Mental Retardation News and Research

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A more accurate blood test to detect fetal Downs syndrome launched

Pregnant mothers in the U.S. who wish to know whether they're carrying a fetus with Down syndrome now have access to a commercial genetic blood test that has a 99 per cent accuracy rate.

20 Oct 2011

OPHN1 protein mediates mGluR-dependent longterm depression at synapses

Scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) have solved part of a puzzle concerning the relationship between changes in the strength of synapses - the tiny gaps across which nerve cells in the brain communicate - and dysfunctions in neural circuits that have been linked with drug addiction, mental retardation and other cognitive disorders.

20 Oct 2011

New DNA-based prenatal blood test can identify pregnancy with Down syndrome

A new DNA-based prenatal blood test that can strikingly reduce the number of risky diagnostic procedures needed to identify a pregnancy with Down syndrome is ready to be introduced into clinical practice.

18 Oct 2011

NIH awards Einstein College of Medicine $5.7M for children's IDD Research Center

The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, part of the National Institutes of Health, has awarded researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University $5.7 million to fund the Rose F. Kennedy Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center (IDDRC).

18 Oct 2011

GFAP protein levels can help identify HIE in newborns

Johns Hopkins researchers have discovered that increased blood levels of a protein specific to central nervous system cells that are vital to the brain's structure can help physicians identify newborns with brain injuries due to lack of oxygen.

14 Oct 2011

USDTL releases CordStat EtOH assay screens for newborn alcohol exposure in utero

United States Drug Testing Laboratories (USDTL), a reference laboratory specializing in alcohol and drugs of abuse testing, released a new assay testing umbilical cord for newborn alcohol exposure in utero on Monday, October 3, 2011.

3 Oct 2011

Researchers discover new inherited disorder that causes mental retardation, liver dysfunction

Researchers at the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet have discovered a new inherited disorder that causes severe mental retardation and liver dysfunction. The disease, adenosine kinase deficiency, is caused by mutations in the ADK gene, which codes for the enzyme adenosine kinase.

1 Oct 2011

Afraxis to participate in NIH's Therapeutics for Rare and Neglected Disease Program

Afraxis, a San Diego-based biotechnology company developing drugs to treat rare genetic diseases through the modulation of p21-activated kinase (PAK), announced today that it has been selected to participate in the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) Therapeutics for Rare and Neglected Disease (TRND) Program.

27 Sep 2011

Duplication of RPS6KA3 gene produces limited family intellectual disability

The financial contributions made some years ago by individuals and public administration bodies in the telemarathon solidarity events on the Basque Public Broadcasting Corporation (EiTB) and subsequently channelled through the Basque Foundation for Health Innovation and Research (BIOEF), has resulted in undertaking successful innovative research at the Cruces Hospital near Bilbao in the Basque province of Bizkaia, describing a new syndrome of limited family intellectual disability.

26 Sep 2011

Bachmann, Perry wrestle over HPV issue

During the last debate, Michele Bachmann and Rick Perry clashed over their positions on the HPV vaccine. During Thursday night's Orlando debate, the issue again emerged.

23 Sep 2011

First Edition: September 23, 2011

In today's headlines, the skinny on how health policy issues played in Thursday night's GOP presidential primary debate.

23 Sep 2011

GOP presidential hopeful Rick Perry's record on women's health scrutinized

As the GOP presidential primary campaign continues to heat up, news outlets focus on Texas Gov. Rick Perry's state policy record: An NPR report today examines his funding for women's health. Meanwhile, Michele Bachmann offers her take on employer-sponsored health insurance.

21 Sep 2011

Bioethicists up the ante in Bachmann's HPV brouhaha

Since Monday's GOP presidential primary debate, Michele Bachmann, a Republican candidate, has been under the microscope for criticizing fellow GOP hopeful Rick Perry for his policy in Texas requiring girls to get the Gardisil vaccine against HPV. Now, two bioethicists have offered cash prizes if she can prove a claim she made about the vaccine's link to mental retardation.

