People with high levels of a protein called C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker for inflammation in the blood, may be at higher risk for heart attack and death but not stroke, according to a study published in the October 20, 2009, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Scientists have countered findings of previous clinical trials by showing that giving supplemental oxygen to animals during a stroke can reduce damage to brain tissue surrounding the clot.
MIT researchers have identified populations of neurons that code time with extreme precision in the primate brain.
UCLA scientists found that middle-aged and older adults with little Internet experience were able to trigger key centers in the brain that control decision-making and complex reasoning after just one week of surfing the Web. The findings suggest that Internet training can stimulate neural activation patterns and could potentially enhance brain function and cognition in older adults.
Migraine sufferers, beware. You may be more prone to an alcohol-induced headache after a night of drinking, according to researchers from the Jefferson Headache Center. The research will be presented at Neuroscience 2009, the Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, in Chicago.
Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have found that the 22q11 gene deletion – a mutation that confers the highest known genetic risk for schizophrenia – is associated with changes in the development of the brain that ultimately affect how its circuit elements are assembled.
A study by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine reports a significant breakthrough in explaining gaps in scientists’ understanding of human brain function. The study – which provides a picture of language processing in the brain with unprecedented clarity – will be published in the October 16 issue of the journal Science.
University of Illinois at Chicago physical therapists studying persons with multiple sclerosis found that excessive force often used for gripping can be eased by gently touching the hand or arm in use, raising the possibility of new therapy approaches.
New guidelines from the American Academy of Neurology identify the most effective treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often called Lou Gehrig's disease. The guidelines are published in the October 13, 2009, issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Cognitive abilities other than memory, including visuospatial skills needed to perceive relationships between objects, may decline years prior to a clinical diagnosis in patients with Alzheimer’s disease, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Higher concentration of urate (an antioxidant) in the blood and spinal fluid of patients with early Parkinson’s disease is associated with slower rates of clinical decline, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the December print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
In the Oct. 11 advance online edition of Nature Neuroscience, scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies report that they have identified the first genetic mechanism that determines the regional identity of progenitors tasked with generating the cerebral cortex. Their discovery reveals a critical period during which a LIM homeodomain transcription factor known as Lhx2 decides over the progenitors’ regional destiny: Once the window of opportunity closes, their fate is sealed.
Spontaneous brain activity formerly thought to be "white noise" measurably changes after a person learns a new task, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the University of Chieti, Italy, have shown.
Hispanic children diagnosed with brain tumors get high-quality treatment at hospitals that specialize in neurosurgery far less often than other children with the same condition, potentially compromising their immediate prognosis and long-term survival, according to research from Johns Hopkins published in October’s Pediatrics.
In one of the first studies of its kind, an international team of researchers has uncovered a single-letter change in the genetic code that is associated with autism. The finding, published in the October 8 issue of the journal Nature, implicates a neuronal gene not previously tied to the disorder and more broadly, underscores a role for common DNA variation.
About 90 percent of autism spectrum disorders have suspected genetic causes but few genes have been identified so far. Now, leading an international team, Johns Hopkins researchers have identified several genetic links to autism, chief among them a variant of semaphorin 5A, whose protein product controls nerve connections in the brain.
To the patient, automated nerve conduction studies (NCSs) may sound appealing because they are less invasive than needle electromyography (EMG). To the physician with no formal electrodiagnostic (EDX) training, the ability to perform an automated test in their office is convenient for patients and may generate additional revenue for their practice.
The action of a small protein that is a major villain in Alzheimer’s disease can be counterbalanced with another brain protein, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found in an animal study.
Daughters of women exposed to a common chemical found in some plastics while they were pregnant are more likely to have unusually aggressive and hyperactive behaviors as 2-year-olds, according to a new study by researchers at Simon Fraser University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.
A chemical produced by common soil bacteria may kill neurons that produce dopamine, according to a study publishing Oct. 6.
Drivers with mild to moderate Parkinson’s disease may be at higher risk of crashes on foggy days and other times of low visibility. The research, involving a driving simulation test, is published in the October 6, 2009, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
UVA professor of neurosurgery Neal Kassell believes that MRgFUS - the technological marriage of magnetic resonance imaging and focused ultrasound - may be the most important therapeutic development since the scalpel. That notion will soon be explored by dozens of his colleagues from nine specialties who will engage in a robust program of research projects and clinical trials at UVA's new Focused Ultrasound Center, which was dedicated on September 14.
Researchers map common brain wave spikes in dying patients. What do the findings suggest about the workings of our brains as we die.
While the human brain responds very differently to religious and nonreligious propositions, the process of believing or disbelieving a statement, whether religious or not, seems to be governed by the same areas in the brain.
This study suggests that a single gene, called GSK-3, controls the signals that determine how many neurons actually end up composing the brain. This has important implications for patients with neuropsychiatric illness, as links have recently been drawn between GSK-3 and schizophrenia, depression and bipolar disorder.
