Dev

Using a drug compound created to treat cancer, neurobiologists have disarmed the brain’s response to the distinctive beta-amyloid plaques that are the hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers found that flushing away the abundant inflammatory cells produced in reaction to…

Researchers are studying the causes of premature ageing of neurons in Parkinson’s patients with a defective DJ1 (PARK7) gene. The genetic defect causes changes in the cellular metabolism meaning that neurons are subjected to oxidative stress and an increased immune…

New research shows for the first time that PET scans can track the progressive stages of Alzheimer’s disease in cognitively normal adults, a key advance in the early diagnosis and staging of the neurodegenerative disorder. In the process, the scientists…

Protein aggregates are deemed to be one reason for the death of nerve cells in disorders such as Alzheimer’s or Huntington’s disease. As researchers report in the current issue of Nature, they have now decoded a new cellular mechanism for…

The body has a variety of natural defences to protect itself against neurodegeneration, but as we age, these defences become progressively impaired and can get overwhelmed. Researchers have identified a drug that targets the first step in the toxic chain…

Scientists have developed a new optical technique to study how information is transmitted in the brains of mice. Using this method, they found that only a small portion of synapses — the connections between cells that control brain activity —…

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a devastating progressive neurodegenerative disease that results in the death of motor neurons, the nerve cells that control muscles. Eventually, individuals with ALS will lose their ability to walk,…

Accumulation of amyloid beta in the brain impairs memory and cognitive ability in people with Alzheimer’s. New findings published in Nature Communications show that the cause of amyloid beta pathology might be more versatile than previously known. Researchers believe that…

An innovative tool allows researchers to observe protein aggregation throughout the life of a worm. The development of these aggregates, which play a role in the onset of a number of neurodegenerative diseases, can now be monitored automatically and in…