Adult Cell Expansion Without Stem Cells? Nov 17, 2009
g. brain neurons, muscle cells, macrophages for the immune system, etc. they cease to proliferate and normally remain "blocked" in this state until they die. (Science Daily)
Ecstasy harms brain on first use, study finds Nov 17, 2009
There was no indication that the drug affected the users' mood or had an effect on serotonin-producing neurons. Previous research has shown that long-term or heavy ecstasy use can damage serotonin-dependent neurons and cause depression, anxiety, confusion, difficulty sleeping and decrease in memory. (Yahoo News -- Substance Use)
Scientists Guide Immune Cells With Light and Microparticles Nov 17, 2009
"Understanding how cells move in response to chemical stimuli can help us better understand how a single egg develops into a complex organism or how brain cells grow into a network of neurons in a growing embryo, or how cancer cells spread through the body," Kress said. "This technique could give biologists insight into the ways many different types of cells respond to environmental stimuli in a wide range of situations.". (Science Daily)
Many years later, a scourge returns Nov 17, 2009
After infecting a body and incubating for several days in gastrointestinal cells, the poliovirus spreads along key nerve fiber pathways, replicating in and destroying motor neurons in the spinal cord and brain stem ... In the worst cases, the virus destroyed motor neurons that control breathing ... Motor neurons that survived the initial infection sprouted new and additional fibers, extending into damaged areas to restore at least limited muscle function. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
New marriage of science and fiction Nov 15, 2009
Photons hit our retinas; proteins warp and ions flow; neurons fire in the back of the skull; and we think we re seeing. I m drawn to places where this constructedness of things becomes perceptible. (Boston Globe)
Quick Fixes to Add Years to Your Life! Nov 15, 2009
During sleep, the neurons in the brain become less active and undergo repair ... Because learning new stuff re-wires your neurons and improves brain performance at any age. (CBS News)
Dad to baby: Happy 1st birthday, world traveler Nov 14, 2009
And, the brief crisis of an ear infection forced this Dad to shake some rust off the neurons to use Spanish I thought was forgotten sometime in the 1980s. Everyone is always shocked that we've taken the little guy so many places. (MSNBC -- Travel)
Elsevier pilots new research tool 'Reflect' in its premier life science journal Cell Nov 14, 2009
Cell Press primary research journals include the flagship journal Cell, as well as Neuron, Immunity, Molecular Cell, Developmental Cell, Cancer Cell, Current Biology, Structure, Chemistry gy, Cell Metabolism, Cell Host be, Cell Stem Cell, and, new to Cell Press, Biophysical Journal, and The American Journal of Human Genetics. Cell Press also publishes the Trends family of reviews journals, including Trends in Cell Biology, Trends in Neurosciences, and Trends in Cognitive Sciences. (EurekAlert! -- Business News)
Humans still evolving as our brains shrink Nov 14, 2009
7 pounds, the human brain packs a whopping 100 billion neurons. Every minute, about three soda cans' worth of blood flow through the brain. (MSNBC -- Environment)
To Make Memories, New Neurons Must Erase Older Ones Nov 14, 2009
13, 2009) Short-term memory may depend in a surprising way on the ability of newly formed neurons to erase older connections. That's the conclusion of a report in the November 13th issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication, that provides some of the first evidence in mice and rats that new neurons sprouted in the hippocampus cause the decay of short-term fear memories in that brain region, without an overall memory loss ... They propose that the birth of new neurons promotes the... (Science Daily)
Scientists Solve Structure Of NMDA Receptor Unit That Could Be Drug Target For Neurological Diseases Nov 14, 2009
22, 2005) Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified a biochemical switch that affects how neurons fire in a part of the brain associated with learning, findings that may aid in. (Sep. (Science Daily)
'Language gene' effects explored Nov 14, 2009
Simon Fisher, a molecular neuroscientist at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics called the results "intriguing", and explained that FOXP2 itself is expressed to varying degrees in different types of neurons in the brain ... "While a few of the genes have been linked to aspects of central nervous system development, we are still some way off from describing how differences in FOXP2 alter the properties and behaviour of neurons in the living brain.". (BBC News -- Science)
Preventing Spinal Cord Damage Using A Vitamin B3 Precursor Nov 13, 2009
Dr. Sauve has patented and pioneered a way to produce compounds that regulate NAD+ and specializes in making an array of NAD derivatives to determine which one best augments NAD+ levels in neurons. "If this study is successful in animal testing, we hope to study the compound clinically," says Dr. Jaffrey. (Science Daily)
