Max Planck scientists discover brain cells in monkeys that may be linked to self-awareness and empathy in humans.
Fragile X syndrome can be reversed in adult mouse brain
A recent study finds that a new compound reverses many of the major symptoms associated with Fragile X syndrome (FXS), the most common form of inherited intellectual disability and a leading cause of autism. The paper, published by Cell Press in the April 12 issue of the journal Neuron, describes the exciting observation that the FXS correction can occur in adult mice, after the symptoms of the condition have already been established.
Northwestern study compares endovascular brain aneurysm repair devices
Approximately 6 million Americans have brain aneurysms, a condition that occurs when a weak or thin spot develops on a blood vessel in the brain causing it to balloon. Often, these do not cause symptoms and go undetected, but every year an estimated 30,000 Americans experience a ruptured aneurysm that bleeds into the brain causing a life threatening injury. Immediate medical treatment is necessary to prevent stroke, nerve damage or death, and includes surgery or coiling. Coiling is an approach that blocks blood flow to the aneurysm by filling it with platinum coils. While less invasive than surgery, the likelihood of future aneurysm recurrence and subsequent treatment is higher with coiling. In an effort to lower the risk for repeat aneurysm treatment after coiling, Northwestern Medicine researchers are examining a new type of gel-coated coil to determine if it is more effective than the standard bare coils in preventing aneurysm recurrence.
Paul Allen donates additional $300 million to brain research facility
(Medical Xpress) — Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, has added an additional $300 million to the $200 million hes already given to the brain research facility in Seattle he started back in 2003, the Allen Institute for Brain Science. This new grant is to go towards a new initiative for the Institute, outlined by Christof Koch, chief scientist at the Institute and Harvard neuroscientist R. Clay Reid, (who will be joining the Institute) in a recent comment brief in the science journal Nature. The new funding will go towards studying the visual cortex in the brain, starting with mice, and eventually moving to humans.
Combination treatment in mice shows promise for fatal neurological disorder in kids
Infants with Batten disease, a rare but fatal neurological disorder, appear healthy at birth. But within a few short years, the illness takes a heavy toll, leaving children blind, speechless and paralyzed. Most die by age 5.