Category Research News (General)

A study published in Scientific Reports demonstrates, for the first time and using computational tools, that polyunsaturated lipids can alter the binding rate of two types of receivers involved in certain nervous system diseases. Using latest-generation molecular simulations, which are…

A new study in the journal Nature Communications shows that cells normally associated with protecting the brain from infection and injury also play an important role in rewiring the connections between nerve cells.  While this discovery sheds new light on…

Scientists have solved a longstanding problem with modeling Parkinson’s disease in animals. Using newfound insights, they improve both cell and animal models for the disease, which can propel research and drug development. Parkinson’s disease is characterized by the appearance of…

A study conducted on mice offers a new type of immunotherapy approach for treating Alzheimer’s disease. This involves amplifying a specific population of T lymphocytes that regulate immune and neuroinflammatory mechanisms that develop during the disease. These results are published…

A team of researchers has discovered a previously unknown cellular defect in patients with idiopathic Parkinson’s disease, and identified a sequence of pathological events that can trigger or accelerate premature death of certain neurons in the brain seen in this…

Scientists have revealed that protein clumps associated with Alzheimer’s disease are also found in the brains of people who have had a head injury. Although previous research has shown that these clumps, called amyloid plaques, are present shortly after a…

Scientists have discovered a mechanism which is responsible for the degeneration of Purkinje cells in the cerebellum in the neurodegenerative disease Spinocerebellar ataxia type 1. The results of their study open up new avenues for the future treatment of cerebellum-associated…

Researchers have discovered that an existing compound, previously tested for diabetes, offers hope for slowing Huntington’s Disease (HD) and its symptoms. The study was published in Nature Medicine. “We’re very excited by our pre-clinical testing of this compound (KD3010),” said…

A study has found that blocking a receptor in the brain responsible for regulating immune cells could protect against the memory and behaviour changes seen in the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. It was originally thought that Alzheimer’s disease disturbs the…

Caltech biologists have modified a harmless virus in such a way that it can successfully enter the adult mouse brain through the bloodstream and deliver genes to cells of the nervous system. The virus could help researchers map the intricacies…

Researchers have discovered the mechanics of how dopamine transports into and out of brain cells, a finding that could someday lead to more effective treatment of drug addictions and neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease. The research was done by…

Researchers have shown that the core of the protein clumps found in the brains of people with Huntington’s disease have a distinctive structure, a finding that could shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying the neurodegenerative disorder. The findings were…

A laboratory study indicates that the main protein involved in Parkinson’s disease pathology does not behave as a prion when overexpressed. In Parkinson’s disease, the protein alpha-synuclein aggregates within neurons of patients and appears to propagate across interconnected areas of…

Men taking androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for prostate cancer were almost twice as likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in the years that followed than those who didn’t undergo the therapy, an analysis of medical records from two large…

Scientists have uncovered a mechanism in the brain that could account for some of the neural degeneration and memory loss in people with Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers discovered that a common symptom of Alzheimer’s disease – the accumulation of amyloid…

The unwanted formation of blood vessels — angiogenesis — in the brain is likely to be the cause of intractable walking and balance difficulties for people who suffer from Parkinson’s disease, according to new research. Many people with Parkinson’s disease…

As we age or develop neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, our brain cells may not produce sufficient energy to remain fully functional. Researchers have discovered that an enzyme called SIRT3 that is located in mitochondria — the cell’s powerhouse —…

The blood-brain barrier has been non-invasively opened in a patient for the first time. Scientists used focused ultrasound to enable temporary and targeted opening of the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Opening the blood-brain barrier in a localized region to deliver chemotherapy…

Researchers are proposing a new way of understanding Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), the devastating and incurable neurological disease. Their findings, published in the journal Neuron, could be a major milestone on the path to a treatment for both ALS and…

A new study finds that a component of aspirin binds to an enzyme called GAPDH, which is believed to play a major role in neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s diseases. Researchers discovered that salicylic acid, the primary breakdown…

A study of the brains of mice shows that structural deterioration associated with old age can be prevented by long-term aerobic exercise starting in mid-life, according to a research article published in PLOS Biology. Researchers found that structural changes that…

Investigators have discovered a mechanism behind the spread of neurofibrillary tangles – one of the two hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease – through the brains of affected individuals. In a report in the journal Nature Communications, researchers describe finding that a…

New research could lead to improved methods of detection for early-onset Parkinson’s disease (PD). Recording the responses of fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) to different visual patterns, using methods adapted from the study of vision in humans, scientists investigated the nervous…

Alzheimer’s disease is characterised by two types of lesions, amyloid plaques and degenerated tau protein. Cholesterol plays an important role in the physiopathology of this disease. Two research teams have shown, in a rodent model, that overexpressing an enzyme that…

Researchers have made a new discovery about Huntington’s disease, showing that the gene that causes the fatal disorder makes an unexpected “cocktail” of mutant proteins that accumulate in the brain. The findings are significant because these newly identified mutant proteins…

Alzheimer’s patients frequently suffer from sleep disorders, mostly even before they become forgetful, and it is known that sleep plays a very important role in memory formation. Researchers have now been able to show for the first time how the…

