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SMA

This shows baby Arabella Smygov following gene therapy treatment for SMA

Featured Genetics Neurology Neuroscience

·June 10, 2019·7 min read

‘Like Looking at a Miracle’: Baby Blossoms Thanks to Gene Therapy For Spinal Muscular Atrophy

Zolgensma, an FDA approved gene therapy, supplements the production of the SMN protein to improve motor neuron function in children with spinal muscular atrophy after just one dose.

brain scans taken while people listened to music

Auditory Neuroscience Featured Neuroscience Neuroscience Videos Open Neuroscience Articles Psychology

·June 12, 2018·6 min read

Higher Empathy People Process Music Differently in the Brain

Researchers report people with higher empathy process music with greater involvement in the brain's reward system and areas of the brain associated with social information processing.

neurons

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·November 2, 2017·3 min read

Synaptic Disorder

Targeting autophagy may help in the battle against ALS and other diseases that affect motor neurons, researchers report.

motor neurons

Featured Genetics Neurology

·September 7, 2017·4 min read

Human Skin Cells Transformed Into Motor Neurons

WUSTL researchers have converted skin cells into motor neurons without going through the stem cell state. The new technique could help in the development of devastating neurodegenerative diseases, like ALS, that affect motor neurons.

Image shows a DNA strand.

Featured Genetics

·May 15, 2017·4 min read

New Gene Identified in ALS

Researchers implicate a variant in the UBQLN4 gene as a possible cause of ALS. The variant disrupts cellular processes that drive motor neuron development.

Image shows the SMN protein in motor neurons.

Featured Genetics Neurology Open Neuroscience Articles

·April 17, 2017·5 min read

Common Drug Could Help Treat ALS and SMA

Researchers have identified a compound that can stabilize a protein implicated in ALS and SMN.

Image shows tau in brain tissue.

Featured Neurology

·January 26, 2017·6 min read

Drug Compound Halts Alzheimer’s Related Damage in Mice

Researchers report a synthetic molecule can reduce tau and even reverse some neurological damage in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease.

Image shows a young child pushing a wheelbarrow.

Featured Neuroscience

·September 28, 2016·3 min read

How the Brain Decides Between Effort and Reward

A new study reports on how our brain decides if performing a certain task is worth the effort.

Image shows neurons.

Featured Genetics Neurology Open Neuroscience Articles

·September 20, 2016·4 min read

Trial Offers Hope of a Treatment for Spinal Muscular Atrophy

Researchers believe they have discovered a promising new treatment for spinal muscular atrophy, a leading genetic cause of death in children.

Image shows brain scans.

Featured Neurology

·August 15, 2016·5 min read

How Parkinson’s Alters Brain Activity Over Time

Researchers have identified how specific brain areas change over time in patients with Parkinson's disease.

Image shows the spine.

Featured Neurology

·July 25, 2016·4 min read

New Drug Could Help Treat Spinal Muscular Atrophy

A new drug shows promise for improving outcomes for people with SMA.

Image shows C. elegans.

Featured Genetics

·July 11, 2016·5 min read

Protein Deficiency May Cause Spinal Muscular Atrophy

A new study implicates a key cellular mechanism as defective in SMA for the first time, providing a new lead for developing future interventions.

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