesity linked a weight loss trend to a metabolism increase programmed in a metabolic chamber, according to a pilot study presented at the International Neuromodulation Society’s 11th World Congress by Dr. Michael Oh of the Department of Neurosurgery, Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Men who experience restless legs syndrome (RLS) may have a higher risk of dying earlier, according to research that appears in the June 12, 2013, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Scientists have measured a significant and potentially pivotal difference between the brains of patients with an inherited form of Alzheimer’s disease and healthy family members who do not carry a mutation for the disease.
Stress felt by dad—whether as a preadolescent or adult—leaves a lasting impression on his sperm that gives sons and daughters a blunted reaction to stress, according to a new preclinical study in the Journal of Neuroscience by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania. The findings point to a never-before-seen epigenetic link to stress-related diseases such as anxiety and depression passed from father to child.
The cause of sexual dysfunction is thought to be pelvic floor muscle spasm, which affects voiding and fecal functions. Sacral neuromodulation has been advocated to relieve chronic bladder and/or bowel problems. Alleviating voiding dysfunction through sacral neuromodulation has been reported to subsequently improve female sexual function.
A PET study led by a Stony Brook University Professor indicates that overeating and weight gain contributing to onset of diabetes could be related to a deficit in reward circuits in the brain.
Low baseline diastolic blood pressure (DBP) appears to be associated with brain atrophy in patients with arterial disease, whenever declining levels of blood pressure (BP) over time among patients who had a higher baseline BP were associated with less progression of atrophy, according to a report published Online First by JAMA Neurology, a JAMA Network publication.
A University of Iowa-led study suggests that the brain circuits that control obsessive-compulsive behavior are intertwined with circuits that control food intake and body weight.
A new minimally invasive laser-based tool for epilepsy surgery offers a quicker recuperation time for patients than major surgery, Mayo Clinic researchers report. The research is ongoing, but preliminary results were recently presented at the American Academy of Neurology.
A team of researchers has made a significant discovery which may have a dramatic impact on children stricken with Tay-Sachs disease, a degenerative and fatal neurological condition that often strikes in the early months of life. Available drugs may dramatically ease a child’s suffering, say scientists.
People who develop a type of irregular heartbeat common in old age called atrial fibrillation may also be more likely to develop problems with memory and thinking, according to new research published in the June 5, 2013, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
University of Michigan researchers have determined how a gene that is known to be defective in Down syndrome is regulated and how its dysregulation may lead to neurological defects, providing insights into potential therapeutic approaches to an aspect of the syndrome.
The same mechanism that lets the immune system mount a massive attack against invading bacteria contributes to the destruction of brain cells as part of Parkinson’s disease.
Researchers at the University of Michigan have evidence that a single gene controls both halves of nerve cells, and their research demonstrates the need to consider that design in the development of new treatments for regeneration of nerve cells.
If people are unable to perceive their own errors as they complete a routine, simple task, their skill will decline over time, Johns Hopkins researchers have found — but not for the reasons scientists assumed. The researchers report that the human brain does not passively forget our good techniques, but chooses to put aside what it has learned.
Scientists, like Buddhist monks and Zen masters, have known for years that meditation can reduce anxiety, but not how. Researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, however, have succeeded in identifying the brain functions involved.
Two biomarkers being investigated as predictors of heart and vascular disease appear to indicate risk for "silent" strokes and other causes of mild brain damage that present no symptoms, report researchers in an upcoming issue of Stroke.
Another piece of the puzzle to better understand and treat obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) has fallen into place with the publication of new research that shows that the structural brain abnormalities of Doberman pinschers afflicted with canine compulsive disorder (CCD) are similar to those of humans with OCD. The research suggests that further study of anxiety disorders in dogs may help find new therapies for OCD and similar conditions in humans.
A study by Hans-Peter Hartung, M.D., of Heinrich-Heine-Universität, Düsseldoft, Germany, and colleagues examines the association between IL-17F and treatment response to interferon beta-1b among patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis.
UCLA researchers find abnormal brain networks in Fragile X syndrome, a genetic malady that is the most common inherited cause of autism and intellectual disability.
Measuring blood flow in the brain may be an easy, noninvasive way to predict stroke or hemorrhage in children receiving cardiac or respiratory support through a machine called ECMO, according to a new study by researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Early detection would allow physicians to alter treatment and take steps to prevent these complications—the leading cause of death for patients on ECMO.
A new guideline from the American Academy of Neurology advises that it is likely safe to continue taking blood thinners before minor procedures such as dental procedures, cataract surgery or dermatologic procedures. The guideline is published in Neurology.
Devices snaked into the brain artery of a patient experiencing a stroke that snatch and remove the offending clot, or pump a dissolving drug into the blockage, should primarily be used within a clinical trial setting, say a team of vascular neurologists at Mayo Clinic in Florida.
UCLA researchers now have the first evidence that bacteria ingested in food can affect brain function in humans. In an early proof-of-concept study of healthy women, they found that women who regularly consumed beneficial bacteria known as probiotics through yogurt showed altered brain function, both while in a resting state and in response to an emotion-recognition task.