Feature Channels: Neuro

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Just as a sprinter’s body and muscles are ready for action as they wait for the starting gun to fire, brain networks at rest appear to be waiting in a state of potentiation to execute even the simplest of behaviors. This evidence comes from a new paper published this week in the journal PLoS One, reporting on a study led by professors Vaibhav Diwadkar, Ph.D., at Wayne State University’s School of Medicine and Steven L. Bressler, Ph.D., interim director of Florida Atlantic University’s Center for Complex Systems and Brain Sciences.

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Middle-aged people who experience temporary blood pressure drops that often cause dizziness upon standing up may be at an increased risk of developing cognitive decline and dementia 20 years later, new Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health research suggests.

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A research collaboration between Mississippi State University and Cardiff University in the United Kingdom aims to increase understanding of infant head trauma.

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Guo-li Ming, MD, PhD, and Hongjun Song, PhD, internationally renowned neuroscientists, have been appointed professors in the department of Neuroscience in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

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Specialized intervention after the first episodes of psychosis improves outcomes for those aged 15 to 35

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Depressed patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) are more likely to miss days of work or school than those without depression symptoms, according to the results of a new study led by the Sinus Center at Massachusetts Eye and Ear.

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A UCLA team discovered that dendrites are electrically active in animals that are moving around freely, generating nearly 10 times more spikes than somas. The finding challenges the long-held belief that spikes in the soma are the primary way in which perception, learning and memory formation occur.

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A specific protein inside cells senses threatening changes in its environment, such as heat or starvation, and triggers an adaptive response to help the cell continue to function and grow under stressful conditions, according to a new study by scientists from the University of Chicago.

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Learning and memory depend on cells' ability to strengthen and weaken circuits in the brain. Now, researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine report that a protein involved in recycling other cell proteins plays an important role in this process.

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MedStar Heart & Vascular Institute uses a new therapy option for patients at an increased risk of stroke due to atrial fibrillation, as part of a nationwide clinical trial.

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Neuroscientists at the University of Geneva (UNIGE) have been trying to answer these questions by studying the olfactory system of mammals. They have succeeded in identifying the complementary role played by two distinct kinds of neurons in processing olfactory information and the different brain re-organisation that occurs depending on the context.

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Cedars-Sinai investigators have identified a stem cell-regulating gene that affects tumor growth in patients with brain cancer and can strongly influence survival rates of patients. The findings, published in the online edition of Nature Scientific Reports, could move physicians closer to their goal of better predicting the prognosis of patients with brain tumors and developing more personalized treatments for them.

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News release from CIHR on Multiple sclerosis

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Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center discovered that lipocalin 2, a hormone secreted by bone cells, suppresses appetite in mice. The study findings, which reveal a new mechanism for regulating food intake and blood sugar, could lead to the development of new treatments for obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other metabolic disorders.

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A relationship between epilepsy and heightened religious experiences has been recognized since at least the 19th century. In a recent study, researchers from the University of Missouri found a neurological relationship exists between religiosity— a disposition for spiritual experience and religious activity—and epilepsy. This finding sheds light on the connection between religion and neuropsychological processes within the human brain.

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Mayo Clinic researchers have found that an experimental drug, LCL161, stimulates the immune system, leading to tumor shrinkage in patients affected by multiple myeloma. The findings are published in Nature Medicine.

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Patients with drug-refractory epilepsy have a new treatment option at UC San Diego Health. Instead of traditional surgery, patients may be eligible for a novel technique that allows surgeons to target the abnormal area of brain with laser technology. The MRI-guided laser ablation treatment is a new first-line therapy for patients diagnosed with epilepsy.

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Johns Hopkins researchers report that in-home occupational therapy appears to reduce the rate and severity of depression in people at higher risk for the disorder because of seriously impaired vision.

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Researchers have identified a new mechanism by which inflammation can spread throughout the brain after injury. This mechanism may explain the widespread and long-lasting inflammation that occurs after traumatic brain injury, and may play a role in other neurodegenerative diseases.

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Up to 20 percent of U.S. veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan developed symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder from trauma experienced during wartime, but new neuroscience research from The University of Texas at Austin suggests some soldiers might have a hormonal predisposition to experience such stress-related disorders.

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Researchers from Northwestern Medicine and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago have revealed new insight into how the most deadly pediatric brain tumor, diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), may develop. They also have identified a compound that targets the “on” switch for cancer-promoting genes, which resulted in shrinking tumor size and increased survival in an animal model of DIPG. Preparations for a clinical trial at Lurie Children’s are now under way.

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A study by Indiana University researchers has identified 24 compounds -- including caffeine -- with the potential to boost an enzyme in the brain shown to protect against dementia. The research appeared March 7 in the journal Scientific Reports.

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Scientists have discovered that resveratrol, a compound in the skin of red grapes and red wine, and metformin, a drug often prescribed to fight type 2 diabetes, have many of the neuroprotective benefits of a low-calorie diet.

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The American Chiropractic Association (ACA), the World Federation of Chiropractic (WFC) and the Association of Chiropractic Colleges (ACC) join forces this month to present “DC2017,” a world-class, first-of-its-kind chiropractic program featuring new research supporting the effectiveness of chiropractic services, global perspectives on the future of the profession and inspirational sessions delivered by the profession's most compelling thought leaders.

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In an MRI study, researchers found that many toddlers diagnosed with autism at age 2 had a substantially greater amount of extra-axial cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) at six and 12 months of age, before diagnosis is possible. Researchers also linked increased severity of symptoms to increased CSF.