Mouse Study Sheds Light On Hearing Loss In Older Adults Nov 13, 2009
The study has identified a gene that is essential to age-related hearing loss, a condition marked by deaths of sensory hair cells and spiral ganglion neurons in the inner ear ... In mice, Prolla and the study's first author, Shinichi Someya, a postdoctoral researcher at UW-Madison, found that the suicide program was operating in hair cells and spiral ganglion neurons, and that the suicide program relied on activity in a suicide gene called bak ... "We wanted to know how oxidative stress leads to... (Science Daily)
Stem cell progress on Parkinson's Nov 13, 2009
He said: "Stem cells could be potentially useful for the treatment of Parkinson's disease - but it's a very difficult problem to generate large numbers of dopamine-producing neurons, which are the cells we need. "I am convinced that stem cell technology can become, in the future, a cure for conditions leading to brain injury - but I think we have a long way to go. " Self-repair His own research in Sweden, however, offered the tantalising prospect of a brain which - with some encouragement -... (Yahoo News -- Parkinson's Disease)
Noise 'worse for dyslexic pupils' Nov 13, 2009
Pupils with poor reading skills were also more likely to struggle to retain information when there was background noise, researchers reported in Neuron ... The researchers set about testing the theory by getting children to watch a video with background noise, the journal Neuron reported. (BBC News -- Health)
Scientists Decipher The Formation Of Lasting Memories Nov 12, 2009
Much is known about the first steps of this process, those that lead to memories lasting a few hours, whereby altered signalling between neurons causes a series of chemical changes in the connections between nerve fibers, called synapses. However, less is understood about how the chemical changes in the synapses are converted into lasting memories stored in the cerebral cortex. (Science Daily)
Mouse gene suppresses Alzheimer's plaques and tangles Nov 12, 2009
The study was published in the journal Neuron on November 12. These findings could lead to new treatments for Alzheimer's disease. (EurekAlert!)
New Culprits in Chronic Pain Nov 12, 2009
Chronic pain that persists after an injury heals is often caused by overly excited pain-sensing neurons that signal without an external stimulus. Traditional pain drugs that target neural cells directly rarely quiet these abnormal pain messages because the neurons heightened sensitivity is driven by a different type of cell called glia ... Such cells monitor the activity of neurons and attempt to keep them healthy and functioning efficiently. (Scientific American)
Stem Cells Restore Cognitive Abilities Impaired By Brain Tumor Treatment Nov 11, 2009
They migrated to a brain region known to support the growth of neurons, scientists observed, and developed into new brain cells. Work is under way to determine how the transplanted stem cells improved cognition: Did they integrate into healthy tissue or did they help repair and support existing brain cells. (Science Daily)
Drug Candidate For Treating Spinal Muscular Atrophy Identified Nov 10, 2009
SMA is caused by mutations in a gene called Survival of Motor Neuron 1 (SMN1), resulting in a decrease in the levels of SMN protein in the motor neurons of the spinal cord -- the cells that control muscle activity. Without the protein, these neurons degenerate, and infants born with the mutations progressively lose the ability to move, swallow, and breathe ... The team is excited about having such a promising therapeutic candidate for SMA treatment and plans to next focus on two key issues:... (Science Daily)
Diamyd Technology Advances With US $ 1.84 Million Grant Nov 10, 2009
"With the NTDDS technology, pain killers are delivered to those neurons transmitting pain. This unique targeted delivery of drugs can be done with almost any product," says Elisabeth Lindner, CEO of Diamyd Medical ... Pain is transmitted through a series of neurons connecting to the brain ... Pain transmission between neurons can be inhibited by delivery of drugs directly to the neurons. (Primezone Releases)
Toxic Reactions to Aspartame Nov 10, 2009
When msg and aspartate are combined, the potential exists for greater destruction of hypothalamic neurons that link the nervous system to the endocrine system through the pituitary gland(1). Aspartame is converted to aspartate during digestion. (Suite101.com)
Developmental delay could stem from nicotinic receptor deletion Nov 9, 2009
"It is a gene that mediates the response to nicotine via a receptor whose normal ligand is acetylcholine." The gene encodes a protein called an ion channel, which allows ions to flow in and out of neurons in the brain. Defects in ion channels have previously been associated with forms of epilepsy or seizure disorder. (EurekAlert!)
