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Released: 19-Feb-2015 1:30 PM EST
Statins May Not Lower Parkinson's Risk
Penn State Health

The use of statins may not be associated with lowering risk for Parkinson’s disease, according to a new study led by researchers at Penn State College of Medicine and National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.

Released: 19-Feb-2015 11:00 AM EST
A Sense of Taste: Psychology Professor Examines the Taste System
University of Virginia

University of Virginia psychology professor David Hill operates one of the few labs in the world to study the development of taste.

11-Feb-2015 1:10 PM EST
Chicken Pox Virus May Be Linked to Serious Condition in the Elderly
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

A new study links the virus that causes chicken pox and shingles to a condition that inflames blood vessels on the temples and scalp in the elderly, called giant cell arteritis. The study is published in the February 18, 2015, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The condition can cause sudden blindness or stroke and can be life-threatening.

12-Feb-2015 10:00 AM EST
Help for People with Muscle Cramps?
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

A new treatment may bring hope for people who suffer from muscle cramps or spasms from neuromuscular disorders, diseases such as multiple sclerosis or simply from nighttime leg cramps that keep people from sleeping, according to a study released today that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 67th Annual Meeting in Washington, DC, April 18 to 25, 2015.

Released: 18-Feb-2015 12:00 PM EST
Autism Genes Activate During Fetal Brain Development
UC San Diego Health

Scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have found that mutations that cause autism in children are connected to a pathway that regulates brain development.

13-Feb-2015 7:00 PM EST
New Insight Into How Brain Performs “Mental Time Travel”
Vanderbilt University

New brain mapping study pinpoints the areas of the brain responsible for “mental time travel.”

Released: 17-Feb-2015 4:10 PM EST
Broca’s Area Is the Brain’s Scriptwriter, Shaping Speech, Study Finds
Johns Hopkins Medicine

What is happening in the brain of an actor reciting Hamlet’s “to be or not to be” soliloquy or of the person next to you at lunch saying, “Please pass the salt”? For 150 years, scientists have known that a brain region called Broca’s area plays a key role in speech production, but exactly what it does and how it does it have been a mystery.

   
Released: 17-Feb-2015 1:00 PM EST
Brain Imaging Links Language Delay to Chromosome Deletion in Children with Neurological Disorders
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Children born with a DNA abnormality on chromosome 16 already linked to neurodevelopmental problems show measurable delays in processing sound and language, says a study team of radiologists and psychologists.

Released: 17-Feb-2015 12:00 PM EST
Tau-Associated MAPT Gene Increases Risk for Alzheimer’s Disease
UC San Diego Health

An international team of scientists, led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, has identified the microtubule-associated protein tau (MAPT) gene as increasing the risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The MAPT gene encodes the tau protein, which is involved with a number of neurodegenerative disorders, including Parkinson’s disease and AD. These findings provide novel insight into Alzheimer’s neurodegeneration, possibly opening the door for improved clinical diagnosis and treatment.

Released: 17-Feb-2015 9:35 AM EST
The Science Behind Commonly Used Anti-Depressants Appears to Be Backwards, Researchers Say
McMaster University

The science behind many anti-depressant medications appears to be backwards, say the authors of a paper that challenges the prevailing ideas about the nature of depression and some of the world’s most commonly prescribed medications.

Released: 12-Feb-2015 3:00 PM EST
Curious Monkeys Share Our Thirst for Knowledge
University of Rochester

Monkeys are notoriously curious, and new research has quantified just how eager they are to gain new information, even if there are not immediate benefits. The findings offer insights into how a certain part of the brain shared by monkeys and humans plays a role in decision making, and perhaps even in some disorders and addictions in humans.

11-Feb-2015 11:00 AM EST
New Fluorescent Protein Permanently Marks Neurons That Fire
Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI)

A new tool developed at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Janelia Research Campus lets scientists shine a light on an animal's brain to permanently mark neurons that are active at a particular time. The tool -- a fluorescent protein called CaMPARI that was developed at Janelia -- converts from green to red when calcium floods a nerve cell after the cell fires. The permanent mark frees scientists from the need to focus a microscope on the right cells at the right time to observe neuronal activity.

