Epilepsy News and Research

Latest Epilepsy News and Research

UCLA researchers identify chemical changes in brains of patients with early-onset Alzheimer's

With a lack of effective treatments for Alzheimer's, most of us would think long and hard about whether we wanted to know years in advance if we were genetically predisposed to develop the disease. For researchers, however, such knowledge is a window into Alzheimer's disease's evolution.

11 Jan 2012

Nicotine patch may help improve mild memory loss in older adults

Using a nicotine patch may help improve mild memory loss in older adults, according to a study published in the January 10, 2012, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

10 Jan 2012

AAN, Wolters Kluwer Health announce launch of Neurology Today for the iPad

The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) and Wolters Kluwer Health today announced the launch of Neurology Today for the iPad, a digital app of the most widely read newspaper for neurologists.

10 Jan 2012

Supernus secures $42M through two transactions

Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that in December 2011 it closed two transactions through which it raised $42 million.

7 Jan 2012

Doctors may need to adjust seizure drug doses for people with HIV/AIDS: New AAN guideline

A new guideline issued by the American Academy of Neurology recommends doctors use caution when choosing seizure drugs for people with HIV/AIDS to avoid potential drug interactions.

5 Jan 2012

Bionomics, Ironwood partner to develop and commercialize novel anti-anxiety compound

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Bionomics Limited today announced that they entered into a collaboration, research, and licensing agreement that will enable Ironwood to develop and commercialize Bionomics' investigational anti-anxiety compound BNC210 and other related compounds.

5 Jan 2012

Lundbeck announces availability of ONFI Tablets in the U.S.

Lundbeck announced today that ONFI Tablets are now available for prescribing in the United States. The FDA recently approved ONFI for adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) in patients two years and older.

4 Jan 2012

FDA approves Cyberonics re-designed AspireHC generator

Cyberonics, Inc. today announced that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved its re-designed AspireHC (High Capacity) generator, which was the subject of a voluntary product withdrawal in August 2011.

4 Jan 2012

Lundbeck invests in Ossianix to focus on biotherapeutics for CNS disorders

Ossianix, Inc. today announced a strategic investment by H. Lundbeck A/S in the form of a Convertible Promissory Note. The proceeds from Lundbeck's investment is expected to allow Ossianix to generate biopharmaceuticals for the treatment of nervous system disorders by utilizing Ossianix's proprietary single domain antibody platform modeled on the shark vNAR structure.

3 Jan 2012

Glia cells also regulate learning and memory

Glia cells, named for the Greek word for "glue," hold the brain's neurons together and protect the cells that determine our thoughts and behaviors, but scientists have long puzzled over their prominence in the activities of the brain dedicated to learning and memory.

30 Dec 2011

Silent strokes linked to memory loss in the elderly

New research links 'silent strokes,' or small spots of dead brain cells, found in about one out of four older adults to memory loss in the elderly. The study is published in the January 3, 2012, print issue of Neurology-, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

29 Dec 2011

Diets high in vitamins or omega 3 fatty acids reduce brain shrinkage

People with diets high in several vitamins or in omega 3 fatty acids are less likely to have the brain shrinkage associated with Alzheimer's disease than people whose diets are not high in those nutrients, according to a new study published in the December 28, 2011, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

29 Dec 2011

Mylan receives final FDA approval for Levetiracetam ER Tablets ANDA

Mylan Inc. today announced that its subsidiary Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. has received final approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for Levetiracetam Extended-release (ER) Tablets, 500 mg and 750 mg.

28 Dec 2011

Current scientific understanding of left and right-handedness

Left-handedness is sometimes the expression of a genetic defect or an early developmental disturbance. In this issue of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International, Stefan Gutwinski and coauthors present the current scientific understanding of left- and right-handedness.

28 Dec 2011

Epilepsy may not increase risk of committing violent crime

Despite current public and expert opinion to the contrary, having the neurological condition epilepsy is not directly associated with an increased risk of committing violent crime.

28 Dec 2011

Eisai resubmits NDA for perampanel to treat epilepsy-associated seizures

Eisai Inc. announced today that it resubmitted the New Drug Application (NDA) for the investigational AMPA-type glutamate receptor antagonist perampanel for partial-onset seizures associated with epilepsy to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on December 22, 2011.

26 Dec 2011

Neuroscientists discover gene responsible for HDLS

A global team of neuroscientists, led by researchers at Mayo Clinic in Florida, have found the gene responsible for a brain disorder that may be much more common than once believed. In the Dec. 25 online issue of Nature Genetics, the researchers say they identified 14 different mutations in the gene CSF1R that lead to development of hereditary diffuse leukoencephalopathy with spheroids.

26 Dec 2011

Biologists develop radar to track ADAR's RNA editing activity in neurons

To track what they can't see, pilots look to the green glow of the radar screen. Now biologists monitoring gene expression, individual variation, and disease have a glowing green indicator of their own: Brown University biologists have developed a "radar" for tracking ADAR, a crucial enzyme for editing RNA in the nervous system.

26 Dec 2011

People with smaller regions of brain's cortex more likely to develop early Alzheimer's

New research suggests that, in people who don't currently have memory problems, those with smaller regions of the brain's cortex may be more likely to develop symptoms consistent with very early Alzheimer's disease.

22 Dec 2011

Researchers identify gene that causes PKD/IC in infants

A large, international team of researchers led by scientists at the University of California, San Francisco has identified the gene that causes a rare childhood neurological disorder called PKD/IC, or "paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia with infantile convulsions," a cause of epilepsy in babies and movement disorders in older children.

17 Dec 2011