It's doesn't have to be a SAD season Nov 9, 2009
Where the two optic nerves meet, that has a direct neuron connection to the section of the brain that controls your circadian cycles and melatonin. That s the amount we understand. (Longview Daily News, WA)
New Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) Clinic Offers Noninvasive Treatment For Major Depression Nov 8, 2009
The repeated short bursts of magnetic energy introduced through the scalp excite neurons in the brain. Depression affects at least 14 million American adults each year. (Science Daily)
The Skeleton: Size Matters; New Role For Master Patterning Genes In Defining Number Of Vertebrae In Spine Nov 8, 2009
7, 2009) Vertebrates have in common a skeleton made of segments, the vertebrae. During development of the embryo, each segment is added in a time dependent manner, from the head-end to the tail-end: the first segments to be added become the vertebrae of the neck, later segments become the vertebrae with ribs and the last ones the vertebra located in the tail (in the case of a mouse, for example). (Science Daily)
Gene Therapy for Fatal Brain Disorder 'Just the Beginning' Nov 7, 2009
The most serious form of the disease destroys the myelin sheath of the brain's neurons and generally affects boys between the ages of 4 and 10. They suffer a steady decline that leads to permanent disability and death within two to five years of diagnosis. (MEDLINEplus)
2 children suffering from adrenoleukodystrophy saved thanks to the ELA Association Nov 6, 2009
HIV represents the only virus able to introduce a therapeutic gene into the nucleus of non-dividing cells, like stem cells and neurons, in order to allow a long-term effect of this gene. Angel, one of the children treated by gene therapy, meet his idol, Zinedine Zidane, the emblematic ambassador of the ELA Association. (EurekAlert!)
Olive Oil May Prevent Alzheimer's D... Nov 6, 2009
Thus altered, the oligomers are less binding and toxic to neurons (nerve cells) and are more likely to be cleaned up by the body's immune system. Another 2009 study demonstrates that the same compound, oleocanthal, can similarly change the structure of the deformed tau proteins that make up neurofibrillary tangles. (Suite101.com)
Neural Stem Cells In Mice Affected By Gene Associated With Longevity Nov 6, 2009
5, 2009) A gene associated with longevity in roundworms and humans has been shown to affect the function of stem cells that generate new neurons in the adult brain, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine ... To meet these demands, your brain maintains two small caches of neural stem cells, which can both self-renew and give rise to neurons and other cells known as oligodendrocytes and astrocytes ... As mice and other organisms age, the pool of neural stem cells in... (Science Daily)
Survival Of The Healthiest: Selective Eradication Of Malignant Cells Nov 6, 2009
g. stroke or inflammation), efficiently eradicate MCF-7 and MDA231 breast cancer cells without impairing normal proliferating cells, such as human epithelial cells (MCF-10A), nor normal non-proliferating cells, such as neurons and cardiomyocytes. Human cancers depending on a constitutive activity of externally regulated kinase (ERK) were examined. (Science Daily)
Literary Arabic Is Expressed In Brain Of Arabic Speakers As A Second Language Nov 5, 2009
5, 2009) Literary Arabic is expressed in the brain of an Arabic speaker as a second language and not as a mother tongue. This has been shown in a new study by Dr. Raphiq Ibrahim of the Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center for the Study of Learning Disabilities at the University of Haifa's Department of Learning Disabilities. (Science Daily)
Spinal Cord Regeneration: Scar-degrading Enzyme Nov 5, 2009
Animals treated with thermostabilized chABC in combination with sustained delivery of neurotrophin-3 -- a protein growth factor that helps to support the survival and differentiation of neurons -- showed significant improvement in locomotor function and enhanced growth of sensory axons and sprouting of fibers for the neurotransmitter serotonin ... 26, 2009) Researchers have found an essential factor for regenerating neurons in the central nervous system, which normally can't regenerate. (Science Daily)
