Feature Channels: Neuro

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Loyola University Health System neurologist Dr. José Biller has been appointed editor-in-chief of Frontiers in Neurology.

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Aging is the single greatest risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. In their latest study, researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies found that simply slowing the aging process in mice prone to develop Alzheimer’s disease prevented their brains from turning into a neuronal wasteland.

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New treatment guidelines for patients with brain metastases are now available from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS).

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Irwin B. Levitan, Ph.D., has been named Founding Chair of the newly created Department of Neuroscience at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University. He has also been appointed director of the Farber Institute for Neurosciences. His appointment is effective January 1, 2010.

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Nerve cells transplanted into brain-damaged rats helped them to fully recover their ability to learn and remember, probably by promoting nurturing, protective growth factors, according to a new study.

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It is the consistency of room-temperature butter, fits easily into two outstretched hands and contains a galaxy's worth of neurons. It is the human brain and the focus of a DVD -- "Changing Brains: Effects of Experience on Human Development" -- produced at the University of Oregon.

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Estrogen has a dual role in brain as a hormone and, indirectly, as a neurotransmitter, according to PNAS study which suggests a strategy for replacing hormone therapy.

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More than half of HIV patients experience memory problems and other cognitive impairments as they age, and doctors know little about the underlying causes. New research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis suggests HIV-related cognitive deficits share a common link with Alzheimer's-related dementia: low levels of the protein amyloid beta in the spinal fluid.

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Neurology researchers have shown that feeding amino acids to brain-injured mice restores their cognitive abilities and may set the stage for the first effective treatment for cognitive impairments suffered by people with traumatic brain injuries. Every 23 seconds, a man, woman or child in the U.S. suffers a traumatic brain injury.

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People who drink may want to know that coffee won’t sober them up, according to new laboratory research. Instead, a cup of coffee may make it harder for people to realize they’re drunk.

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Neuroscientists at the Mayo Clinic campus in Jacksonville, Fla., have demonstrated how brain waves can be used to type alphanumerical characters on a computer screen. By merely focusing on the “q” in a matrix of letters, for example, that “q” appears on the monitor.

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A new study published this week in the Journal of Neurosurgery: Pediatrics finds that operative plans for removing Juvenile Pilocytic Astrocytoma, or JPA, tumors in the thalamus of the brain can be augmented with Diffusion Tensor Imaging, or DTI. The sensitivity of DTI imaging allows for the visualization of nerve fiber bundles in the brain. This information can maximize the potential of completely removing the tumor while avoiding damage to the fiber bundles that are directly related to motor functions of the patient.

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A new study to determine whether the use of antithrombotic medications among stroke survivors increased over a seven-year period found that in each of the years, approximately 20 percent of survivors were not taking these medications — a figure that did not decrease during the time period. The study also found that individuals who were younger, female or Hispanic were less likely to be taking antithrombotic agents.

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Our ability to learn new information and adapt to changes in our daily environment, as well as to retain lifelong memories, appears to lie in the minute junctions where nerve cells communicate, according to a new study by NYU Langone Medicine Center researchers. The study is published online this week in the journal Nature.

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New research shows that recreational users of the drug known as ecstasy may be at a higher risk for sleep apnea. The study is published in the December 2, 2009, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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Repeated use of the drug popularly known as “ecstasy” significantly raises the risk of developing sleep apnea in otherwise healthy young adults with no other known risk factors for the sleep disturbance, a new study by Johns Hopkins scientists suggests. The finding is the latest highlighting the potential dangers of the amphetamine-style chemical, currently used illegally by millions of people in the United States.

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The “stroke belt” has a tight hold. People born in the Southern stroke belt have a higher risk of dying from stroke as adults, even if they later move away, compared to people who were born in other parts of the country. The research is published in the December 1, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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Naked mole-rats can withstand brain oxygen deprivation for more than 30 minutes -- more than any other mammal. The finding, reported by University of Illinois at Chicago researchers, may provide clues for developing new brain injury treatments following stroke or heart attack.

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Dr. Todd Golde will direct the College of Medicine's new Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, leading efforts to develop treatments and diagnostics for Alzheimer's disease, dementias, and other diseases.

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Dr. Sarit Larisch of the University of Haifa received the prestigious Johnson & Johnson Focus Funding grant for her breakthrough research exploring the cause of brain cell damage in Parkinson's disease.

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Men who regularly take part in moderate-to-heavy intensity exercise such as jogging, tennis or swimming may be less likely to have a stroke than people who get no exercise or only light exercise, such as walking, golfing, or bowling, according to a study published in the November 24, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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The American Academy of Neurology, the world’s largest professional association of neurologists, is encouraged by news reports that the National Football League will soon implement a new policy requiring an independent neurologist to evaluate players who have suffered a concussion. The Academy would welcome an opportunity to work with the NFL to implement this new policy change as it is imperative that an unbiased neurologist be involved in determining when it is safe for a player to return to play.

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Scientists from the UCLA Department of Neurology have confirmed that blindness causes structural changes in the brain, indicating that the brain may reorganize itself functionally in order to adapt to a loss in sensory input.

