Copyright 2008 Medical News Today Latest Huntingtons Disease News From Medical News Today. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/sections/huntingtons_disease/ admin@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Admin) editors@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Editors) en-us Wed, 11 Jun 2008 04:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/110804.php On June 10, 2008 the scientific journal Vaccine published a paper by the Massachusetts based biotech company Cure Lab, Inc., demonstrating that a protein sequence important in neurodegenerative Huntington's disease can be safely used as a new generation of vaccine adjuvants. The major component of every vaccine is an antigen that elicits specific immunity to a particular virus, bacteria or even cancer cells. Tue, 10 Jun 2008 01:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/110493.php Raptor Pharmaceuticals Corp. ("Raptor" or the "Company") (OTC Bulletin Board: RPTP), announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") has granted orphan drug designation for cysteamine bitartrate ("cysteamine") for the treatment of Huntington's disease ("HD"). Cysteamine is currently approved by the FDA and European Medicines Agency ("EMEA") to treat nephropathic cystinosis ("cystinosis"), a rare lysosomal storage disease. Mon, 09 Jun 2008 01:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/110296.php Kevin Harrington, a Bay Area native suffering from the effects of Huntington's Disease, may have lost his mother, grandfather, great-grandfather and a great uncle to this tragic disease but he refuses to lose hope for a cure. So he organized the 2008 Mason-McDuffie Mortgage Invitational "Swinging to Cure Huntington's Disease" golf tournament to be held at the Blackhawk Country Club on Monday, June 16th, 2008. Thu, 05 Jun 2008 01:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/109913.php The Huntington Study Group has launched a Phase III clinical trial, funded by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (part of the National Institutes of Health [NIH]), to determine the effect of the maximum effective dosage of Coenzyme Q10 on cognitive function in individuals with Huntington's Disease (HD). They will also examine the long-term safety of CoQ10. Mon, 26 May 2008 06:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/108764.php Scientists have created a tool for mopping up the clumps of mutant protein that drive neurodegeneration in Huntington's disease. Emory University researchers engineered a virus to make an intracellular antibody or "intrabody" against huntingtin, the protein whose mutant forms poison the brain cells of people with Huntington's. Tue, 20 May 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/108016.php Scientists have developed the first genetically altered monkey model that replicates some symptoms observed in patients with Huntington's disease, according to a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health. Researchers are now able to better understand this complex, devastating and incurable genetic disorder affecting the brain. Tue, 01 Apr 2008 04:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/102338.php The simple act of running in an exercise wheel delays the onset of some symptoms of Huntington's disease in a mouse model of the fatal human disorder according to research published in the open-access journal BMC Neuroscience. These findings add insights into the pathogenesis of the disease and suggest possible preventive therapeutic targets. Huntington's disease affects up to one person in every 10 000, but clusters in families and certain populations. Mon, 31 Mar 2008 04:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/102207.php Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRT), a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing small molecule drugs to treat diseases of aging, announced that Sirtris Scientific Advisory Board Co-Chair Leonard P. Mon, 24 Mar 2008 04:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/101460.php Research funded by the Wellcome Trust has provided a number of promising new drug targets for Huntington's disease, a neurodegenerative disease. Scientists at the University of Cambridge have identified a number of candidate drugs to investigate further which encourage cells to "eat" the malformed proteins that lead to the disease. Thu, 13 Mar 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/100419.php Avicena Group, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: AVGO), a late stage biotechnology company that develops central nervous system therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases, announced that it met with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and will proceed with a Phase III trial of its lead drug candidate, HD-02, for the treatment of Huntington's disease, pending final analysis of completed animal toxicology studies. Tue, 05 Feb 2008 05:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/96253.php Hoping to piece together the intricate series of interactions that lead to Huntington's disease, Indiana University Bloomington scientists have determined the shape and structure of a binding site that may prove useful in combating the neurodegenerative disease. In the Feb. Thu, 10 Jan 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/93572.php Working with fruit flies, researchers have discovered a new mechanism by which the abnormal protein in Huntington's disease causes neurodegeneration. They have also manipulated the flies to successfully suppress that neurodegeneration, which they said suggests potential treatments to delay the onset and progression of the disease in humans. Juan Botas and colleagues published their findings in the January 10, 2008, issue of the journal Neuron, published by Cell Press. Thu, 10 Jan 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/93570.php The damaging effects of the mutated protein involved in Huntington's disease take place earlier in cell life than previously believed, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston in a report that appears in the current edition of the journal Neuron. "This research provides evidence of toxicity by huntingtin (the protein involved in the disease) early during the disease process," said Dr. Juan Botas, associate professor of molecular and human genetics at BCM. Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/89266.php Avicena Group, Inc. (OTCBB: AVGO), a late stage biotechnology company that develops central nervous system therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases, announced today that Drs. Steven Hersch and Diana Rosas presented results regarding the Company's novel Huntington's disease treatment candidate HD-02 at the 2007 World Congress on Huntington's Disease in Dresden, Germany. Drs. Tue, 30 Oct 2007 06:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/87130.php Research reported October 29 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) provides evidence that some molecular interactions on cell surfaces may have a "memory" that affects their future interactions. The report could lead to a re-examination of results from certain single-molecule research. Wed, 24 Oct 2007 05:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/86538.php CombinatoRx, Incorporated (NASDAQ: CRXX) announced that it has received the Marjorie Guthrie Leadership Award from the Huntington's Disease Society of America (HDSA) during their 40th Anniversary Guthrie Awards Dinner in New York City to benefit the Woody and Marjorie Guthrie Research fund. Alexis Borisy, President and CEO of CombinatoRx was present to accept the award. Fri, 19 Oct 2007 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/86008.php MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegererative Disease (MIND) researchers have identified a compound that may lead to a treatment that could protect against the effects of Huntington's Disease (HD). Their report, which will appear in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, describes how a small molecule called C2-8 appears to delay the loss of motor control and reduce neurological damage in a mouse model of the disorder. The study is receiving early online release. Tue, 09 Oct 2007 01:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/84952.php MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegererative Disorders (MIND) researchers have identified a compound that may lead to a treatment that could protect against the effects of Huntington's Disease (HD). Their report, which will appear in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, describes how a small molecule called C2-8 appears to delay the loss of motor control and reduce neurological damage in a mouse model of the disorder. The study is receiving early online release. Thu, 27 Sep 2007 12:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/83720.php Paying close attention to how a canary learns a new song has helped scientists open a new avenue of research against Huntington's disease -- a fatal disorder for which there is currently no cure or even a treatment to slow the disease. In a paper published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center have shown how stem-cell therapy might someday be used to treat the disease. Thu, 27 Sep 2007 10:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/83715.php For years researchers in neurology have believed that people with Huntington's disease have more children than the general population because of behavioral changes associated with the disease that lead to sexual promiscuity. In a new Tufts University study, three biologists have challenged that notion by suggesting that people with Huntington's have more children because they are healthier -- not more promiscuous -- during their peak reproductive years. Sun, 26 Aug 2007 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/80460.php A major breakthrough in the understanding and potential treatment of Huntington's disease has been made by scientists at the University of Leeds. Researchers in the University's Faculty of Biological Sciences have discovered that one of the body's naturally occurring proteins is preventing 57 genes from operating normally in the brains of Huntington's sufferers. Wed, 22 Aug 2007 09:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/80160.php McMaster University researchers have first insight into how Huntington's disease (HD) is triggered. The research is published online in the British Journal, Human Molecular Genetics. "These are exciting results by the McMaster team," said Dr. Rémi Quirion, Scientific Director at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Institute of Neuroscience, Mental Health and Addiction. Fri, 03 Aug 2007 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/78587.php Medtronic, Inc., (NYSE: MDT) and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALNY), a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced that the companies are advancing their collaboration initiated in February, 2005, following positive pre-clinical data generated under the initial joint technology development phase of the program. Under the terms of the agreement, Alnylam and Medtronic will focus on developing a drug-device combination for the treatment of Huntington's disease. Thu, 02 Aug 2007 06:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/78402.php An international team of researchers has published a benchmark study showing that gene expression in several animal models of Huntington's Disease (HD) closely resembles that of human HD patients. The results, published August 1, 2007, in the journal Human Molecular Genetics, validate the applicability of using animal models to study human disease and will have important consequences for the pertinence of these models in preclinical drug testing. Tue, 31 Jul 2007 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/78288.php Medivation, Inc. (Nasdaq: MDVN) today announced treatment of the first patient in its Phase 2 trial of Dimebon(TM) to treat Huntington's disease. Medivation has expanded patient enrollment in the trial by 20 percent -- to 90 patients -- in order to enhance the ability to detect differences between Dimebon and placebo.