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New therapy improves treatment for multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease of the central nervous system that affects millions worldwide, can cause debilitating symptoms for those who suffer from it. Though treatments exist, researchers are still searching for therapies that could more effectively treat the disease, or even prevent it altogether. Researchers at the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (PME) at […]
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College of Medicine researcher makes novel discoveries in preventing epileptic seizures
A team of researchers from the Florida State University College of Medicine has found that an amino acid produced by the brain could play a crucial role in preventing a type of epileptic seizure. Temporal lobe epileptic seizures are debilitating and can cause lasting damage in patients, including neuronal death and loss of neuron function. […]
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Enzyme SSH1 Impairs The Disposal Of Accumulating Cellular “Garbage,” Leading To Brain Cell Death
In a healthy brain, the multistep waste clearance process known as autophagy routinely removes and degrades damaged cell components – including malformed proteins like tau and toxic mitochondria. This cellular debris would otherwise pile up like uncollected trash to drive the death of brain cells (neurons), ultimately destroying cognitive abilities like thinking, remembering and reasoning […]
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New Perspectives to Treat Neuropsychiatric Diseases
Researchers at the Institute of Biology, Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), Budapest, Hungary, studied the major types of neurons of the prefrontal cortex of the brain in an international collaboration. The research team has identified molecular differences in neurons that may support drug development for the treatment of psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia or depression.
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New method to dampen nerve signals
What do the toxins from arrow-poison frogs, puffer fish and scorpions have in common with drugs against epilepsy? The answer is that they all affect the ability of nerves to transmit electrical impulses by affecting the ion channels in nerves. Ion channels are small openings in the cell membrane of nerves that open and close […]
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Nerve cell activity shows how confident we are
You are sitting in a café and want to enjoy a piece of cake with your cappuccino. The Black Forest gateau is just too rich for you and is therefore quickly eliminated. Choosing between the carrot cake and the rhubarb crumble is much trickier: The warm weather favors the refreshingly fruity cake. Carrot cake, however, […]
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Scientists Report Role for Dopamine and Serotonin in Human Perception and Decision-making
Scientists at Wake Forest School of Medicine have recorded real time changes in dopamine and serotonin levels in the human brain that are involved with perception and decision-making. These same neurochemicals also are critical to movement disorders and psychiatric conditions, including substance abuse and depression. Their findings are published in the Oct. 12 edition of […]
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干细胞可修复受损的脊髓
脊髓能将来自大脑的信号传递到身体的其他部位，当脊髓受到损伤，其中的神经纤维就有可能会发生断裂，即使神经纤维未完全断裂，信息传递效率也会因损伤而有所下降。许多器官在受损后都可以由干细胞来进行修复，但脊髓中的干细胞却往往只能促进疤痕组织的生成而无法直接代替已经死亡的细胞。通过对小鼠的脊髓干细胞进行基因层面的深入分析，研究人员发现，人为的对干细胞内的基因表达进行操控就可以促使脊髓干细胞分化成对神经元髓鞘结构来说必不可少的少胶质细胞，从而对受损的脊髓起到修复的作用。
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研究发现与社交行为有关的两种神经细胞
在我们进行社交互动时需要对复杂的感官信息进行处理，并将其整合到社交决策网络中去，以做出恰当的社交行为。而在社交决策网络中负责这一统和工作的便是大脑中的岛叶皮层。使用钙成像技术和显微内窥镜，研究人员对小鼠岛叶皮层最前端处的细胞进行了深入研究，并由此发现了与社交行为有关的两种不同类型的神经细胞。其中一种为社交行为开启细胞（Social-ON cell）,占737个所研究神经元的22.8%，会在社交互动中被激活，而另一种则为社交行为关闭细胞（Social-OFF cell），会在无社交互动时表现出一定的活跃性。在行使不同类型的社交行为时，社交行为开启细胞的激活情况也会有所不同。譬如，在使用鼻子接触同类时，35.7%的该类细胞会被激活，而在进行身体接触时仅20.2%的该类细胞会被激活。患有精神分裂症和自闭症的人群其岛叶皮层的功能和结构会发生变化，因此，这一有关岛叶皮层的研究将有助于加深我们对这些神经精神类疾病的理解。
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宾大医学院研究员发现一种罕见的遗传性痴呆症
在对一患有未知神经退行性疾病的死者的大脑组织进行取样分析后，美国宾夕法尼亚大学医学院的研究人员发现了一种由基因突变所引起的新型痴呆症。该突变发生在含缬酪肽蛋白（VCP）基因上，会造成细胞内的蛋白质无法进行正常分离。这一新型痴呆症被命名为液泡Tau蛋白病（Vacuolar Tauopathy），其典型特征之一同阿兹海默症（AD）一样为大脑中Tau蛋白的异常积聚，除此以外，病患的神经元中还会出现许多叫做液泡的空洞。使用人为干预的方法促进VCP的活跃性就能改善Tau蛋白在大脑中的异常堆积，而鉴于AD等神经退行性疾病同这种新型痴呆症具有类似的病理特征，针对该疾病所研发出的治疗手段或有可能用于治疗这些同类型的脑神经疾病。