Genes And Environment May Interact To Influence Risk For Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Nov 4, 2009
The genotype may influence the way the brain processes the neurotransmitter serotonin, affecting an individual's anxiety levels and changing the way neurons react to fearful stimuli, they note. "It was only in the group of subjects who could be characterized as having had the highest rates of trauma exposure (i.e., in both childhood and adulthood) that an impact of 5-HTTLPR could be detected," the authors conclude. (Science Daily)
Clinical Tests Begin On Medication To Correct Fragile X Defect Nov 4, 2009
4, 2009) NIH-supported scientists at Seaside Therapeutics in Cambridge, Mass. are beginning a clinical trial of a potential medication designed to correct a central neurochemical defect underlying Fragile X syndrome, the most common inherited cause of intellectual disability. (Science Daily)
Heart Healthy Walnuts Nov 4, 2009
The neurons of the brain need the vital Omega-3 fatty acids for proper functioning. Decreased levels of Omega-3's have been linked in various studies to depression, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), behavioral problems, and other conditions. (Suite101.com)
Does Vitamin D Improve Brain Function? Nov 3, 2009
In addition, animal and laboratory studies suggest vitamin D protects neurons and reduces inflammation. Two new European studies looking at vitamin D and cognitive function have taken us one step further. (Scientific American)
Experts put their heads together Nov 2, 2009
"This work may eventually make it possible to help people with longtime, established spinal-cord injuries," said Dr. Mark Tuszynski, a UCSD professor of neurosciences and co-author of a new paper describing the research in the journal Neuron ... The reasons for success are myriad and as intertwined as neurons themselves ... "There are more seminars and meetings within one mile of my building than I can possibly take advantage of," said Elisabeth Walcott, who studies how neurons function in... (San Diego Union-Tribune)
Does God Exist...Prove it! Nov 1, 2009
Thomas Aquinas wrote on Oct 31, 2009 1:11 PM:" Another note to untrained materialists: Ideas as neurons does not work. Consider Idea(circle) corresponds in your head to neuron_arrangement(222). What MATERIALLY connects Idea(circle) to neuron_arrangement(222)? Answer: Nothing. The neuron arrangement corresponding to Idea(circle) is definitely NOT a circle. Thus, no material connection, and thus, the idea circle is a NON-MATERIAL existent, just like the square root of two. Yes, there ARE... (New Iberia, LA)
This is your brain on fatty acids Oct 31, 2009
The Hopkins team, reporting Oct. 29 in Neuron, reveals how palmitate, a fatty acid, marks certain brain proteins NMDA receptors that need to be activated for long-term memory and learning to take place ... Scientists have known that a brain signaling chemical called glutamate normally activates NMDA receptors, allowing two neurons to communicate with one another ... The discovery emerged from work with live neurons in a dish, to which the scientists first fed radioactive palmitate, then... (EurekAlert!)
Epilepsy Drugs May Treat Alzheimer's Oct 31, 2009
Calcium-signaling pathways play an important role in the survival of nerve cells (neurons) in the brain ... Researchers found neurons showed an increase in viability after treatment with the calcium channel blockers over both the long term and short term. (CBS News)
Sight gone, but not necessarily lost? Oct 31, 2009
"It suggests that neurons in the retina can survive for an extended period of time even though they have been functionally silenced.". Three genes -- named Fz4, Ndp and Lrp5 -- previously were suspected to be involved in blood vessel development in the human retina. (EurekAlert!)
Caltech researchers show efficacy of gene therapy in mouse models of Huntington's disease Oct 31, 2009
But the other intrabodycalled Happ1was an unqualified success, restoring motor and cognitive function to the mice, and reducing neuron loss as well as toxic protein accumulation. And in one model, it increased both body weight and life span. (EurekAlert!)
