Latest Developmental neuroscience Stories
The research group of Dr. Frédéric Charron, a researcher at the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), has made a discovery which could help treat spinal cord injuries and neurodegenerative diseases. This new finding has been published in the current issue of the prestigious scientific journal Neuron. Patricia T. Yam, Sébastien D. Langlois and Steves Morin, all at the IRCM, are listed as co-authors.The brain is composed of billions of interconnected neurons. To...
Researchers at Duke University Medical Center and the University of North Carolina have discovered in mice how a single disrupted gene can cause a form of severe mental retardation known as Angelman syndrome.In a study published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, they found that the gene, UBE3A, is needed so that neurons in the brain can form and adjust their connections to other neurons for storing sensory information. They also made a promising discovery: When the mice were deprived of...
Findings could explain relationship between PCB exposure, neurodevelopmental disorders in childrenIn three new studies "” including one appearing online today in the Public Library of Science - Biology (PLoS - Biology) "” UC Davis researchers provide compelling evidence of how low levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) alter the way brain cells develop.The findings could explain at last "” some 30 years after the toxic chemicals were banned in the United States "” the associations...
UC San Diego study in animals may pave way for novel approach to treating Alzheimer's diseaseMemory loss, cognitive impairment, brain cell degeneration and cell death were prevented or reversed in several animal models after treatment with a naturally occurring protein called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). The study by a University of California, San Diego-led team "“ published in the February 8, 2009 issue of Nature Medicine "“ shows that BDNF treatment can potentially provide...
Weill Cornell Medical College study could lead to better understanding of memory formation New research sheds light on a neural growth factor called proBDNF, finding that it is present and potentially active during the perinatal period when the brain's circuitry and memory-encoding regions are being refined. Led by Weill Cornell Medical College investigators with those at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), and reported in the Jan. 11...
BOSTON, Jan. 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Neurosilicon's novel Photoconductive Stimulation Device (PSD) was highlighted in the recent scientific publication by Hung and Colicos titled, Astrocytic Ca2+ Waves Guide CNS Growth Cones to Remote Regions of Neuronal Activity. The article appearing in the November 2008 issue of The Public Library of Science One journal focuses on the role of neuronal activity in mediating axonal guidance. It is known that the path axons follow is important in defining...
Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University's School of Dentistry (www.ohsu.edu/sod) have discovered that the nerve cells controlling heart rate and blood pressure synthesize a molecule known to be critically important for proper nervous system growth. The finding could someday play a significant role in the prevention of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and high blood pressure. According to the National Institutes of Health, SIDS is the leading cause of death in children between...
Scientists say the identification of a specific molecule could be key to understanding the cause of motor neuron disease (MND) and other neurodegenerative disorders.The study of the molecule, Wnt3, raises the hope of new treatments being developed.The London-based researchers said the molecule plays a key role in establishing connections between nerve cells and the muscles they control and that these connections become progressively weaker in MND patients.Without properly-formed connections -...
BioForce Nanosciences Holdings, Inc. (OTCBB: BFNH), a leader in systems integration at the micro- and nano-scales to create products for the life sciences, is pleased to announce that it has signed a scientific collaboration agreement with the University Pierre & Marie Curie (UPMC) and CNRS (Centre National de Recheche Scientifique) in Paris, France. Under the terms of this agreement, researchers from the laboratory of Dr. Fatiha Nothias will collaborate with BioForce to develop...
Scientists have reported new clues on how to treat spinal cord and brain injuries. In lab tests, researchers were successfully able to control regrowth of nerve cells in mice by turning off proteins responsible for cell growth. "This is the first time it has been possible to see such significant regeneration by manipulating single molecules," Zhigang He of Children's Hospital Boston, whose study appears in the journal Science, said in a statement.He and his colleagues foresee two...
