Nervous System News and Research

Latest Nervous System News and Research

AAN honors Mayo Clinic researcher with John Dystel Prize for MS work

The American Academy of Neurology is awarding the 2011 John Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis Research to Brian G. Weinshenker, MD, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota and a Fellow with the AAN.

1 Apr 2011

Vanda to initiate tasimelteon Phase IIb/III clinical trial in Major Depressive Disorder

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. today announced its plans to initiate a Phase IIb/III clinical trial of tasimelteon in patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). The trial is expected to begin during the second half of 2011. Tasimelteon is currently being evaluated in Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of Non-24-Hour Sleep/Wake Disorder (N24HSWD) in blind individuals without light perception.

31 Mar 2011

Adeona reports $3,164,512 net revenue for 2010

Adeona Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a developer of innovative medicines for serious central nervous system diseases, reported its financial results for the year ended December 31, 2010, as well as updates since the beginning of the 4th quarter.

31 Mar 2011

Tips on neurobiology of learning

Everyone would like MDs to have the best education - and to absorb what they are taught. The lead article in the April 4 issue of the journal Academic Medicine connects research on how the brain learns to how to incorporate this understanding into real world education, particularly the education of doctors.

31 Mar 2011

DSP, Intercept enter license agreement for OCA

Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co, Ltd. and Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that they have entered into an exclusive licensing agreement for the development and commercialization of Intercept's first-in-class FXR agonist obeticholic acid.

30 Mar 2011

USPTO issues patent to Somaxon's Silenor food effect

Somaxon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company, today announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued U.S. patent no. 7,915,307, entitled "Methods of Improving the Pharmacokinetics of Doxepin."

30 Mar 2011

Metabolic Solutions initiates MSDC-0602 Phase 2a trial in patients with type 2 diabetes

Metabolic Solutions Development Company, a drug discovery and development company exploiting novel molecular targets to treat metabolic diseases, announced today that it has launched a Phase 2a trial for MSDC-0602, the company's second drug candidate for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

30 Mar 2011

Study: Thyroid hormone deficiency can affect cone opsins and colour vision

Thyroid hormone controls the eye's visual pigments throughout life. What part does the thyroid gland have in vision? Thyroid hormone is crucially involved in controlling which visual pigment is produced in the cones. Previously, it was assumed that the colour sensitivity of the cones is fixed in the adult retina.

30 Mar 2011

Penn neurologist develops new approach for brain activity study

By combining sophisticated mathematical techniques more commonly used by spies instead of scientists with the power and versatility of functional magnetic resonance imaging, a Penn neurologist has developed a new approach for studying the inner workings of the brain.

29 Mar 2011

Atypical antipsychotics is a safe mental health medication for nursing home residents

Conventional antipsychotics, antidepressants and benzodiazepines often administered to nursing home residents are no safer than atypical antipsychotics and may carry increased risks, according to an article in CMAJ.

29 Mar 2011

Study: Marijuana use may affect cognitive skills in patients with MS

Any possible pain relief that marijuana has for people with multiple sclerosis may be outweighed by the drug's apparent negative effect on thinking skills, according to research published in the March 29, 2011, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

29 Mar 2011

NMSS grants Adeona's ongoing Trimesta trial with $409,426 to treat MS

Adeona Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a developer of innovative medicines for serious central nervous system diseases, announced today that the ongoing clinical trial of its Trimesta drug candidate has received an additional $409,426 in grant funding from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

28 Mar 2011

University of Aberdeen, TPP enter agreement to develop novel future medicines

TPP Global Development Ltd has announced an agreement with the University of Aberdeen to collaborate on the development of novel pre-clinical intellectual property originated within the University.

28 Mar 2011

AACR to honor UNC scientist with $181,000 grant for breast cancer research

The American Association for Cancer Research announced today that Carey Anders, MD, assistant professor of medicine and a member of UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center will receive a Breast Cancer Research Foundation-AACR Grant for Translational Breast Cancer Research. The $181,000 grant will be presented at the organization's 102nd Annual Meeting, to be held in Orlando, Florida, April 2-6.

28 Mar 2011

Major breakthrough in brain signal processing

A team of Neuroscientists from NeuroCure Cluster of Excellence at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, have made a major breakthrough in understanding how signals are processed in the human brain.

28 Mar 2011

Study identifies unique adult animal stem cells that can turn into neurons

A group of scientists at Marshall University is conducting research that may someday lead to new treatments for repair of the central nervous system.

25 Mar 2011

UC Berkeley, UCSF partner to help develop neural prostheses for brain repair

Neuroscientists and engineers at UCSF and UC Berkeley have joined forces to help pioneer a new frontier of brain repair - the development of devices that would allow patients with such conditions as stroke, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury and Lou Gehrig's disease to control prosthetics through thoughts alone.

25 Mar 2011

Positive top-line results from Targacept's TC-5619 Phase 2 trial in adults with ADHD

Targacept, Inc today announced top-line results from a Phase 2 proof of concept trial of TC-5619 as a treatment for adults with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

25 Mar 2011

Quantum dots allow stem cell therapy monitoring for brain injury

A new technique using "quantum dots" produced through nanotechnology is a promising approach to monitoring the effects of stem cell therapies for stroke and other types of brain damage, reports the April issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

25 Mar 2011

Gut bacteria and state of immune system influence personality

Researchers at McMaster University discovered that the "cross-talk" between bacteria in our gut and our brain plays an important role in the development of psychiatric illness, intestinal diseases and probably other health problems as well including obesity.

24 Mar 2011