Released: 12-Feb-2015 11:00 AM EST
Scientists’ ‘Mad Cow’ Discovery Points to Possible Neuron Killing Mechanism Behind Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Diseases
Scripps Research Institute

Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have for the first time discovered a killing mechanism that could underpin a range of the most intractable neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and ALS.

   
Released: 12-Feb-2015 10:00 AM EST
Penn Medicine Researchers Show Brain Activity Can Predict Increased Fat Intake Following Sleep Deprivation
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

Experts have warned for years that insufficient sleep can lead to weight gain. A new Penn Medicine study found that not only do we consume more food following a night of total sleep deprivation, but we also we consume more fat and less carbohydrates and a region of the brain known as the salience network is what may lead us to eat more fat. The new findings are published in Scientific Reports.

6-Feb-2015 4:00 PM EST
Stem Cell Transplants May Work Better than Existing Drug for Severe Multiple Sclerosis
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

Stem cell transplants may be more effective than the drug mitoxantrone for people with severe cases of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new study published in the February 11, 2015, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Released: 11-Feb-2015 1:00 PM EST
Research Team Finds How CBD, a Component in Marijuana, Works Within Cells
Stony Brook University

A team of Stony Brook University researchers have identified fatty acid binding proteins (FABPs) as intracellular transporters for two ingredients in marijuana, THC and CBD (cannabidiol). The finding, published early online in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, is significant because it helps explain how CBD works within the cells. Recent clinical findings have shown that CBD may help reduce seizures and could be a potential new medicine to treat pediatric treatment-resistant epilepsy.

Released: 11-Feb-2015 12:00 PM EST
Meth Messes Up Brains of Youths Far More than Adults
University of Utah Health

In a study with chronic adolescent and adult meth users in South Korea, MRI brain scans showed decreased thickness in the gray matter of younger users’ frontal cortex. Adult brains showed less damage.

Released: 11-Feb-2015 10:00 AM EST
Attacking Alzheimer’s with Ultrasound
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering

Researchers have reversed some of the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease in mice using magnetic resonance (MR) imaging-guided focused ultrasound.

4-Feb-2015 4:55 PM EST
Coral Snake Venom Reveals a Unique Route to Lethality
Johns Hopkins Medicine

For more than a decade, a vial of rare snake venom refused to give up its secret formula for lethality; its toxins had no effect on the proteins that most venoms target. Finally, an international team of researchers figured out its recipe: a toxin that permanently activates a crucial type of nerve cell protein, preventing the cells from resetting and causing deadly seizures in prey.

9-Feb-2015 11:00 AM EST
U.Va. Team Finds Molecular Tag That Explains Differences in Brain’s Response to Anger, Fear
University of Virginia

U.Va. researchers have identified the relationship between a biomarker and activity in parts of the brain responsible for processing emotional responses.

Released: 9-Feb-2015 3:00 PM EST
Researchers Discover DNA Repair is High in Heart, Nonexistent in Brain
Nova Southeastern University

Nova Southeastern University (NSU) researchers recently discovered that, contrary to prior belief, tissues of different mammalian organs have very different abilities to repair damage to their DNA.

Released: 9-Feb-2015 11:00 AM EST
UB Expert Explores the Neurological Conditions of Presidents
University at Buffalo

Woodrow Wilson suffered a severe stroke while in office in 1919. FDR had polio andpossibly Guillain-Barre syndrome. As President's Day approaches, Nicholas J. Silvestri, MD, assistant professor of neurology at the UB, can discuss the neurological conditions that have affected the country's top office.

4-Feb-2015 11:00 AM EST
Promising Peptide for TBI, Heart Attack and Stroke
Biophysical Society

By employing derivatives of humanin, a naturally occurring peptide encoded in the genome of cellular mitochondria, researchers at Ben Gurion University of the Negev are working to interrupt necrosis, buying precious time for tissues whose cellular mechanisms have called it quits.

Released: 6-Feb-2015 1:00 PM EST
UVA Finds Trigger for Protective Immune Response to Spinal Cord Injury
University of Virginia Health System

Hot on the heels of discovering a protective form of immune response to spinal cord injury, researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have pinpointed the biological trigger for that response – a vital step toward being able to harness the body’s defenses to improve treatment for spine injuries, brain trauma, Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative conditions.