Two University of Southern California (USC) neuroscientists have been awarded nearly $9 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to map how genes are expressed in different regions of the human brain throughout development.
Nicotine addiction plagues millions. A group of Grinnell College researchers recently uncovered a “key” that may “unlock” proteins and guide efforts to develop treatments for nicotine addiction. The research, conducted by Grinnell biological chemistry students and led by Mark Levandoski, associate professor of chemistry, examined the family of proteins in the nervous system that respond to nicotine.
To address a consumer trend that is gaining momentum, the Ethics, Law and Humanities Committee of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) has released a special report, “Responding to requests from adult patients for neuroenhancements,” which was published in the September 23, 2009, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the AAN.
The National Institutes of Health has awarded Rush University Medical Center approximately $5.5 million in grants to study how epigenetic changes – chemical modifications to genes that result from diet, aging, stress, or environmental exposures – define and contribute to memory formation and cognitive decline.
While the occasional all-nighter to cram for exams or finish a grant proposal may seem like no big deal, losing sleep night after night could take its toll on brain health in later life, two new studies suggest. Read the full report on Alzforum.
In honor of the centennial celebration of the Neurological Institute of Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia (NYP/CUMC), a daylong neuroscience symposium and gala dinner is being held on Fri., Sept. 25, 2009.
Leon Reijmers, PhD, of Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, has been selected to receive an NIH Director’s New Innovator Award. This prestigious award will support Reijmers’ research into the mechanisms of long-term memory.
Following one of the largest studies ever conducted in Parkinson’s disease (PD), researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine report today in The New England Journal of Medicine that rasagiline, a drug currently used to treat the symptoms of PD, may also slow the rate of disease progression.
UMDNJ researchers have identified a protein, vimentin, that normally appears twice in a lifetime - when neurons in the brain are formed and when the brain's neurons are under siege from Alzheimer's, suggesting a promising new pathway for novel therapeutic agents to fight the disease.
The brain never sits idle. Whether we are awake or asleep, watch TV or close our eyes, waves of spontaneous nerve signals wash through our brains. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies studying visual attention have discovered a novel mechanism that explains how incoming sensory signals make themselves heard amidst the constant background rumblings so they can be reliably processed and passed on.
Chronic sleep deprivation in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease makes Alzheimer's brain plaques appear earlier and more often, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report online this week in Science Express.
Billions of dollars are spent yearly targeting the toxic peptide amyloid beta to thwart Alzheimer’s— but what if this is the wrong target? A UCLA argues just that and says that a better working hypothesis is the "myelin model."
New research finds poor money management skills may indicate that a person with mild memory problems will soon develop Alzheimer’s disease. The study is published in the September 22, 2009, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Inability to handle financial transactions or manage money may be an early indicator that a person with mild memory problems soon is likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease, according to new research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Alzheimer’s Disease Center, part of the Department of Neurology.
Startling new statistics on the worldwide prevalence of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias are being released today as countries across the globe join together in recognition of World Alzheimer's Day. McGill University has experts available for phone interviews.
Rush University Medical Center is participating in a large-scale, multi-center clinical trial in the U.S. and Canada to determine whether a vitamin-like substance called coenzyme Q10, in high doses, can slow the progression of Parkinson’s disease.
Researchers have long known of the brain’s ability to learn based on visual motion input, and a recent study has uncovered more insight into where the learning occurs.
UCLA researchers found that drugs, electrical stimulation and regular exercise can enable paralyzed rats to walk and even run again. The finding may hold implications for human rehabilitation after spinal cord injuries.
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine have discovered how one antioxidant protein controls the activity of another protein, critical for the development of spinal cord neurons. The research, publishing this week in Cell, describes a never-before known mechanism of protein control.
In honor of the centennial celebration of The Neurological Institute of New York, part of Columbia University Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, a daylong neuroscience symposium is being held on Friday, Sept. 25, 2009.
Cognitive testing by telephone in elderly individuals is generally as effective as in-person testing, according to a new study by Mount Sinai School of Medicine researchers.
A new guideline from the American Academy of Neurology, developed in full collaboration with the Child Neurology Society, finds that children with microcephaly, that is, children whose head size is smaller than that of 97 percent of children are at risk of neurologic and cognitive problems and should be screened for these problems.
Individuals whose occupation involves contact with pesticides appear to have an increased risk of having Parkinson’s disease, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Among individuals with mild cognitive impairment, often considered a transitional state between normal cognitive function and Alzheimer’s dementia, those who have more difficulties performing routine activities appear more likely to progress quickly to dementia, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Among patients undergoing cardiac surgery, post-operative stroke occurred in approximately 2 percent, was not correlated with significant carotid artery narrowing, but was more common among patients who had combined cardiac and carotid procedures, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
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