Feature Channels: Neuro

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3-Nov-2009 4:15 PM EST
Children with Autism More Likely to Have Handwriting Problems
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

Children with autism may have lower quality handwriting and trouble forming letters compared to children without autism, according to a study published in the November 10, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

3-Nov-2009 4:20 PM EST
Teenage Obesity Linked to Increased Risk of MS
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

Teenage women who are obese may be more than twice as likely to develop multiple sclerosis (MS) as adults compared to female teens who are not obese, according to a study published in the November 10, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

5-Nov-2009 10:00 PM EST
Exposure to Several Common Infections Over Time May Be Associated With Risk of Stroke
JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association

Cumulative exposure to five common infection-causing pathogens may be associated with an increased risk of stroke, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the January 2010 print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

5-Nov-2009 5:00 PM EST
Reduced Muscle Strength Associated With Risk for Alzheimer’s Disease
JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association

Individuals with weaker muscles appear to have a higher risk for Alzheimer’s disease and declines in cognitive function over time, according to a report in the November issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Released: 9-Nov-2009 3:20 PM EST
Amyloid Beta Protein Gets Bum Rap
Saint Louis University Medical Center

Saint Louis University research could lead to better medicines for Alzheimer's disease.

Released: 9-Nov-2009 2:30 PM EST
Scientists Find Link Between Smell and Memory
Weizmann Institute of Science

Proust famously used the smell of madeleines as a connection to childhood memories. Now, researchers at the Weizmann Institute have revealed the scientific basis of the link between smell and memory.

Released: 9-Nov-2009 12:00 PM EST
U-M Receives $1.8 Million to Develop Therapy for Neuropathic Pain
Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan

Researchers from the University of Michigan Department of Neurology have received a $1.8 million grant to develop a novel therapy for neuropathic pain, a difficult to treat condition.

Released: 9-Nov-2009 8:45 AM EST
What Celebrity Names Can Reveal about the Onset of Alzheimer’s Disease
Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science

Research that is targeting the early diagnosis of Alzheimer disease has drawn national attention to the work of Michael Seidenberg, PhD, a professor in the Department of Psychology at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science and lead author of an article in the journal Neurology detailing a study that maps the brain activity of 69 healthy senior men and women, aged 65-85, including some at higher risk for Alzheimer’s disease, as they distinguish between famous and unfamiliar names.

27-Oct-2009 3:50 PM EDT
What Part Do Relapses Play in Severe Disability for People with MS?
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who have relapses within the first five years of onset appear to have more severe disability in the short term compared to people who do not have an early relapse.

Released: 4-Nov-2009 12:30 PM EST
Call for Entries: Public Asked to Submit Videos to 2010 Neuro Film Festival
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

People who have compelling stories to share regarding how they or a loved one has been affected by a brain disorder are invited to submit a short video to the 2010 Neuro Film Festival, an event by the American Academy of Neurology Foundation to help raise awareness about brain disorders and the need to support research into preventions, treatments, and cures.

Released: 4-Nov-2009 10:30 AM EST
Hybrid Molecules Show Promise for Exploring, Treating Alzheimer's
University of Michigan

One of the many mysteries of Alzheimer's disease is how protein-like snippets called amyloid-beta peptides, which clump together to form plaques in the brain, may cause cell death, leading to the disease's devastating symptoms of memory loss and other mental difficulties.

Released: 3-Nov-2009 11:45 AM EST
Aiming to Avoid Damage to Neurocognitive Areas of the Brain During Cranial Radiation
RUSH

Radiation oncologists at Rush University Medical Center are intent on finding ways to avoid damage to the critically important hippocampus and limbic circuit of the brain when cranial radiation is required to treat existing or potential metastatic cancers.

27-Oct-2009 8:00 PM EDT
Is Disorder That Causes Dementia Hereditary?
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

New research shows that a rare brain disorder that causes early dementia is highly hereditary. The study is published in the November 3, 2009, issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Released: 2-Nov-2009 3:00 PM EST
Precuneus Region of Both Human and Monkey Brain Divided Into Four Distinct Regions
NYU Langone Health

A study published this week in PNAS provides a comprehensive comparative functional anatomy study in human and monkey brains which reveals highly similar brain networks preserved across evolution.

   
Released: 2-Nov-2009 1:35 PM EST
Study Reveals Second Pathway to Feeling Your Heartbeat
University of Iowa

A new study suggests that the inner sense of our cardiovascular state, our "interoceptive awareness" of the heart pounding, relies on two independent pathways, contrary to what had been asserted by prominent researchers. The University of Iowa study was published online this week in the journal Nature Neuroscience.