Released: 6-Feb-2015 12:00 PM EST
New Issue of Epilepsy Currents Highlights Nonconvulsive Seizures, Optogenetics and Anticonvulsant Actions
American Epilepsy Society (AES)

The latest issue of Epilepsy Currents is now available featuring expert commentary on abstracts in basic science and clinical topics.

3-Feb-2015 12:00 PM EST
Circadian Clock – Angelman Syndrome Link Established
Vanderbilt University

Vanderbilt biologists have found a direct link between the biological clock and Angelman syndrome, a neurogenetic disorder that occurs in more than one in every 15,000 live births. The link may provide a valuable way to judge the effectiveness of the first experimental drugs under development for treating the syndrome.

2-Feb-2015 1:00 PM EST
Paramedics May be First Source of Treatment for Stroke Patients, UCLA Study Finds
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Health Sciences

In the first study of its kind, a consortium led by UCLA physicians found that paramedics can start medications for patients in the first minutes after onset of a stroke. While the specific drug tested, magnesium sulfate, did not improve patient outcomes, the research has resulted in a new method to get promising treatments to stroke patients quickly.

Released: 4-Feb-2015 4:10 PM EST
Compound Found In Grapes, Red Wine May Help Prevent Memory Loss
Texas A&M University

A compound found in common foods such as red grapes and peanuts may help prevent age-related decline in memory, according to new research published by a faculty member in the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine.

   
Released: 4-Feb-2015 2:00 PM EST
RIA Neuroscience Study Points to Possible Use of Medical Marijuana for Depression
University at Buffalo

Scientists at the University at Buffalo’s Research Institute on Addictions (RIA) are studying chronic stress and depression, with a focus on endocannabinoids, which are brain chemicals similar to substances in marijuana.

Released: 4-Feb-2015 12:25 PM EST
TSRI Scientists Find More DNA and Extra Copies of Disease Gene in Alzheimer’s Brain Cells
Scripps Research Institute

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have found diverse genomic changes in single neurons from the brains of Alzheimer’s patients, pointing to an unexpected factor that may underpin the most common form of the disease.

   
Released: 4-Feb-2015 11:00 AM EST
Brain Scans Predict Effectiveness of Talk Therapy to Treat Depression
University of North Carolina Health Care System

UNC School of Medicine researchers have shown that brain scans can predict which patients with clinical depression are most likely to benefit from a specific kind of talk therapy.

Released: 3-Feb-2015 7:00 PM EST
Study Offers New Look at Complex Head and Neck Tumor Behavior
Yale Cancer Center/Smilow Cancer Hospital

Head and neck squamous cell cancer (HNSCC) ranks among the top ten most prevalent cancers in the United States. Despite its prevalence, little is known about how this cancer develops and spreads. However, in a paper published in the January 29, 2015 edition of Nature, researchers offer critical new information about head and neck cancers.

2-Feb-2015 9:00 AM EST
Cocaine Users Have Impaired Ability to Predict Loss
Mount Sinai Health System

Cocaine addicted individuals may continue their habit despite unfavorable consequences like imprisonment or loss of relationships because their brain circuits responsible for predicting emotional loss are impaired, according to a study conducted at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and published today in The Journal of Neuroscience.

Released: 3-Feb-2015 5:00 PM EST
Researchers Identify Key Mechanisms Underlying HIV-Associated Cognitive Disorders
UC San Diego Health

New findings, published today by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, open the door to the development of new therapies to block or decrease cognitive decline due to HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND), estimated to affect 10 to 50 percent of aging HIV sufferers to some degree.

Released: 3-Feb-2015 11:00 AM EST
Neurologists Find Movement Tracking Device Helps Assess Severity of Parkinson’s Disease
UT Southwestern Medical Center

A device that measures movement and balance can effectively help assess and track the progression of Parkinson’s disease, even when medications are used to reduce Parkinson’s symptoms

Released: 3-Feb-2015 9:30 AM EST
Effects of Brain Surgery for Epilepsy Sustained for More than 15 Years
Henry Ford Health

Brain surgery for otherwise hard-to-treat epilepsy is effective for up to 15 years, according to a new survey by Henry Ford Hospital physicians.

29-Jan-2015 7:00 PM EST
Discovery of a Gene Responsible for Familial Scoliosis
Universite de Montreal

The discovery of the first gene causing familial scoliosis was announced by an international France-Canada research team today.

