Brightsurf Science News and Current Science News Events

 
Email a Friend Send to a friend
Printer Friendly Print More brain research suggests

More brain research suggests

February 07, 2008

Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) scientists have found another important clue to why nerve cells die in neurodegenerative diseases, based on studies of the developing brain.

Neuroscientists at The University of Queensland have just published findings, which add more weight to the "use it or lose it" model for brain function.




QBI's Dr Elizabeth Coulson said a baby's brain generates roughly double the number of nerve cells it needs to function; with those cells that receive both chemical and electrical stimuli surviving, and the remaining cells dying.

In research published in the "Journal of Neuroscience", Dr Coulson and her colleagues have identified a crucial step in the cell-death process.

"It appears that if a cell is not appropriately stimulated by other cells, it self-destructs," Dr Coulson said.

This self-destruct process is also known to be an important factor in stroke, Alzheimer's and motor neuron diseases, leading to the loss of essential nerve cells from the adult brain.

"We know that a lack of both chemical and electrical stimuli causes the cells to self-destruct," Dr Coulson said.

"But we believe that nerve cells will survive if appropriate electrical stimuli are produced to block the self-destruct process that we have identified."

The researchers' next step is to test whether dying cells receiving only electrical stimulation can be rescued.

More than three years' research has gone into understanding these crucial factors regulating nerve cell survival, but it is a major step in the long process of discovery needed to combat neurodegeneration.

QBI Director, Professor Perry Bartlett said the research is an extremely exciting finding because it also provides the missing piece of information as to how the brain likely keeps alive the new neurons it generates in some brain areas as an adult.

"Combining this with our knowledge of how to stimulate new neurons in the brain of adults following to disease processes such as stroke, it provides new mechanisms for the treatment of a variety of diseases from depression to dementia," he said.

Research Australia



Related Neurodegenerative News Articles Neurodegenerative News and Current Neurodegenerative Events RSS Neurodegenerative News and Current Neurodegenerative Events RSS
Scientists find how neural activity spurs blood flow in the brain
New research from Harvard University neuroscientists has pinpointed exactly how neural activity boosts blood flow to the brain. The finding has important implications for our understanding of common brain imaging techniques such as fMRI, which uses blood flow in the brain as a proxy for neural activity.

Nerve cells derived from stem cells and transplanted into mice may lead to improved brain treatments
Scientists at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research have, for the first time, genetically programmed embryonic stem (ES) cells to become nerve cells when transplanted into the brain, according to a study published today in The Journal of Neuroscience.

Lou Gehrig's protein found throughout brain, suggesting effects beyond motor neurons
Two years ago researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine discovered that misfolded proteins called TDP-43 accumulated in the motor areas of the brains of patients with amyotropic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease.

Molecular imaging sheds new light on progression of Alzheimer's disease
In the past, physicians were able only to follow the progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD) through careful clinical histories, noting the often subtle changes associated with cognitive decline over a number of years.

New molecular imaging techniques may lead to advances in disease treatment
A promising new technique has been developed that will enable more accurate non-invasive positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of new cells injected into the body, according to researchers at SNM's 55th Annual Meeting.

A protein sequence associated with Huntington's disease may become life-saving vaccine component
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.

QBI neuroscientists make Alzheimer's disease advance
Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) neuroscientists at UQ have discovered a new way to reduce neuronal loss in the brain of a person with Alzheimer's disease.

Mammalian neurogenesis breaks into the most static brain region
ifteen years ago, the discovery of adult neurogenesis (the production of new neurons) in the highly static, non-renewable mammalian brain was a breakthrough in neuroscience.

Microsurgery on the brain of the fruit fly leads to new insights into irreparable nerve injuries
Every year, one million Europeans are confronted with potentially irreparable brain or spinal cord injuries resulting from traffic accidents.

'Intrabody' can mop up mutant protein in Huntington's disease model
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.
More Neurodegenerative News Articles
Neural Stem Cells: Methods and Protocols (Methods in Molecular Biology)


Neurodegenerative Diseases: Neurobiology, Pathogenesis and Therapeutics
by M. Flint Beal, Anthony E. Lang, Albert C. Ludolph


Movement Disorders: Neurologic Principles & Practice
by Ray L. Watts, William C. Koller


Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: Beyond the Motor Neuron (Neuro-Degenerative Diseases)


Animal Models of Neurological Disease, I: Neurodegenerative Diseases (Neuromethods) (Neuromethods)


Protein Misfolding in Neurodegenerative Diseases: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Strategies (Enzyme Inhibitors)


Neurodegenerative Diseases
by Donald B. Calne


Oxidative Stress and Neurodegenerative Disorders


Protective Strategies For Neurodegenerative Diseases (Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences)


Glutamine Repeats and Neurodegenerative Diseases: Molecular Aspects


© 2008 BrightSurf.com