Released: 30-Oct-2009 1:15 PM EDT
This Is Your Brain on Fatty Acids
Johns Hopkins Medicine

Saturated fats have a deservedly bad reputation, but Johns Hopkins scientists have discovered that a sticky lipid occurring naturally at high levels in the brain may help us memorize grandma’s recipe for cinnamon buns, as well as recall how, decades ago, she served them up steaming from the oven.

Released: 29-Oct-2009 9:00 PM EDT
Cholesterol-Lowering Drug May Prevent Progression of Parkinson’s Disease
RUSH

Simvastatin, a commonly used, cholesterol-lowering drug, may prevent Parkinson’s disease from progressing further. Neurological researchers at Rush University Medical Center conducted a study examining the use of the FDA-approved medication in mice with Parkinson’s disease and found that the drug successfully reverses the biochemical, cellular and anatomical changes caused by the disease.

Released: 29-Oct-2009 1:30 PM EDT
Jefferson Awarded Multi-Million Dollar NIH Grant to Create Autoimmune Disorders Center of Excellence
Thomas Jefferson University

The Department of Neurology at Jefferson Medical College (JMC) of Thomas Jefferson University has been awarded a multi-million dollar grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the creation of a center of excellence to study autoimmune diseases from basic science research to its translation into clinical applications. The five-year grant initially totals over $4 million, but could be as much as $10 million by the end of award period. The center is one of nine in the country and the only one in the Pennsylvania.

22-Oct-2009 2:00 PM EDT
Regeneration Can be Achieved after Chronic Spinal Cord Injury
UC San Diego Health

Scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine report that regeneration of central nervous system axons can be achieved in rats even when treatment delayed is more than a year after the original spinal cord injury.

Released: 26-Oct-2009 5:20 PM EDT
New "Schizophrenia Gene" Prompts Researchers to Test Potential Drug Target
Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins scientists report having used a commercially available drug to successfully “rescue” animal brain cells that they had intentionally damaged by manipulating a newly discovered gene that links susceptibility genes for schizophrenia and autism.

20-Oct-2009 3:30 PM EDT
Deep Brain Stimulation May Be Effective Treatment for Tourette Syndrome
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

Deep brain stimulation may be a safe and effective treatment for Tourette syndrome, according to research published in the October 27, 2009, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Released: 26-Oct-2009 4:00 PM EDT
Increased Stroke Risk from Birth Control Pills
Loyola Medicine

Birth control pills nearly double the risk of stroke, according to a review article in MedLink Neurology. For women who take the Pill and also smoke, have high blood pressure or have a history of migraine headaches, the stroke risk is even higher.

Released: 26-Oct-2009 11:20 AM EDT
Changes in Brain Chemicals Mark Shifts in Infant Learning
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

When do you first leave the nest? Early in development infants of many species experience important transitions—such as learning when to leave the protective presence of their mother to start exploring the wider world. Neuroscientists have now pinpointed molecular events occurring in the brain during that turning point.

Released: 22-Oct-2009 11:45 AM EDT
Now Hear This: Scientists Show How Tiny Cells Deliver Big Sound
Johns Hopkins Medicine

A Johns Hopkins team says it has for what is believed to be the first time managed to measure and record the elusive electrical activity of the type II neurons in the inner ear's snail-shell-like structure called the cochlea.

Released: 22-Oct-2009 11:15 AM EDT
Manipulating Brain Inflammation May Help Clear Brain of Amyloid Plaques
Mayo Clinic

In a surprising reversal of long-standing scientific belief, researchers at the Mayo Clinic campus in Florida have discovered that inflammation in the brain is not the trigger that leads to buildup of amyloid deposits and development of Alzheimer’s disease.

Released: 22-Oct-2009 10:45 AM EDT
General Anesthetics Lead to Learning Disabilities in Animal Models
Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist

Studies by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine have shown that blocking the NMDA receptor in immature rats leads to profound, rapid brain injury and disruption of auditory function as the animals mature.

Released: 22-Oct-2009 10:40 AM EDT
Cocaine Exposure During Pregnancy Leads to Impulsivity in Male, Not Female, Monkeys
Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist

Adult male monkeys exposed to cocaine while in the womb have poor impulse control and may be more vulnerable to drug abuse than female monkeys, even a decade or more after the exposure, according to a new study by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. The findings could lead to a better understanding of human drug abuse.

