Media representatives are invited to attend the American Academy of NeurologyÃs 49th Annual Meeting April 12-19, 1997, at the John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center in Boston, Mass. More than 6,000 neurologists and neuroscientists are expected to attend. Below are summaries of news releases on studies that will be presented during the meeting.
PLEASE NOTE INDIVIDUAL EMBARGO DATES AND TIMES FOR EACH RELEASE.
For full releases, for more information about the meeting in Boston or to request the Abstracts-on-Disk, contact:
Sarah Parsons or Rona Stewart at 612-623-8115 or by e-mail
EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL 4:30 PM, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 1997 Gene Therapy in Monkeys May Lead to Treatment for AlzheimerÃs Disease Research using gene therapy in monkeys may soon lead to studies with humans on a potential treatment for AlzheimerÃs disease. Researchers are closing in on ways to stop cognitive decline from brain cell degeneration by rescuing these cells with gene therapy.
In a study released during the American Academy of NeurologyÃs 49th Annual Meeting April 12-19 in Boston, MA, researchers took cells from 16 aged monkeys, genetically modified the cells and transplanted them back into the donor monkeyÃs brain. The altered cells produce a nerve growth factor, a protein that promotes neuron development.
ìThe neurons in the monkeysà brains responded to the nerve growth factor grafts with no side effects,î said Mark Tuszynski, MD, PhD, study author and associate professor of neuroscience at the University of California, San Diego. ìThis is further evidence that nerve growth factor can rescue degenerating brain cells without inducing side effects.î
The cells targeted by this therapy are cholinergic neurons, which produce the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Loss of acetylcholine is a significant component of intellectual decline in AlzheimerÃs disease, Tuszynski said. The lack of acetylcholine is not the only component in cell degeneration in AlzheimerÃs. But Tuszynski believes it is a significant component that, when treated, could improve function for patients. He said gene therapy is promising because it can prevent cell degeneration rather than compensating for cell loss after it has occurred, as other treatments do. Tuszynski said the therapy may be ready for clinical trials with humans within the next few years. ìWe want to verify that these cells continue to do what we want them to do, and then weÃll be ready to start clinical trials,î he said. ìWe are hoping that this approach is helping as we enter a new era of promise in the treatment of neurological diseases. Ten years ago, we had very little to offer in the way of treatment. Now, researchers around the world are making a lot of progress in many areas. We hope weÃre on the threshold of a new era of being able to treat diseases that we were never able to treat before.î
EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL 3:15 PM, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 1997 Stroke Patients Improve Walking Ability With New Therapy Electrical muscle stimulation can improve walking ability for stroke patients a year or more after the stroke, according to a study released during the American Academy of NeurologyÃs 49th Annual Meeting April 12-19 in Boston, MA.
In a study of six patients at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Cleveland, OH, five out of six patients improved their motor control and gait pattern. In some patients, the improvements remained at least six months after the treatment ended. Treatment began one to four years after the stroke. Patients first received three months of conventional physical therapy. ìAfter the conventional therapy, the patients showed some recovery, but then they plateaued,î said study lead author Janis Daly, PhD, principal investigator at the VA Motion Studies Laboratory and chair of the physical therapy department at Walsh University in Canton, OH. ìThe patients then received six months of muscle conditioning exercises and gait training using the electrical stimulation, and additional volitional motor control was restored.î In this treatment, electrodes are implanted beneath the skin at the motor point of the muscles in the lower limb. Then the physical therapist created individualized walking patterns for each patient using a computer program specifying the correct intensity and timing of the stimulation for each muscle. ìPatients in the study improved in a number of ways, including fewer falls, resolved joint pain and improved walking endurance,î Daly said. ìThis is important because these patients recovered function even long after their strokes,î said neurologist Robert Ruff, MD, PhD, study co-author and professor of neurology at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. ìThis raises the possibility that functional neuromuscular stimulation may influence the process of cerebral reorganization after stroke, which facilitates motor relearning.î
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