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Researchers from the UC Davis MIND Institute, University of North Carolina (UNC) and other institutions have found that altered distribution of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in high-risk infants can predict whether they will develop autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The study appears today in the journal Biological Psychiatry.

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A study led by Ravi Bansal, PhD, and Bradley S. Peterson, MD, of The Saban Research Institute of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, has found structural differences in the cerebral cortex of patients with depression and that these differences normalize with appropriate medication.

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A type of functional brain training known as neurofeedback shows promise in reducing symptoms of chemotherapy-induced nerve damage, or neuropathy, in cancer survivors, according to a study by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The pilot study, published in the journal Cancer, is the largest, to date, to determine the benefits of neurofeedback in cancer survivors.

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Seeking to further enhance mental health services for veterans and their families, the Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic (MFC) at NYU Langone and VA New York Harbor Healthcare System (VANYHHS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding formalizing the existing partnership between the two organizations.

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Increased longevity of those living with HIV means dealing with related health issues, including dementia and other cognition-related problems. An NIH grant supports development of interventions, treatments to improve everyday functioning, and quality of life.

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Specialized nerve cells, known as somatostatin-expressing (Sst) interneurons, in the outer part of the mammalian brain (or cerebral cortex) — play a key role in controlling how information flows in the brain when it is awake and alert. This is the finding of a study published online in Science March 2 by a team of neuroscientists at NYU Langone Medical Center and its Neuroscience Institute.

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Researchers at Toronto Western Hospital’s Canadian Concussion Centre (CCC) have discovered the presence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in the brain of a deceased patient with no known history of traumatic brain injury or concussion, the first known case of its kind.

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In older people with MS, having fatigue and limited leg function is more often seen in people with MS progression than in those without, according to a preliminary study released today that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 69th Annual Meeting in Boston, April 22 to 28, 2017.

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A preliminary study suggests that a new, wireless patch that you wear on your arm may help reduce migraine pain as well as drugs. The study is published in the March 1, 2017, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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Researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and Karolinska Institute in Sweden discovered that a specific enzyme in the brain could reduce the formation of debilitating brain lesions in the two diseases.

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Working with yeast and human cells, researchers at Johns Hopkins say they have discovered an unexpected route for cells to eliminate protein clumps that may sometimes be the molecular equivalent of throwing too much or the wrong trash into the garbage disposal.

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Since the early seventies, scientists have been developing brain-machine interfaces; the main application being the use of neural prosthesis in paralyzed patients or amputees.

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The toxic protein behind Parkinson’s disease may not spread like an infection from nerve cell to nerve. Instead, say researchers from the Technion and Harvard, the protein may simultaneously affect all parts of the nervous system inside and outside of the brain.

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Women athletes are 50 percent more likely than male athletes to have a sports-related concussion, according to a preliminary study released today that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 69th Annual Meeting in Boston, April 22 to 28, 2017.

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In a rigorous study of tumor tissue collected from 125 patients with aggressive brain cancers, researchers at Johns Hopkins say they have found no evidence of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection and conclude that a link between the two diseases, as claimed by earlier reports, likely does not exist.

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A Mayo Clinic research team has found a new gene mutation that may be a risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer’s disease in African-Americans.

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NeuroVision Imaging LLC (“NeuroVision”) today announced its participation in a new substudy with investigators at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine (UC San Diego) and the University of Southern California (USC) to be part of the landmark Anti-Amyloid Treatment in Asymptomatic Alzheimer’s (or “A4”) clinical trial. The purpose of the A4 study is to test whether a new investigational treatment that may reduce beta-amyloid accumulation in the brain can also slow memory loss caused by Alzheimer’s disease.

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There’s good news for kids with epilepsy. While several new drugs have come out in the last several years for adults with epilepsy, making those drugs available for children and teenagers has been delayed due to the challenges of testing new drugs on children. But an analysis of all the research published on adults and children shows that the positive results seen in adults appear to be similar in children. The preliminary meta-analysis was released today and will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 69th Annual Meeting in Boston, April 22 to 28, 2017.

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In a small phase I and II clinical trial, Johns Hopkins researchers and colleagues elsewhere found that the high-fat, low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet was a safe and effective treatment option for the majority of adults experiencing a relatively rare, often fatal and always severe form of epilepsy marked by prolonged seizures that require medically induced comas to prevent them from further damaging the body and the brain.

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Neuronal degeneration is the most severe long-term consequence of repetitive seizures in patients with epilepsy, which until now was thought to be primarily caused by excitotoxicity, or over-stimulation of the neurons. New findings indicate hypoxia, or lack of oxygen, due to abnormal blood flow may be to blame for as much as half the neuronal death caused by the condition.

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Georgetown University Medical Center today announces the launch of a phase II clinical trial to study the safety of the cancer drug nilotinib and its effects on clinical outcomes and biomarkers in people with Parkinson’s disease.

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People with epilepsy want their health care providers to tell them about a rare risk of death associated with the disorder, according to a preliminary study released today that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 69th Annual Meeting in Boston, April 22 to 28, 2017.

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A retrospective study published in Stroke indicates that missed stroke diagnoses can be significantly reduced by adding balance and vision problems to the list of presenting symptoms commonly known as FAST

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Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Nursing have developed a free mobile app for individuals suffering from dementia, their families and caregivers, as a way to improve the quality-of-life, well-being and knowledge of the disease that affects nearly 48 million people worldwide.

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The second annual ACTRIMS Forum gets underway today. This year, the forum was preceded by the Neurology Resident Summit in Neuroimmunology, which drew 47 residents from the United States and Canada.