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There is good news for women with multiple sclerosis (MS) who are pregnant or thinking about becoming pregnant. A new study shows that pregnant women with multiple sclerosis are only slightly more likely to have cesarean deliveries and babies with a poor prenatal growth rate than women who do not have MS.

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Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) neurologists Alvaro Pascual-Leone, MD, PhD, and Daniel Tarsy, MD, have been awarded grants totaling more than $1.5 million from the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) to conduct investigations aimed at improving the quality of life for patients with Parkinson’s disease.

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A study by neuroscientist William C. Mobley, MD, PhD, chair of the Department of Neurosciences at the UCSD, School of Medicine, and colleagues at Stanford University Medical School has demonstrated a possible new approach to slowing the inevitable progression of cognitive decline found in Down’s syndrome.

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The Web's leading source for research news on Alzheimer's and related neurodegenerative diseases reports from the world's largest annual gathering of neuroscientists.

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Stroke researchers at the Methodist Neurological Institute in Houston are the only ones in Texas to offer a novel device that might extend the acute stroke treatment window from three hours to 24.

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While previous studies have indicated a “probable” connection between smoking and ALS, a new study published in the Nov. 17, 2009 issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, states smoking may now be considered an “established” risk factor for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

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In a study that promises to improve diagnosis and monitoring of Alzheimer’s disease, scientists at the University of California, San Diego have developed a fast and accurate method for quantifying subtle, sub-regional brain volume loss using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The study will be published the week of November 16 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS).

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Researchers are preparing for the first Phase 2 clinical trial to test gene therapy treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. The study, the first multicenter neurosurgical intervention in Alzheimer’s research in the U.S., utilizes a viral-based gene transfer system, CERE-110, that makes Nerve Growth Factor (NGF), a naturally occurring protein that helps maintain nerve cell survival in the brain.

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A growing weakness left 11-year-old Iraqi Aram Ali unable to even take a normal breath. Then pediatric neurologists at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston put her on a path to a healthy life.

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After testing behavior of mice lacking the gene, pharmacy researchers at the University of Maryland, Baltimore say it may play an important role in mood regulation.

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The lipid that accumulates in brain cells of individuals with an inherited enzyme disorder also drives the cell death that is a hallmark of the disease, according to new research led by St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital investigators.

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In a new study, psychologists at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) are able to see in detail for the first time how various regions of the human brain respond when people experience an unexpected or traumatic event. The study could lead to the creation of biological measures that could identify people with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or identify PTSD sufferers who would benefit from specific treatments.

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Children with autism may have lower quality handwriting and trouble forming letters compared to children without autism, according to a study published in the November 10, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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Teenage women who are obese may be more than twice as likely to develop multiple sclerosis (MS) as adults compared to female teens who are not obese, according to a study published in the November 10, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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Cumulative exposure to five common infection-causing pathogens may be associated with an increased risk of stroke, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the January 2010 print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

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Individuals with weaker muscles appear to have a higher risk for Alzheimer’s disease and declines in cognitive function over time, according to a report in the November issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

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Saint Louis University research could lead to better medicines for Alzheimer's disease.

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Proust famously used the smell of madeleines as a connection to childhood memories. Now, researchers at the Weizmann Institute have revealed the scientific basis of the link between smell and memory.

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Researchers from the University of Michigan Department of Neurology have received a $1.8 million grant to develop a novel therapy for neuropathic pain, a difficult to treat condition.

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Research that is targeting the early diagnosis of Alzheimer disease has drawn national attention to the work of Michael Seidenberg, PhD, a professor in the Department of Psychology at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science and lead author of an article in the journal Neurology detailing a study that maps the brain activity of 69 healthy senior men and women, aged 65-85, including some at higher risk for Alzheimer’s disease, as they distinguish between famous and unfamiliar names.

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People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who have relapses within the first five years of onset appear to have more severe disability in the short term compared to people who do not have an early relapse.

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People who have compelling stories to share regarding how they or a loved one has been affected by a brain disorder are invited to submit a short video to the 2010 Neuro Film Festival, an event by the American Academy of Neurology Foundation to help raise awareness about brain disorders and the need to support research into preventions, treatments, and cures.

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One of the many mysteries of Alzheimer's disease is how protein-like snippets called amyloid-beta peptides, which clump together to form plaques in the brain, may cause cell death, leading to the disease's devastating symptoms of memory loss and other mental difficulties.

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Radiation oncologists at Rush University Medical Center are intent on finding ways to avoid damage to the critically important hippocampus and limbic circuit of the brain when cranial radiation is required to treat existing or potential metastatic cancers.

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New research shows that a rare brain disorder that causes early dementia is highly hereditary. The study is published in the November 3, 2009, issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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A study published this week in PNAS provides a comprehensive comparative functional anatomy study in human and monkey brains which reveals highly similar brain networks preserved across evolution.

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A new study suggests that the inner sense of our cardiovascular state, our "interoceptive awareness" of the heart pounding, relies on two independent pathways, contrary to what had been asserted by prominent researchers. The University of Iowa study was published online this week in the journal Nature Neuroscience.