Nervous System News and Research

Latest Nervous System News and Research

Myelin and Huntington's disease

Last month, Dr. George Bartzokis, director of the UCLA Memory Disorders and Alzheimer's Disease Clinic, suggested in the journal Alzheimer's & Dementia that the breakdown of a type of myelin that develops late in life promotes the buildup of toxic amyloid plaques long associated with Alzheimer's disease.

14 Jun 2007

Delinquency in children now linked to biology

How do sweet children turn into delinquents seemingly right before our eyes?

14 Jun 2007

Anticonvulsant medication gabapentin effective for fibromyalgia pain

New research supported by the National Institutes of Health's National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) shows that the anticonvulsant medication gabapentin, which is used for certain types of seizures, can be an effective treatment for the pain and other symptoms associated with the common, often hard-to-treat chronic pain disorder, fibromyalgia.

14 Jun 2007

Pesticides elevate risk of brain tumours

Agricultural workers exposed to high levels of pesticides and people who use them on houseplants appear to have a greater risk of developing brain tumours, suggests a study published online ahead of print in Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

8 Jun 2007

New research shows promise for memory-related disorders

In today's fast-moving world of look-alike hotel rooms and comparable corridors, it can take a bit of thinking to answer this simple question.

8 Jun 2007

Gabapentin reduces hot flashes in men receiving androgen deprivation therapy

North Central Cancer Treatment Group ( http://ncctg/ ) researchers based at Mayo Clinic ( http://www.mayo.edu/ ) in Rochester, Minn., have discovered that low doses of a drug used to prevent epileptic seizures and to treat nerve pain caused by shingles substantially reduces hot flashes in patients who are undergoing anti-hormonal treatment, or androgen-deprivation therapy, for prostate cancer.

5 Jun 2007

Predicting treatment responses earlier for brain tumor patients

Using metabolic or molecular imaging to measure brain tumor patients' response to treatment is a powerful predictor of survival, notes a first-of-its-kind study presented at the 54th Annual Meeting of SNM, the world's largest society for molecular imaging and nuclear medicine professionals.

5 Jun 2007

Drug lapatinib shows activity against brain metastases

The drug lapatinib shrank tumors and slowed progression of brain metastases in some patients with advanced breast cancer, according to results of a clinical trial presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

5 Jun 2007

Modafinil (Provigil) alleviates post-chemotherapy fogginess

A drug described by some people as a genius pill for enhancing cognitive function provided relief to a small group of Rochester breast cancer survivors who were coping with a side effect known as chemo-brain, according to a University of Rochester Medical Center study.

5 Jun 2007

AMPAKINE drugs may provide protection from drug-induced respiratory depression

Drug-induced respiratory depression is a life-threatening condition caused by analgesic, hypnotic, and anesthesia medications.

5 Jun 2007

Scientist's discovery of role of Aquaporin in spinal injuries recognized with research funding award

Dr. Olivera Nesic-Taylor, an assistant professor in biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Texas, Galveston, was presented with the Erica Nader Award for 'breakthrough research in spinal cord regeneration.'

3 Jun 2007

MRI effective method for revealing anatomical details of soft tissues

Contrast agents can help to make these images even clearer and allow physiological processes to be followed in real time. Conventional gadolinium complexes currently used as MRI contrast agent cannot reveal anatomic structures.

1 Jun 2007

More complete understanding of lactic acid production in muscle

In a paper published in The Journal of Physiology, Frank de Paoli and colleagues, working at the University of Aarhus in Denmark, add to the growing literature leading to a more complete understanding of the physiological role of lactic acid production in muscle.

1 Jun 2007

Natalizumab returns to market

Just months after receiving FDA approval, natalizumab, a medication for the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) and other inflammatory disorders, was voluntarily withdrawn by its manufacturers after three patients developed a brain infection known as Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy (PML).

28 May 2007