Nervous System News and Research

Latest Nervous System News and Research

Scientists discover definitive role for brain in regulating loss of muscle mass

Patients with cancer, heart disease and other chronic illness struggle not only with complications inherent to their disease, they also experience an involuntary loss of weight and muscle mass triggered by the body's natural response to infection and inflammation. Increasing nutrition intake does not mitigate the process and there is no treatment.

16 Nov 2011

Exercise may help fibromyalgia: Study

A new study shows that fibromyalgia patients who stopped taking medication but exercised regularly for six weeks reported improved memory function and less pain. While the finding is encouraging, it does not suggest a potential change in clinical care for fibromyalgia patients, the study authors stressed.

15 Nov 2011

Scil Proteins completes manufacturing agreement with Lundbeck

Scil Proteins, a private biotech company specialized in the research, development and production of recombinant proteins, announced today the successful completion of a manufacturing agreement for Lundbeck, an international pharmaceutical company specializing in central nervous system disorders.

15 Nov 2011

Clear link between erectile dysfunction and peripheral neuropathy

Spanish researchers have uncovered clear links between erectile dysfunction (ED) and peripheral neuropathy, according to a paper in the December issue of the urology journal BJUI.

15 Nov 2011

Researchers get $7.5M grant to combat nerve agents

A $7.5 million award will help researchers harness the body’s own defenses to counteract nerve agents and create new types of antidotes for exposure to pesticides and other poisons.

14 Nov 2011

Occupational chemical exposure raises for Parkinson's

A new research report contributes to the increasing evidence that repeated occupational exposure to certain chemical solvents raises the risk for Parkinson's disease. Researchers analyzed the occupational histories of twins in which one of the pair developed the neurodegenerative disorder, and assessed that twin's likelihood of exposure to six chemicals previously linked to Parkinson's.

14 Nov 2011

Study uses fMRI to assess changes in brain after exercise intervention

Areas of the brain responsible for pain processing and cognitive performance changed in fibromyalgia patients who exercised following a medication holiday, say researchers from Georgetown University Medical Center. They say the changes indicate brain functioning is more streamlined after an exercise intervention because less of the brain-s resources is devoted to processing bothersome fibromyalgia perceptions such as pain.

14 Nov 2011

Exposure to TCE may increase risk of Parkinson’s

A novel study in twins found that exposure to trichloroethylene (TCE)—a hazardous organic contaminant found in soil, groundwater, and air—is significantly associated with increased risk of Parkinson’s disease.

14 Nov 2011

Flexible brain implant could treat epileptic seizures

Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have developed a flexible brain implant that could one day be used to treat epileptic seizures. In animal studies, the researchers used the device - a type of electrode array that conforms to the brain's surface - to take an unprecedented look at the brain activity underlying seizures.

14 Nov 2011

Worm model to evaluate drugs for Parkinson's disease

Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have devised a simple test, using dopamine-deficient worms, for identifying drugs that may help people with Parkinson's disease.

11 Nov 2011

Researchers identify how to design drugs to target specific brain areas

The future of drug design lies in developing therapies that can target specific cellular processes without causing adverse reactions in other areas of the nervous system. Scientists at the Universities of Bristol and Li-ge in Belgium have discovered how to design drugs to target specific areas of the brain.

11 Nov 2011

Researchers uncover mechanism that governs cell specialization

Researchers at then Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have uncovered a mechanism that governs how cells become specialized during development.

10 Nov 2011

SNI receives NINDS grant to conduct clinical research studies on brain disorders

Swedish Neuroscience Institute (SNI) has been selected by the National Institutes of Health as the Pacific Northwest member of a national consortium of 25 neuroscience centers that will conduct clinical research studies on a variety of brain-related diseases.

10 Nov 2011

Rensselaer engineer receives $1.4M NIH grant to study new method to heal traumatic nerve damage

Injuries to the nervous system affect large numbers of people globally. Such injuries can result in loss of feeling or movement. With a new $1.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, Deanna Thompson, associate professor of biomedical engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, will investigate a promising new method to heal traumatic nerve damage, using electrical stimulation to prime and pump neuronal growth.

10 Nov 2011

Experimental drug selectively destroys blood supply of fat tissue and decreases body fat

Obese rhesus monkeys lost on average 11 percent of their body weight after four weeks of treatment with an experimental drug that selectively destroys the blood supply of fat tissue, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reports in Science Translational Medicine.

10 Nov 2011

Positive results from Alkermes VIVITROL addiction study

Alkermes plc today presented positive results from a long-term study of VIVITROL (naltrexone for extended-release injectable suspension) at the 24th Annual U.S. Psychiatric and Mental Health Congress in Las Vegas, NV.

10 Nov 2011

New cellular targets for devastating neurological disorder

In a paper published in the November 9 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and University of Washington describe in deeper detail the pathology of a devastating neurological disorder, but also reveal new cellular targets for possibly slowing its development.

10 Nov 2011

Clinilabs to utilize NewCardio's QTinno in Phase I trial of new CNS drug

NewCardio, Inc., a cardiovascular diagnostic solutions developer, announced today that its strategic partner, Clinilabs, will utilize QTinno, NewCardio's automated cardiac safety solution, to conduct a Phase I trial of an investigational new drug under development for a central nervous system (CNS) indication.

10 Nov 2011

Patients with Parkinson's may have increased risk of leg motor restlessness

People with Parkinson's disease may be more likely to have a movement disorder called leg motor restlessness, but not true restless legs syndrome as previous studies have suggested, according to a study published in the November 9, 2011, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

10 Nov 2011

ACADIA third quarter revenues decrease to $584,000

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biopharmaceutical company utilizing innovative technology to fuel drug discovery and clinical development of novel treatments for central nervous system disorders, today reported its unaudited financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2011.

9 Nov 2011