Nervous System News and Research

Latest Nervous System News and Research

Nuclear process in the brain may play critical role in health and disease

Every brain cell has a nucleus, or a central command station. Scientists have shown that the passage of molecules through the nucleus of a star-shaped brain cell, called an astrocyte, may play a critical role in health and disease.

18 Aug 2015

Omeros plans to file patent infringement lawsuit against Par

Omeros Corporation today, in response to investor questions, announced that it plans to file a patent infringement lawsuit against Par Pharmaceutical, Inc. and its subsidiary, Par Sterile Products, LLC in response to the Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) filed by Par seeking FDA approval to market a generic version of Omeros' commercial drug Omidria (phenylephrine and ketorolac injection) 1%/0.3%.

17 Aug 2015

MGH papers reveal the way anesthetics affect brains of older patients and children

Recent Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigations into the neurobiology underlying the effects of general anesthesia have begun to reveal the ways different anesthetic agents alter specific aspects of the brain's electrical signals, reflected by EEG (electroencephalogram) signatures. While those studies have provided information that may lead to improved techniques for monitoring the consciousness of patients receiving general anesthesia, until now they have been conducted in relatively young adult patients.

14 Aug 2015

Netrin1 protein acts as cellular "marriage broker"

Scientists at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital -The Neuro, at McGill University and the McGill University Health Centre, have made a breakthrough in understanding an important protein that appears to act as a kind of cellular "marriage broker."

13 Aug 2015

Molecular on-off switch controls how mouse brain responds to vision loss

KU Leuven biologists have discovered a molecular on-off switch that controls how a mouse brain responds to vision loss.

13 Aug 2015

Study suggests potential target for treating familial form of ALS

A healthy motor neuron needs to transport its damaged components from the nerve-muscle connection all the way back to the cell body in the spinal cord. If it cannot, the defective components pile up and the cell becomes sick and dies. Researchers at the NIH's National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke have learned how a mutation in the gene for superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1), which causes ALS, leads cells to accumulate damaged materials.

13 Aug 2015

Regular exercise benefits children with multiple sclerosis

A new study suggests children with multiple sclerosis (MS) who exercise regularly may have a less active disease. The research is published in the August 12, 2015, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

13 Aug 2015

Amyloid-beta kinetics reveal link between aging and AD risk

Slowed amyloid-beta turnover may explain aging’s association with increased amyloidosis and Alzheimer’s disease, say researchers.

12 Aug 2015

Ion channel blockers prove useful in cancer therapy

Drugs called ion channel blockers, which are commonly used to treat cardiac, neurological, and psychiatric disorders, might prove useful in cancer therapy, according to research findings in fruit flies and mice by UC San Francisco scientists that led to unconventional treatment of a case of metastatic brain cancer.

12 Aug 2015

New study launched to find impact of vasculitis on employment, income

The Vasculitis Patient-Powered Research Network and the Vasculitis Clinical Research Consortium launched a study entitled "Impact of vasculitis on employment and income" or "VascWork." The purpose of this study is to learn about the impact of vasculitis on employment and income in patients with different systemic vasculitides.

12 Aug 2015

SCCA Proton Therapy Center makes advanced radiation therapy accessible to patients with ocular melanoma

For most the ability to see is often taken for granted. But for the thousands diagnosed with ocular melanoma, the fear of losing their eyesight or even worse, their lives, is an all too real possibility. Ocular melanoma is seen as a rare form of cancer, with approximately two thousand new diagnoses per year.

11 Aug 2015

Impax sells U.S. rights to Daraprim brand for $55 million to Turing Pharmaceuticals

Impax Laboratories, Inc. today announced that it has sold its U.S. rights to the Daraprim brand to Turing Pharmaceuticals AG for approximately $55 million.

10 Aug 2015

Mallinckrodt subsidiary to acquire Therakos for $1.325 billion

Mallinckrodt plc, a leading specialty biopharmaceutical company, and The Gores Group, a global investment firm, announced today that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which a subsidiary of Mallinckrodt will acquire Therakos, Inc. a leading immunotherapy company in a transaction valued at approximately $1.325 billion.

10 Aug 2015

Allergan receives FDA approval to market 28 additional styles of Natrelle 410 silicone-filled breast implants

Allergan, plc. today announced that the company has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to market 28 additional styles of Natrelle 410 silicone-filled breast implants, giving surgeons and patients more options to achieve desired outcomes.

6 Aug 2015

Structural brain changes found in chemoradiation-treated glioblastoma patients

US researchers find evidence of marked and progressive brain atrophy during standard chemoradiation therapy in patients with glioblastoma.

5 Aug 2015

First drug produced by 3D printing is approved by FDA

Levetiracetam manufactured using three-dimensional (3D) printing has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of epilepsy.

5 Aug 2015

Study reveals new gene that plays crucial role in ASD

A study carried out by the Laboratoire Neurobiologie des Interactions Cellulaires et Neurophysiopathologie (CNRS/Aix-Marseille Université), in collaboration with clinicians from Marseilles Public Hospitals (AP-HM) and scientists from the Salk Institute in San Diego (US), has revealed a new gene that plays a crucial role during early development in humans and whose under-expression may induce certain autistic traits.

4 Aug 2015

UVa researchers examine the number, severity of head impacts during collegiate football practices and games

Researchers at the University of Virginia examined the number and severity of subconcussive head impacts sustained by college football players over an entire season during practices and games. The researchers found that the number of head impacts varied depending on the intensity of the activity.

4 Aug 2015

Omeros receives EC approval to market Omidria in EU and other European countries

Omeros Corporation today announced that the European Commission (EC) has granted marketing authorization for Omidria (phenylephrine and ketorolac injection) 1% / 0.3% in the European Union (EU) for use in cataract surgery and lens replacement procedures to maintain mydriasis (pupil dilation), prevent miosis (pupil constriction), and to reduce postoperative eye pain.

3 Aug 2015

New MS therapies associated with risks and side effects, require active management strategy

Advances in the treatment of Multiple Sclerosis have been good news for patients, but side effects and risks mean that an active management strategy and constant monitoring are essential.

3 Aug 2015