Copyright 2008 Medical News Today Latest Neurology / Neuroscience News From Medical News Today. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/sections/neurology/ admin@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Admin) editors@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Editors) en-us Wed, 09 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114281.php Scientific evidence has long suggested that moderate drinking offers some protection against heart disease, certain types of stroke and some forms of cancer. But new research shows that stopping drinking - including at moderate levels - may lead to health problems including depression and a reduced capacity of the brain to produce new neurons, a process called neurogenesis. Wed, 09 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114270.php 1. Dopamine Transporter Efflux in ADHD Michelle S. Mazei-Robison, Erica Bowton, Marion Holy, Martin Schmudermaier, Michael Freissmuth, Harald H. Sitte, Aurelio Galli, and Randy D. Blakely Elevated dopamine efflux through the dopamine transporter may underlie some forms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to Mazei-Robison et al. Tue, 08 Jul 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114214.php Japanese encephalitis (JE), commonly known as brain fever, is one of the prevalent mosquito-borne encephalitis in India and entire South East (SE) Asia. Besides resulting in thousand fatalities each year, JE virus (JEV) infection causes prominent neurological sequelae in approximately one-third of the survivors. Tue, 08 Jul 2008 01:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114164.php A combination drug taken within an hour after the start of a migraine is effective in relieving symptoms, according to research published in the July 8, 2008, issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Tue, 08 Jul 2008 01:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114146.php A study in the July 1 issue of the journal Sleep provides visual evidence of the severe structural damage that occurs in numerous regions of the brain in people with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Results show that OSA patients have extensive alterations in "white matter," nerve tissue in the brain containing fibers that are insulated with myelin - a white, fatty sheath. Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114169.php In this article, published in the journal Cell Death and Differentiation, we describe for the first time how the neonatal administration of glucocorticoids during a selective window of vulnerability produces brain degeneration and permanent neuropathology in the cerebellum of the developing rodent brain. Mon, 07 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114067.php Funding for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a severe muscle wasting disease that affects boys and young men, was discussed in Parliament this week. Nigel Evans, MP for Ribble Valley, raised the issue of 'ring-fenced' funding for research into treatments and a cure for Dunchenne Muscular Dystrophy and called for more localised specialist care for boys and young men living with the condition. Mon, 07 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114060.php The Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association has just launched a pioneering tool for health care commissioners in Westminster. It has already been cited as a very important document for patient care and aims to help achieve Lord Darzi's vision of quality care for people living with the complex, and often rapidly progressive neurological condition, MND. Sun, 06 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114050.php Researchers from Harvard Medical School and Brandeis University have successfully completed a full-genome RNAi screen in neurons, showing what types of genes are necessary for brain development. Details of the screen and its novel methodology are published July 4th in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics. Sat, 05 Jul 2008 09:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113988.php A woman in southern Ontario is one of the first cases in Canada of a rare neurological syndrome in which a person starts speaking with a different accent, McMaster University researchers report in the July issue of the Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences. The puzzling medical phenomenon known as foreign-accent syndrome (FAS) arises from neurological damage, and results in vocal distortions that typically sound like the speaker has a new, "foreign" accent. Sat, 05 Jul 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113921.php Renowned stroke researcher Dr. Vladimir Hachinski has been named to the Order of Canada, the country's highest honor, for his lifetime contributions in the field of neurology. Hachinski is a "Distinguished University Professor" at The University of Western Ontario in the Department of Clinical Neurological Sciences at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. Sat, 05 Jul 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113919.php Letting your imagination run away with you may actually influence how you see the world. New research from Vanderbilt University has found that mental imagery--what we see with the "mind's eye"--directly impacts our visual perception. The research was published online June 26 by the journal Current Biology. Fri, 04 Jul 2008 01:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113903.php The John Wayne Cancer Institute at Saint John's Health Center announced that it has received a grant from the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment to study pituitary hormonal failure (hypopituitarism) in retired football players. Fri, 04 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113920.php New research from Italy that is based on studies in mice found that Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) may be linked to an imbalance in the brain signalling chemical serontonin that regulates heartbeat and breathing, and if shown to be true of humans could point to a way to identify babies at risk of SIDS. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113725.php Computer games offer an exciting and engaging way of helping older people with dementia keep their brain active and learn new skills. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 05:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113848.php Interventional Spine, Inc. announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the Company's investigational device exemption (IDE) application for its PercuDyn System for the treatment of degenerative disc disease (DDD). This approval is conditional upon the Company providing some additional information to the FDA. Walter A. Cuevas, Interventional Spine's CEO, observed, "We are pleased by FDA's action. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 04:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113830.php Oncolin Therapeutics, Inc., (OTCBB:OCOL) announces that a team of scientists supported by an Oncolin Sponsored Research Agreement (SRA) and lead by Professor Waldemar Priebe from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center (UTMDACC) has discovered a new inhibitor of glycolysis, which is superior to the other known inhibitors. These results were confirmed both in vitro as well as in vivo brain tumor models. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113810.php New research findings published online in The FASEB Journal provide more evidence that if we get smart about what we eat, our intelligence can improve. According to MIT scientists, dietary nutrients found in a wide range of foods from infant formula to eggs increase brain synapses and improve cognitive abilities. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113763.php Intuition, or tacit knowledge, is difficult to measure, so it is often denigrated. A new dissertation in education research from Linkoping University in Sweden shows that there is a neurobiological explanation for how experience-based knowledge is created. "Can't 'splain sump'n to somebody who doesn't understand it"; "my legs think faster than I do" (Swedish alpine skiing champion Ingemar Stenmark). "Skate where the puck´s going, not where it´s been" (Wayne Gretsky). Thu, 03 Jul 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113758.php Dr. Douglas Anderson was among the earliest neurosurgeons in the nation to treat Parkinson's disease with a treatment called deep brain stimulation. Dr. Anderson has treated approximately 50 Parkinson's patients with the therapy, known as DBS. His first patient was a middle-aged woman who used a wheelchair due to her Parkinson's. Dr. Anderson implanted an electrode that delivered mild electrical signals deep in her brain. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113747.php Researchers from the University of Adelaide, Australia, have launched the largest study of its kind in the world in a bid to better understand the possible genetic causes of cerebral palsy. The study requiring cheek swabs of mothers and their children aims to gather genetic samples from 10,000 people right across Australia. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113744.php Compact, bedside brain-activity monitors detected most seizures in at-risk infants, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis showed. That means the compact units could assist clinicians in monitoring for electrical seizures until confirmation with conventional EEG (electroencephalography), the researchers assert in an article published in the June issue of Pediatrics. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113743.php Women over age 90 are significantly more likely to have dementia compared to men in their 90s, according to a study published in the July 2, 2008, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Research shows that dementia risk for both men and women increases from age 65 to 85, but this most recent study is one of few that looks at people over age 90. Wed, 02 Jul 2008 06:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113625.php Proteins widely believed to protect against aging can actually cause oxidative damage in mammalian brain cells, according to a new report in the July Cell Metabolism, a publication of Cell Press. The findings suggest that the proteins can have both proaging and protective functions, depending on the circumstances, the researchers said. " Sirtuins are very important proteins," said Valter Longo of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. Wed, 02 Jul 2008 06:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113624.php 1. Regenerative Axon Growth in Normal Mice Oswald Steward, Binhai Zheng, Marc Tessier-Lavigne, Maura Hofstadter, Kelli Sharp, and Kelly Matsudaira Yee The corticospinal tract of mice exhibits some regenerative growth without any therapeutic manipulation, according to Steward et al. After complete transection of the dorsal column, a few axons appeared to grow past the lesion via the ventral column.