Pelosi's biggest one yet! 1,990 pages... Oct 30, 2009
Pelosi vs. the "Nazi Pelosi" bullhorn people - Glenn Thrush - POLITICO.com. Pelosi vs. the "Nazi Pelosi" bullhorn people. (The Drudge Report)
Ecstasy harms brain on first use, study finds Oct 30, 2009
There was no indication that the drug affected the users' mood or had an effect on serotonin-producing neurons. Previous research has shown that long-term or heavy ecstasy use can damage serotonin-dependent neurons and cause depression, anxiety, confusion, difficulty sleeping and decrease in memory. (Yahoo News -- Substance Use)
Widely used cholesterol-lowering drug may prevent progression Oct 30, 2009
Simvastatin enters into the brain and blocks the activity of the p21Ras protein and other associated toxic molecules, and goes on to protect the neurons, normalize neurotransmitter levels, and improves the motor functions in the mice with Parkinson's. "Understanding how the disease works is important to developing effective drugs that protect the brain and stop the progression of Parkinson's," said Pahan. (EurekAlert!)
Epilepsy Drugs Could Treat Alzheimer's And Parkinson's Oct 30, 2009
The study, published in BioMed Central's open access journal Molecular Neurodegeneration, found that neurons in the brain were protected after treatment with T-type calcium-channel blockers, which are commonly used to treat epilepsy ... Calcium signaling pathways play a vital role in the survival of neurons in the brain ... It therefore raises the possibility that chemicals able to modulate calcium homeostasis could protect neurons. (Science Daily)
What Does a Smart Brain Look Like?: Inner Views Show How We Think Oct 30, 2009
Using positron-emission tomography (PET), which produces images of metabolism in the brain by detecting the amount of low-level radioactive glucose used by neurons as they fire, we traced the brain s energy use while a small sample of volunteers solved nonverbal abstract reasoning problems on a test called the Raven s Advanced Progressive Matrices. 1. (Scientific American)
Circadian Surprise: Mechanism Of Temperature Synchronization In Drosophila Oct 30, 2009
The research, published by Cell Press in the October 29th issue of the journal Neuron, reveals some surprising fundamental differences between how light-dark and temperature cycles synchronize the brain clock of the fruit fly, Drosophila ... This suggested that in contrast to light-dark synchronization, the brain circadian clock neurons require information from peripheral tissues for temperature synchronization. (Science Daily)
Regeneration After Chronic Spinal Cord Injury Oct 29, 2009
Reporting in the October 29 issue of the Cell Press journal Neuron, the UC San Diego team demonstrated successful regeneration of adult spinal cord axons into, and then beyond, an injury site in the cervical spinal cord, the middle region of the neck ... These include scar formation at the injury site, a partial deficiency in the intrinsic growth capacity of adult neurons, the presence of inhibitors to growth, and, sometimes, extensive inflammation ... Chronically injured neurons show a loss of... (Science Daily)
Neuroscience: Shooting pain Oct 29, 2009
The experience of pain typically starts in receptors near the skin called nociceptors that transmit information through axon fibres to neurons in the spine, then to the brain. Until the 1990s, pain research focused mostly on nociceptors as well as neurons near the spinal cord. (Scientific American)
Researchers find brain cell transplants help repair neural damage Oct 29, 2009
29, 2009) A Swiss research team has found that using an animal's own brain cells (autologous transplant) to replace degenerated neurons in select brain areas of donor primates with simulated but asymptomatic Parkinson's disease and previously in a motor cortex lesion model, provides a degree of brain protection and may be useful in repairing brain lesions and restoring function ... While the use of neural grafts to restore function after lesions or degeneration of the central nervous system... (EurekAlert!)