17 Sep 2011

Viewpoints: NY Times on uninsured; Wilensky's 'sobering reflection'; caring for aging parents

Nearly one million more Americans went without health insurance in 2010 than in 2009. ... The only consolation was that government insurance programs were able to mitigate some of the damage. ... The new health care reforms will expand Medicaid coverage for the poor and provide subsidies to help middle-income people buy private health insurance.

16 Sep 2011

$Bachmann, Perry embroiled in HPV fracas$

Bachmann, Perry embroiled in HPV fracas

Since Monday night's GOP primary debate, the two presidential hopefuls continue to be the targets of discussion and coverage regarding both the style and substance of the HPV vaccine issue.

16 Sep 2011

Longer looks: Fighting antibiotic resistance; a health care arms race video; the HVP debate

We won't stop the rising tide of infections until we develop a new business model to fight them. We are not quite on the brink of some dystopian Victorian future. But every year, the prognosis for infectious-disease patients gets a bit grimmer. … And more-powerful drugs tend to cost more than the old drugs. … Even in the rich world, death from infection still looms; MRSA alone kills thousands every year. And firms are not developing antibiotics as fast as they used to.

16 Sep 2011

Scientists uncover unknown fail-safe pathway for inherited disorders

Scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have uncovered a previously unknown fail-safe (compensatory) pathway that potentially protects the brain and other organs from genetic and environmental threats.

16 Sep 2011

Perry's HPV vaccine order still resonating, health officials slam Bachmann

The controversy over Texas Gov. Rick Perry's 2007 attempt to vaccinate girls against the human papillomavirus, which surfaced again at Monday's GOP presidential candidate debate, grew on Monday as a result of comments by Rep. Michele Bachmann.

15 Sep 2011

Scientists decode new mechanism that regulates cell polarity in epithelial tissues, neurons

In the course of examining the Drosophila tumor suppressor gene (Dlg), scientists at the Helmholtz Zentrum München have succeeded in decoding a new mechanism that regulates cell polarity in epithelial tissues or in neurons in the brain.

14 Sep 2011

Dysregulated neuronal RNA transport may cause Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome

SUNY Downstate scientist Ilham Muslimov, MD, PhD, along with senior author Henri Tiedge, PhD, professor of physiology and pharmacology and of neurology, published a study suggesting that cellular dysregulation associated with certain neurodegenerative disorders may result from molecular competition in neuronal RNA transport pathways.

8 Sep 2011

Mental Retardation News and Research

A more accurate blood test to detect fetal Downs syndrome launched

OPHN1 protein mediates mGluR-dependent longterm depression at synapses

New DNA-based prenatal blood test can identify pregnancy with Down syndrome

NIH awards Einstein College of Medicine $5.7M for children's IDD Research Center

GFAP protein levels can help identify HIE in newborns

USDTL releases CordStat EtOH assay screens for newborn alcohol exposure in utero

Researchers discover new inherited disorder that causes mental retardation, liver dysfunction

Afraxis to participate in NIH's Therapeutics for Rare and Neglected Disease Program

Duplication of RPS6KA3 gene produces limited family intellectual disability

Bachmann, Perry wrestle over HPV issue

First Edition: September 23, 2011

GOP presidential hopeful Rick Perry's record on women's health scrutinized

Bioethicists up the ante in Bachmann's HPV brouhaha

Viewpoints: NY Times on uninsured; Wilensky's 'sobering reflection'; caring for aging parents

Bachmann, Perry embroiled in HPV fracas

Longer looks: Fighting antibiotic resistance; a health care arms race video; the HVP debate

Scientists uncover unknown fail-safe pathway for inherited disorders

Perry's HPV vaccine order still resonating, health officials slam Bachmann

Scientists decode new mechanism that regulates cell polarity in epithelial tissues, neurons

Dysregulated neuronal RNA transport may cause Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome

Shaping the Future of Neuroscience: A Conversation with Atlas Antibodies on the MolBoolean™ and the Impact of SfN 2024

How the Arts Reshape Brain Function: Susan Magsamen on the Future of Neuroaesthetics

Inside the Alzheimer's Association: Dr. Heather Snyder on Driving Research and Collaboration

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