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Link between muscle movement and breathing rhythms may shed new light on SIDS and sleep apnea

Between 2,000 and 3,000 infant deaths each year are attributed to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. In addition, approximately 12 million Americans suffer from sleep apnea, a respiratory ailment that can lead to death in some cases.

17 Feb 2005

Programmed cell death may provide clues to cancer and autoimmune diseases therapies

Dartmouth Medical School geneticists have found links in the cell death machinery of worms and mammals, opening new avenues for studying and targeting a process vital to development and implicated in cancer and autoimmune diseases.

16 Feb 2005

Research shows that individual NAc neurons play a role in Pavlovian learning

While the brain center called the nucleus accumbens (NAc) has been called a key component of the brain's "reward" pathways, researchers' experiments with rats have now shown that the center processes not only rewarding stimuli, but also aversive stimuli.

16 Feb 2005

New findings challenge one of the established views of how nerve cells communicate with one another

Every time we move, feel emotions, think or remember, the nerve cells, or neurons, in our body transmit messages to one another via chemical signals called neurotransmitters. Within neurons are tiny organelles called synaptic vesicles that sequester neurotransmitters and release them when needed into the synapse, or space between nerve cells, where the chemical signal is transmitted to other neurons.

16 Feb 2005

Genetic manipulation cuts nerve damage, boosts life span

A novel genetic manipulation significantly extends the life spans of flies by reducing the amount of wear and tear suffered by nerve cells in adults, according to new work published in Cell Metabolism. The findings support the idea that therapies designed to protect the adult nervous system by curbing the production of damaging free radicals might effectively increase longevity in other animals, including humans, the researchers said.

15 Feb 2005

Paradox suggests reasons why COX-2 inhibitors hurt and help

Laboratory studies at Johns Hopkins have revealed that certain products of the enzymes COX-1 and COX-2 can both protect and damage the brain. The findings, published in the February 2005 issue of the Journal of Neurochemistry, offer tantalizing clues to why drugs like Vioxx and Celebrex, which block COX-2, can ease arthritis but potentially harm the heart and brain.

14 Feb 2005

Key insight into the process of normal synapse development may lead to improved treatment of conditions such as drug addiction and epilepsy

Communication in the brain travels from one nerve cell to another through critical connections called synapses. These neuron-to-neuron junctions form early in brain development, and their construction was thought to be guided by the nerve cells themselves.

13 Feb 2005

How polychlorinated biphenyls open brain cells to Parkinson's assault

University of Rochester scientists investigating the link between PCBs, pesticides and Parkinson's disease demonstrated new and intricate reactions that occur in certain brain cells, making them more vulnerable to injury after exposures.

9 Feb 2005

Inserting corrective genes into the brain to fight Parkinson's disease

An international team of scientists has used gene therapy in two separate studies to renew brain cells and restore normal movements in monkeys and rats with a drug-induced form of Parkinson's disease.

8 Feb 2005

Clues to autism's neural basis

In a study that broadens our understanding of the neural basis of social interactions, researchers at Harvard Medical School and the University of Montreal have shown that individuals with autism display abnormal patterns of activity in brain circuits that underlie the understanding of other people's behavior.

7 Feb 2005

Gene dynamin 2 underlies one form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

A gene that plays many fundamental roles in cells throughout the body has, for the first time, been implicated in human disease, according to researchers at the Duke Center for Human Genetics.

31 Jan 2005

Psychiatric illness drugs may protect the brain cells that die in people with Huntington's disease

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have discovered that drugs commonly used to treat psychiatric illnesses and blood disorders in humans may protect the brain cells that die in people with Huntington's disease, possibly delaying the onset and slowing the progression of the disease.

31 Jan 2005

Scientists have coaxed human embryonic stem cells to become spinal motor neurons

After years of trial and error, scientists have coaxed human embryonic stem cells to become spinal motor neurons, critical nervous system pathways that relay messages from the brain to the rest of the body.

30 Jan 2005

Insight into potential mechanisms underlying type II diabetes

New research published in the premier issue of Cell Metabolism finds that a single brain region is sufficient for normal control of blood sugar and activity level by the fat hormone leptin. The same region also exerts significant, though more modest, control over leptin's effects on body weight.

19 Jan 2005

New study finds that regular physical activity, mental stimulation, and a diet rich in antioxidants can help keep old dogs young

During the two-year longitudinal study, William Milgram, Ph.D., of the University of Toronto, Elizabeth Head, Ph.D., and Carl Cotman, Ph.D., of the University of California, Irvine and their colleagues found older beagles performed better on cognitive tests and were more likely to learn new tasks when they were fed a diet fortified with plenty of fruits, vegetables and vitamins, were exercised at least twice weekly, and were given the opportunity to play with other dogs and a variety of stimulating toys.

19 Jan 2005

Lifting weights can help people with multiple sclerosis

Lifting weights can improve muscle strength and quality of life for people afflicted with the degenerative disease multiple sclerosis, a new University of Florida study finds.

17 Jan 2005

Anti-seizure drugs slow aging in roundworms

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have discovered that a class of anti-seizure medications slows the rate of aging in roundworms. The worms, when exposed to drugs used to treat epilepsy in humans, lived longer and retained youthful functions longer than normal.

17 Jan 2005

Study identifies potentially valuable applications for new drug Nifrolidine

Along with aiding efforts to study addicted smokers, a new drug that attaches only to areas of the brain that have been implicated in nicotine addiction may help studies of people battling other disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and schizophrenia.

12 Jan 2005

Glia cells may be essential for the normal development of nerve cells responsible for hearing and balance

Traditionally viewed as supporting actors, cells known as glia may be essential for the normal development of nerve cells responsible for hearing and balance, according to new University of Utah research. The study is reported in the January 6, 2005 issue of Neuron and is co-authored by scientists at the University of Washington.

6 Jan 2005

New genetic clues provide better understanding of epilepsy

Two specific areas in chromosome 7 and chromosome 16 have been associated with photosensitivity, an epilepsy-related trait, by a team of European scientists in the January issue of Human Molecular Genetics.

5 Jan 2005

Neurons News and Research

Link between muscle movement and breathing rhythms may shed new light on SIDS and sleep apnea

Programmed cell death may provide clues to cancer and autoimmune diseases therapies

Research shows that individual NAc neurons play a role in Pavlovian learning

New findings challenge one of the established views of how nerve cells communicate with one another

Genetic manipulation cuts nerve damage, boosts life span

Paradox suggests reasons why COX-2 inhibitors hurt and help

Key insight into the process of normal synapse development may lead to improved treatment of conditions such as drug addiction and epilepsy

How polychlorinated biphenyls open brain cells to Parkinson's assault

Inserting corrective genes into the brain to fight Parkinson's disease

Clues to autism's neural basis

Gene dynamin 2 underlies one form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

Psychiatric illness drugs may protect the brain cells that die in people with Huntington's disease

Scientists have coaxed human embryonic stem cells to become spinal motor neurons

Insight into potential mechanisms underlying type II diabetes

New study finds that regular physical activity, mental stimulation, and a diet rich in antioxidants can help keep old dogs young

Lifting weights can help people with multiple sclerosis

Anti-seizure drugs slow aging in roundworms

Study identifies potentially valuable applications for new drug Nifrolidine

Glia cells may be essential for the normal development of nerve cells responsible for hearing and balance

New genetic clues provide better understanding of epilepsy

eBook: Advancing neurodegenerative research with iPSC-derived microglia models eBook

How can microdialysis benefit drug development

Global and Local Efforts to Take Action Against Hepatitis

Addressing Important Cardiac Biology Questions with Shotgun Top-Down Proteomics

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