Statins Show Dramatic Drug And Cell Dependent Effects In The Brain Oct 29, 2009
John Albers and colleagues compared the effects of two commercially used statins, simvastatin and pravastatin, on two different types of brain cells, neurons and astrocytes (support cells that help repair damage) ... Another interesting difference was that while both statins decreased expression of the Tau protein -associated with Alzheimer's disease -- in astrocytes, they increased Tau expression in neurons; pravastatin also increased the expression of another Alzheimer's hallmark, amyloid... (Science Daily)
Junk food junkies Oct 29, 2009
nerve cell The body of a neuron without its axon and dendrites. chemical A substance with a distinct molecular composition that is produced by or used in a chemical process. (Science News for Kids)
The Administration's Flu Fear-Mongering Oct 28, 2009
eIBD Investor's Business Daily Digital Edition. Access recent eIBD issues easily. (Investors Business Daily)
New 'Schizophrenia Gene' Prompts Researchers To Test Potential Drug Target Oct 28, 2009
In a report on the work published in the Sept. 24 issue of the journal Neuron, the scientists are careful to say that the genes in question are not the cause of schizophrenia or any other brain/mind disorder in humans ... The newfound gene, dubbed KIAA1212, serves as a bridge linking two schizophrenia genes: DISC1 and AKT. Suspecting KIAA1212 as one of many potential binding partners interacting with DISC1, whose name is an acronym for "Disrupted-in-Schizophrenia," the researchers genetically... (Science Daily)
Genetics and genomics of alcohol consumption Oct 28, 2009
A literature-based, functional analysis of the interactions of the products of these candidate genes defined pathways linked to presynaptic GABA release, activation of dopamine neurons, and postsynaptic GABA receptor trafficking, in brain regions including the hypothalamus, ventral tegmentum and amygdala. The analysis also implicated energy metabolism and caloric intake control as potential influences on alcohol consumption by the recombinant inbred rats. (BioMed Central)
Neurologists Investigate Possible New Underlying Cause Of Multiple Sclerosis Oct 28, 2009
This narrowing restricts the normal outflow of blood from the brain, causing alterations in the blood flow patterns within the brain that eventually causes injury to brain tissue and degeneration of neurons ... The method identified anomalies in the venous blood flow associated with strictures, malformed valves and peculiar webs within the large veins of the neck and brain" Weinstock-Guttman directs the Baird Multiple Sclerosis Center at the Jacobs Neurological Institute (JNI), UB's Department... (Science Daily)
Exercising the Mind Could Hold Off Dementia Oct 27, 2009
The findings back up the idea of "cognitive reserve," Hall noted, which is the theory that education and brain exercise build extra capacity into the brain so it can better handle the damage to neurons caused by Alzheimer's disease. But once that damage reaches a certain point, a person will develop dementia. (MEDLINEplus)
Sleep Deprivation Cognitive Impairment Reversed Oct 27, 2009
"Our work has identified a treatment in mice that can reverse the cognitive impact of sleep deprivation. Further, our work identifies specific molecular changes in neurons caused by sleep deprivation, and future work on this target protein promises to reveal novel therapeutic approaches to treat the cognitive deficits that accompany sleep disturbances seen in sleep apnea, Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia.". The study was supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Human Frontier... (Science Daily)
UC Davis researchers identify dominant chemical that attracts mosquitoes to humans Oct 27, 2009
"The antennae of the Culex quinquefasciatus are highly developed to detect even extremely low concentrations of nonanal." Mosquitoes detect smells with the olfactory receptor neurons of their antennae ... "We then determined the specificity and sensitivity of the olfactory receptor neurons to the isolated compounds on the antennae of the mosquitoes," Syed said. (EurekAlert!)
Could Some Forms Of Mental Retardation Be Treated With Drugs? Oct 26, 2009
Abnormalities in the number and shape of dendritic spines, the protrusions that allow communication between brain neurons, have been observed in patients with mental retardation. Previous research led by Baoji Xu, PhD, associate professor in the department of pharmacology, has shown that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a growth factor synthesized in dendrites, regulates the number and shape of dendritic spines required for spatial learning and memory. (Science Daily)
Could Drugs For Mood Disorders, Pain And Epilepsy Cause Psychiatric Disorders Later In Life? Oct 26, 2009
GUMC neuroscientists and others have previously shown that neurons die after these drugs are administered to immature preclinical animal models. They say the regions of the brain where this drug-induced cell death takes place are important in the regulation of mood, cognition, and movement. (Science Daily)
Stem cell progress on Parkinson's Oct 26, 2009
He said: "Stem cells could be potentially useful for the treatment of Parkinson's disease - but it's a very difficult problem to generate large numbers of dopamine-producing neurons, which are the cells we need. "I am convinced that stem cell technology can become, in the future, a cure for conditions leading to brain injury - but I think we have a long way to go. " Self-repair His own research in Sweden, however, offered the tantalising prospect of a brain which - with some encouragement -... (Yahoo News -- Parkinson's Disease)
