Brain News and Research

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The human brain is the center of the human nervous system and is a highly complex organ. Enclosed in the cranium, it has the same general structure as the brains of other mammals, but is over three times as large as the brain of a typical mammal with an equivalent body size.

Research will test the effectiveness of new drug treatments for the cognitive deficits of schizophrenia

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has awarded a four-year, $9 million contract to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and five other academic medical centers to create a network of Treatment Units for Research on Neurocognition and Schizophrenia (TURNS).

8 May 2004

Gambling increases level of brain chemical

Researchers, using a new combination of techniques, have discovered that dopamine levels in our brains vary the most in situations where we are unsure if we are going to be rewarded, such as when we are gambling or playing the lottery.

7 May 2004

West Nile treatment showing 100% response rate among immunocompetent patients

GenoMed, Inc. has announced that it will be limiting its treatment for West Nile virus encephalitis to immunocompetent patients only, where it has posted a 100% success rate.

7 May 2004

Head-cooling device prevents brain damage in oxygen-deprived newborn babies

Liggins Institute Director and trial Director Professor Peter Gluckman said the CoolCap trial results were the culmination of over 20 years work and provided the first evidence in humans that brain damage at birth could be treated. The findings offered hope for a new approach to a major set of clinical conditions, he said.

6 May 2004

Brain damage at birth can be reversed

More than 1000 children die or suffer permanent brain injury every year in the UK because of shortage of oxygen around the time of birth. Tragedy can strike without warning, and often following normal healthy pregnancies. If the baby survives major problems include severe cerebral palsy, learning difficulties and epilepsy.

6 May 2004

Neurobiologists pinpoint region of the brain responsible for storing distant memories

For the first time, UCLA neurobiologists have pinpointed a region of the brain called the anterior cingulate as responsible for retrieving and storing distant memories. Published in the May 7 edition of Science, the findings may suggest new ways of treating memory disorders, including Alzheimer's disease and other dementias.

6 May 2004

A second-generation targetted antibody for potential cancer therapy

The overproduction, or 'overexpression', of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is one of the most common aberrations in cancer, and subsequently agents that inhibit EGFR are among the most hotly-pursued potential products in the pharmaceutical industry.

6 May 2004

Ritalin drug used to treat hyperactive children boosts the potency of Parkinson's drug levodopa

A well-known drug used to treat hyperactive children boosts the potency of another drug that reduces Parkinson's disease symptoms, an Oregon Health & Science University study has found.

6 May 2004

Experts conclude plans to control zoonoses, diseases transmitted from animals to humans

International experts today concluded a three-day international consultation on zoonoses, held by the World Health Organization (WHO) together with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), in collaboration with the Dutch Health Council.

6 May 2004

Research into Chinese herbal medicine Qian Ceng Ta may help Alzheimer’s

Georgetown University Medical Center researchers today opened a new clinical trial designed to test if huperzine A, a natural product derived from a Chinese herb, can slow down or prevent cognitive decline in patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s Disease (AD).

6 May 2004

West Nile Virus returns to United States for another season

The winter cold and flu season is barely over, and the new mosquito season won't really get rolling for a few more weeks, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) already is reporting the presence of West Nile Virus in mosquitoes, birds and other animals in nine states.

5 May 2004

World's first gene therapy trial aimed at preventing cancer

The concept seems straightforward. If, at its heart, cancer is a disease of genes, then giving patients new genes should disarm cancer. Such treatment would replace missing or faulty genes that keep cell growth in check, or would flush the body with "super genes" that could attack and destroy cancer.

5 May 2004

New studies put spotlight on replicative capacity of beta cells

Researchers at Harvard University and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) have discovered that insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas that are attacked in type 1 diabetes are replenished through duplication of existing cells rather than through differentiation of adult stem cells.

5 May 2004

SPECT imaging may lead to early diagnosis of Alzheimer's

Alzheimer's disease (AD) currently afflicts approximately 4.5 million Americans. One of the most feared diseases of old age, AD robs its victims of their memories and personalities long before it takes their lives.

5 May 2004

Gene therapy helps alcoholic rats

As a follow up to previous work showing that gene therapy can reduce drinking in rats trained to prefer alcohol, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory have used the same technique to cut drinking in rats with a genetic predisposition for heavy alcohol consumption.

5 May 2004

Virginia prepares for mosquito borne diseases

Human brain makes much more extensive use of highly complex statistics when learning a language than scientists ever realized

A team at the University of Rochester has found that the human brain makes much more extensive use of highly complex statistics when learning a language than scientists ever realized.

3 May 2004