A study on a handful of people with suspected mild Alzheimer’s disease (AD) suggests that a device that sends continuous electrical impulses to specific “memory” regions of the brain appears to increase neuronal activity. Results of the study using deep brain stimulation, a therapy already used in some patients with Parkinson’s disease and depression, may offer hope for at least some with AD, an intractable disease with no cure.
New measurement tool for clinical trials to help children with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease
(Medical Xpress) — An international study led by the University of Sydney and published in the Annals of Neurology has the potential to improve the design of clinical trials for the treatment of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, a disorder which affects the peripheral nervous system.
Good vibrations: using sound to treat disease
Many of us love massages, but imagine a massage so deep that tissues, organs and cells could also be massaged.
Smilagenin represents a new approach for treating neurodegeneration disease
Erxi Wu, assistant professor of pharmaceutical sciences, and Shuang Zhou, a doctoral student in Wus lab, co-wrote the article, “Smilagenin Attenuates Beta Amyloid (25-35)-Induced Degeneration of Neuronal Cells via Stimulating the Gene Expression of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, which will be published by Neuroscience. They collaborated with Yaer Hu lab at Shanghai Jiaotong University, China, for the publication.
Robot reveals the inner workings of brain cells
Gaining access to the inner workings of a neuron in the living brain offers a wealth of useful information: its patterns of electrical activity, its shape, even a profile of which genes are turned on at a given moment. However, achieving this entry is such a painstaking task that it is considered an art form; it is so difficult to learn that only a small number of labs in the world practice it.