Brain

CAMDEN – Charles Darwin may have been born 200 years ago come Feb. 12, but his theory of evolution remains an everyday touchstone for modern biologists. And while the Origin of Species author might not have known the term "global warming," he wouldn't have been surprised that the environment is changing. He would, however, be astonished by the speed at which it's happening today.

WASHINGTON, DC — Educational rankings such as those produced by U.S. News & World Report have an inescapable impact on law schools, according to research published in the February issue of the American Sociological Review, the flagship journal of the American Sociological Association.

Bipolar disorder appears to increase the risk of early death from medical illnesses, according to a literature review study published as the lead article this week in the journal Psychiatric Services.

PHOENIX, Ariz. – Feb. 2, 2009 – A drug used to improve blood flow to the brain also could help improve learning and memory and reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study released today by investigators at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and Arizona State University.

Fasudil has been used for more than 10 years to help protect the brain in stroke patients by dilating blood vessels when blood flow is curtailed.

February 2, 2009, Cambridge, UK –Anyone with a sweet tooth knows that too much of a good thing can lead to negative consequences. The same can be said about the signals that help maintain nerve cells, as demonstrated in a new study of myelin, a protein key to efficient neuronal transmission.

WASHINGTON — A team of Arizona psychologists, geneticists and neuroscientists has reported that a safe and effective drug used to treat vascular problems in the brain has improved spatial learning and working memory in middle-aged rats. Although far from proving anything about human use of the drug, the finding supports the scientific quest for a substance that could treat progressive cognitive impairment, cushion the cognitive impact of normal aging, or even enhance learning and memory throughout the life span.

PHILADELPHIA – A connection between genetic and environmental causes of Parkinson's disease has been discovered by a research team led by Aaron D. Gitler, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Gitler and colleagues found a genetic interaction between two Parkinson's disease genes (alpha-synuclein and PARK9) and determined that the PARK9 protein can protect cells from manganese poisoning, which is an environmental risk factor for a Parkinson's disease-like syndrome.

Westchester, Ill. — A study in the Feb. 1 issue of the journal Sleep shows that the elevation in estradiol levels that occurs during pregnancy is more pronounced in pregnant women with restless legs syndrome (RLS) than in controls.

Westchester, Ill. — A study in the Feb. 1 issue of the journal SLEEP was the first to use twin data to examine the longitudinal link between sleep problems and depression. Results of this study demonstrate that sleep problems predict later depression; the converse association was not found. These findings are consistent with the theory that early treatment of sleep problems may protect children from the development of depression.

A grid of small arteries at the surface of the brain redirects flow and widens at critical points to restore blood supply to tissue starved of nutrients and oxygen following a stroke, a study published this week has found.

"This is optimistic news," said David Kleinfeld, a physics professor at the University of California, San Diego, whose group studies blood flow in animal models of stroke.

Damage from stroke can continue for hours or even days as compromised brain tissue surrounding the core injury succumbs to deprivation of oxygen and nutrients.

HOUSTON – (Jan. 30, 2009) – Brief but personal intervention reduces drinking among risky college drinkers, according to a research study at The University of Texas School of Public Health. Results of the study will be published in the February issue of the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Combining the benefits of multiple drugs in a single pill may hold the key to treating neurodegenerative diseases, Medical College of Georgia researchers say.

Drugs that protect neurons, for example, can be used with those targeting memory to make real progress in treating diseases such as Alzheimer's, says Dr. Jerry Buccafusco, founding director of the MCG Alzheimer's Research Center.

New Orleans, LA – Huijing Xia, PhD, a postdoctoral research associate in the lab of Eric Lazartigues, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pharmacology at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, is the lead author on a paper reporting that a recently identified enzyme in the brain plays a critically important role in the central regulation of blood pressure.

More than half of all human proteins, as well as many important pharmaceutical agents, are glycoproteins, which means that they contain sugar components. In general, natural glycoproteins do not have a homogeneous sugar component. With modern purification techniques, it is practically impossible to isolate sufficient quantities of homogeneous glycoproteins for systematic biomedical studies. Synthesis in the lab is a good alternative—but also a very complex task.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – For patients with a particularly aggressive form of skin cancer – malignant melanoma – stress, including that which comes from simply hearing that diagnosis, might amplify the progression of their disease.

But the same new research that infers this also suggests that the use of commonly prescribed blood pressure medicines might slow the development of those tumors and therefore improve these patients' quality of life.