15-Oct-2009 9:00 PM EDT
Light at Night Linked to Symptoms of Depression in Mice
Ohio State University

Too much light at night can lead to symptoms of depression, according to a new study in mice. Researchers found that mice housed in a lighted room 24 hours a day exhibited more depressive symptoms than did other similar mice.

20-Oct-2009 6:00 PM EDT
Does Diabetes Speed Up Memory Loss in Alzheimer’s Disease?
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

Research has shown that diabetes increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and the risk of memory loss in people who don’t have Alzheimer’s disease. But it hasn’t been clear whether people with Alzheimer’s disease and diabetes have more rapid memory loss than those who have Alzheimer’s disease but no diabetes. New research published in "Neurology" suggests that those with both diseases actually have a slower rate of memory loss than people who had only Alzheimer’s disease.

Released: 20-Oct-2009 11:20 AM EDT
Muscle ‘Synergies’ May be Key to New Stroke Treatment
McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Researchers at MIT and San Camillo Hospital in Venice, Italy, have shown that motor impairments in stroke patients can be understood as impairments in specific combinations of muscle activity, known as synergies. This finding suggest new approaches to the rehabilitation of stroke patients.

16-Oct-2009 2:35 PM EDT
Compound Shows Potential for Slowing Progression of ALS
UC San Diego Health

A chemical cousin of a drug currently used to treat sepsis dramatically slows the progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease, in mice. The results offer a bit of good news in efforts to develop a therapy to stop or slow the progression of a disease that generally kills its victims within just a few years.

13-Oct-2009 2:00 PM EDT
Protein May Predict Heart Attack and Early Death, Not Stroke
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

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.

15-Oct-2009 9:20 PM EDT
Added Oxygen During Stroke Reduces Brain Tissue Damage
Ohio State University

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.

15-Oct-2009 9:00 AM EDT
Neuroscientists Find Neural Stopwatch in the Brain
McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

MIT researchers have identified populations of neurons that code time with extreme precision in the primate brain.

15-Oct-2009 8:50 PM EDT
First-Time Internet Users Find Boost in Brain Function After Just One Week
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Health Sciences

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.

15-Oct-2009 2:45 PM EDT
Migraine Sufferers More Prone to Hangover Headache
Thomas Jefferson University

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.

Released: 16-Oct-2009 12:00 PM EDT
Scientists Demonstrate Link Between Genetic Defect and Brain Changes in Schizophrenia
University of North Carolina Health Care System

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.

12-Oct-2009 3:05 PM EDT
Rare Procedure Documents How the Human Brain Computes Language
UC San Diego Health

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.

Released: 14-Oct-2009 1:00 PM EDT
Gentle Touch May Aid Multiple Sclerosis Patients
University of Illinois Chicago

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.

6-Oct-2009 3:00 PM EDT
New Guidelines Identify Best Treatments to Help ALS Patients Live Longer, Easier
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

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.

8-Oct-2009 10:00 PM EDT
Declines in Other Thinking and Learning Skills May Precede Memory Loss in Alzheimer’s Disease
JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association

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.

8-Oct-2009 10:00 PM EDT
Urate in Blood and Spinal Fluid May Predict Slower Decline in Patients With Parkinson’s Disease
JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association

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.

Released: 12-Oct-2009 1:25 PM EDT
Genetics of Patterning the Cerebral Cortex: How Stem Cells Yield Functional Regions in “Gray Matter”
Salk Institute for Biological Studies

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.

Released: 8-Oct-2009 10:00 PM EDT
Scans Show Learning 'Sculpts' the Brain's Connections
Washington University in St. Louis

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.

Released: 8-Oct-2009 9:00 AM EDT
Unequal Access: Hispanic Children Rarely Get Top-notch Care for Brain Tumors
Johns Hopkins Medicine

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.

5-Oct-2009 3:00 PM EDT
Genome-wide Study of Autism Published in Nature
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard

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.

5-Oct-2009 8:45 PM EDT
Autism: Genome-wide Hunt Reveals New Genetic Links
Johns Hopkins Medicine

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.

Released: 7-Oct-2009 4:00 AM EDT
Automation Is No Substitute for Accuracy in Nerve Conduction Studies
American Association of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Medicine (AANEM)

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.

Released: 6-Oct-2009 11:20 AM EDT
New Findings About Brain Proteins Suggest Possible Way to Fight Alzheimer’s
UT Southwestern Medical Center

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.

   
2-Oct-2009 12:15 PM EDT
Prenatal Exposure to BPA Might Explain Aggressive Behavior in Some 2-Year-old Girls
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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.



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