Autism Changes Molecular Structure of the Brain
Discovery points to a common cause for multifaceted disease For decades, autism researchers have faced a baffling riddle: how to unravel a disorder that leaves no known physical trace as it develops in the brain. Now a UCLA study is the first to reveal how the disorder makes its mark at the molecular level, resulting [...]
High Iron Or Copper Levels Block Brain-cell DNA Repair
No one knows the cause of most cases of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative disorders. But researchers have found that certain factors are consistently associated with these debilitating conditions. One is DNA damage by reactive oxygen species, highly destructive molecules usually formed as a byproduct of cellular respiration. Another is the presence of excessive levels of copper and iron in regions of the brain associated with the particular disorder.
Paraplegic Man Stands, Steps With Assistance and Moves His Legs Voluntarily
Regimen of epidural spinal cord stimulation plus extensive locomotor training ‘a significant breakthrough;’ results published today in the Lancet A team of scientists at the University of Louisville, UCLA and the California Institute of Technology has achieved a significant breakthrough in its initial work with a paralyzed male volunteer at Louisville’s Frazier Rehab Institute. It [...]
Neutrons Provide First Sub-nanoscale Snapshots of Huntington’s Disease Protein
Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Tennessee have for the first time successfully characterized the earliest structural formation of the disease type of the protein that causes Huntington’s disease. The incurable, hereditary neurological disorder is always fatal and affects one in 10,000 Americans. Huntington’s disease is caused by a renegade protein “huntingtin” [...]
Sodium Channels Evolved Before Animals’ Nervous Systems, Research Shows
An essential component of animal nervous systems—sodium channels—evolved prior to the evolution of those systems, researchers from The University of Texas at Austin have discovered. “The first nervous systems appeared in jellyfish-like animals six hundred million years ago or so,” says Harold Zakon, professor of neurobiology, “and it was thought that sodium channels evolved around [...]
As Time Goes by, It Gets Tougher to ‘Just Remember This’
It’s something we just accept: the fact that the older we get, the more difficulty we seem to have remembering things. We can leave our cars in the same parking lot each morning, but unless we park in the same space each and every day, it’s a challenge eight hours later to recall whether we [...]
Virginia Tech Announces Football Helmet Ratings for Reducing Concussion Risk
Virginia Tech released today the results of a new rating system of adult football helmets that is designed to reduce the risk of concussions. One currently manufactured helmet received the top “5 star” rating, and a total of five helmets received the very good “4-star” rating. This biomechanical impact data study on football helmets represents [...]