JPND Board Member Dr. John Hardy of the UCL Institute of Neurology was awarded the $3 million Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences for his pioneering research into the genetic causes of Alzheimer’s disease, other forms of dementia and Parkinson’s disease.…

The Alzheimer’s Association International Conference® (AAIC) is the world’s largest forum for the dementia research community. the 2015 conference takes place in Washington DC between July 18-23rd. International investigators, clinicians and care providers gather annually to share the latest study…

Research has uncovered further evidence of a system in the brain that persistently maintains memories for long periods of time. And paradoxically, it works in the same way as mechanisms that cause mad cow disease and other degenerative brain diseases.…

Beyond the four-letter alphabet of the genome, a far richer code dictates when and where genes are transcribed. The epigenome—defined by an ever-expanding list of modifications to DNA and the proteins that interact with it—determines which genes are dialed up…

Scientists still do not know why some people develop Parkinson’s disease. Now researchers from Aarhus University and Aarhus University Hospital have taken an important step towards a better understanding of the disease. Their research indicates that Parkinson’s disease may begin…

A digital map of the ageing brain could aid the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders in older people, a study suggests. The atlas created using images from MRI scans of older people could aid diagnosis by comparing…

‘Seeding’ property provides new focus for treatment to delay progression of disorder By identifying in spinal fluid how the characteristic mutant proteins of Huntington’s disease spread from cell to cell, researchers have created a new method to quickly and accurately…

Analysis of health insurance data suggests preventive effect Type 2 diabetes most commonly occurs in late adulthood, and it has long been known that it can affect the patient’s mental health: Patients have a greater risk of developing dementia than…

Scientists have identified a single blood protein that may indicate the development of Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) years before symptoms appear, a disorder that has been associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias. The research, published…

An international team of researchers has developed a method for fabricating nano-scale electronic scaffolds that can be injected via syringe. Once connected to electronic devices, the scaffolds can be used to monitor neural activity, stimulate tissues and even promote regenerations…

Two studies in the May 19 issue of JAMA analyze the prevalence of the plaque amyloid among adults of varying ages, with and without dementia, and its association with cognitive impairment. The earliest recognizable pathological event in Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is…

The Innovative Medicines Initiative 2 (IMI 2) indicative topic text for Call 5 is now available, with heavy emphasis on Alzheimer’s Disease. The following topics are under consideration for inclusion in the call: Patient perspective elicitation on benefits and risks…

Most neurodegenerative diseases that afflict humans are associated with the intracytoplasmic deposition of aggregate-prone proteins in neurons and with mitochondrial dysfunction. Autophagy is a powerful process for removing such proteins and for maintaining mitochondrial homeostasis. Over recent years, evidence has…

A genetic study of over 173,000 individuals has confirmed that the TREM2 amino-acid-substitution mutation R47H increases the risk of Alzheimer disease in people of European descent. Several studies have reported the TREM2 R47H mutation to be a risk factor for…

Two recent studies have investigated the direct links and associations between depression and Parkinson’s Disease A longitudinal study from Sweden investigated the long-term risk of Parkinson disease (PD) after depression and evaluated potential confounding by shared susceptibility to the two diagnoses.…

Three former top researchers at Genentech (now part of Roche Holding), have raised $217 million in venture capital to start a new company, Denali Therapeutics, focused on treating and curing neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, ALS, and Parkinson’s. The news is…

Researchers at the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine (LCSB), of the University of Luxembourg, have successfully measured metabolic profiles, or the metabolomes, of different brain regions, and their findings could help better understand neurodegenerative diseases. The metabolome represents all or…

Study demonstrates that free-water provides a potential non-invasive progression marker of the substantia nigra region in the brain. Parkinson’s disease is a CNS disorder that results from the loss of cells in various parts of the brain, including a region…

Over the past few years, the OECD has conducted work in a number of areas related to innovation in biomedical research and health innovation for healthy ageing. Entitled “Enhancing Translational Research and Clinical Development for Alzheimer’s Disease and other Dementias”,…

Scientists at Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida, USA have created a novel mouse that exhibits the symptoms and neurodegeneration associated with the most common genetic forms of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), both of which are caused by…

The National Institutes of Health, USA has released recommendations that provide a framework for a bold and transformative Alzheimer’s disease research agenda. Developed at the February 2015 Alzheimer’s Disease Research Summit 2015: Path to Treatment and Prevention, the highly anticipated…

Although past research has associated obesity with increased risk of dementia, a new study – deemed the largest ever to assess the link between body mass index and dementia risk – suggests obesity could actually be a protective factor against…

New research highlights how nerves – whether harmed by disease or traumatic injury – start to die, a discovery that unveils novel targets for developing drugs to slow or halt peripheral neuropathies and devastating neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease,…

The Joint Programming initiative (JPI) “More Years, Better Lives“ aims at coordinating national and European research activities in the field of demographic change. The first call of Joint Programming Initiative (JPI) “More Years, Better Lives” was officially launched on 1…