29-Jan-2015 11:00 AM EST
New Reset Button Discovered for Circadian Clock
Vanderbilt University

A team of Vanderbilt University biologists have found a way to use a laser and an optical fiber to reset an animal's master biological clock: A discovery that could in principle be used therapeutically to treat conditions like seasonal affect disorder, reduce the adverse health effects of night shift work and possibly even cure jet lag.

   
Released: 2-Feb-2015 11:00 AM EST
Laying a Foundation for Treating ALS, Spinal Cord Injury
University of Wisconsin–Madison

Su-Chun Zhang, a professor of neuroscience and neurology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Waisman Center, and his research team have published a unique model for learning more about the role of human astrocytes in the Journal of Clinical Investigation today. The findings may lay a foundation for the treatment of a number of neurodegenerative diseases, including ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) and debilitating spinal cord injuries.

30-Jan-2015 8:00 AM EST
Scientists View Effect of Whisker Tickling on Mouse Brains
Johns Hopkins Medicine

Researchers have succeeded in peering into the brains of live mice with such precision that they were able to see how the position of specific proteins changed as memories were forged.

Released: 31-Jan-2015 8:00 AM EST
Hockey Legend Stan Mikita Suspected to Have Common, Yet Little Known Dementia
Lewy Body American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN)Dementia Association

Lewy Body Dementia Association offers support to the family, friends and fans of Stan Mikita.

Released: 30-Jan-2015 5:00 PM EST
Penn Researchers Show Value of Tissue-Engineering to Repair Major Peripheral Nerve Injuries
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) is a common consequence of traumatic injuries, wounds caused by an external force or an act of violence, such as a car accident, gun shot or even surgery. In those injuries that require surgical reconstruction, outcomes can result in partial or complete loss of nerve function and a reduced quality of life. But, researchers at Penn Medicine have demonstrated a novel way to regenerate long-distance nerve connections in animal models using tissue-engineered nerve grafts (TENGs).

Released: 30-Jan-2015 10:30 AM EST
Fluorescent Dyes 'Light Up' Brain Cancer Cells, Reports Neurosurgery
Wolters Kluwer Health: Lippincott

Two new fluorescent dyes attracted to cancer cells may help neurosurgeons more accurately localize and completely resect brain tumors, suggests a study in the February issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

27-Jan-2015 4:00 PM EST
New Deep-Brain Imaging Reveals Separate Functions for Nearly Identical Neurons
University of North Carolina Health Care System

New deep-brain imaging shows activity of individual, genetically similar neurons to particular behaviors of mice. Scientists watched as one neuron was activated when a mouse searched for food while a nearly identical neuron next to it remained inactive until the mouse began eating.

Released: 29-Jan-2015 12:00 PM EST
Walking on Ice Takes More Than Brains
Salk Institute for Biological Studies

Salk scientists discover how a "mini-brain" in the spinal cord aids in balance

21-Jan-2015 2:00 PM EST
Does Getting “Expensive” Drug Affect How Much Patient Benefits?
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

People’s perceptions of the cost of a drug may affect how much they benefit from the drug, even when they are receiving only a placebo, according to a new study of people with Parkinson’s disease published in the January 28, 2015 online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

27-Jan-2015 11:00 AM EST
Study: Former NFL Players Who Played Tackle Football Before Age 12 at Increased Risk of Memory and Thinking Problems Later
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

Former National Football League (NFL) players who participated in tackle football before the age of 12 were more likely to have memory and thinking problems in adulthood, according to a new study published in the January 28, 2015, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

22-Jan-2015 7:05 PM EST
Psychopathic Violent Offenders’ Brains Can’t Understand Punishment
Universite de Montreal

Psychopathic violent offenders have abnormalities in the parts of the brain related to learning from punishment, according to an MRI study led by Sheilagh Hodgins and Nigel Blackwood.

Released: 27-Jan-2015 3:00 PM EST
Low-Frequency Deep Brain Stimulation Improves Difficult-to-Treat Parkinson’s Symptoms
University of Chicago Medical Center

Parkinson’s disease patients treated with low-frequency deep brain stimulation show significant improvements in swallowing dysfunction and freezing of gait over typical high-frequency treatment.



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