Medical Animations Neurology

Jazz Pharmaceuticals And UCB Announce Positive Phase III Results For Sodium Oxybate In Fibromyalgia
Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: JAZZ) and UCB (Euronext Brussels: UCB) announced today positive preliminary top-line results from the first of two Phase III clinical trials of sodium oxybate (JZP-6) for the treatment of fibromyalgia. The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study achieved its key endpoints, demonstrating that sodium oxybate significantly decreased pain and fatigue, and improved daily function in patients with fibromyalgia.

Brain Reorganizes To Adjust For Loss Of Vision
A new study from Georgia Tech shows that when patients with macular degeneration focus on using another part of their retina to compensate for their loss of central vision, their brain seems to compensate by reorganizing its neural connections. Age related macular degeneration is the leading cause of blindness in the elderly. The study appears in the December edition of the journal Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience.

Pediatric Cancer : Alteration Of A Gene Causes Neuroblastoma
Olivier Delattre's team (Inserm Unit 830 "Genetics and Biology of Cancer") of the Institut Curie reveal in an article in the 16 October issue of Nature that alteration of the ALK gene is closely associated with the most frequent solid extracerebral tumor in children neuroblastoma. By studying the familial forms of this tumor, the researchers also conclude that ALK is a gene that predisposes to neuroblastoma. This discovery may allow the development of new treatments in neuroblastomas.

Evidence Of Gulf War Syndrome Isolated By Deep Brain Mapping
Researchers at Southern Methodist University in Dallas are pioneering the use of spatial statistical modeling to analyze brain scan data from Persian Gulf War veterans, aiming to pinpoint specific areas of the their brains affected by Gulf War Syndrome.

Stem Cell Pilot Study Tackles Devastating Genetic Paraplegia
BRISBANE'S National Centre for Adult Stem Cell Research will commence a pilot study into a devastating genetic disease in which active young people progressively develop paraplegia. The little-known disease, Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia, has about 1000 diagnosed sufferers in Australia, but the mutations responsible may lurk in the genes of an unknown percentage of the population.

How Brain Interprets Natural Scenes: Carnegie Mellon Theory Of Visual Computation
Computational neuroscientists at Carnegie Mellon University have developed a computational model that provides insight into the function of the brain's visual cortex and the information processing that enables people to perceive contours and surfaces, and understand what they see in the world around them. A type of visual neuron known as simple cells can detect lines, or edges, but the computation they perform is insufficient to make sense of natural scenes, said Michael S.

Jumonjd3: A Molecular Key For Unlocking Neuronal Stem Cell Fate
A protein called Jumonjd3 has been identified by scientists at the IFOM-IEO Campus, Milan, Italy, as the molecular key required for starting up the differentiation process and for issuing neuronal "identity cards" to embryonic stem cells.

More Than 100 Scientific Abstracts Presented By GU/GUMC Researchers At Neuroscience 2008
Research highlights include how we see faces in our dreams, understanding how young and old adults learn, helping stroke survivors speak using fMRI, an explanation about autism and facial recognition and ways to possibly forestall Parkinson's disease.

Potential To Improve Heart And Stroke Treatments Following Enzyme Discovery
A Queen's University study sheds new light on the way one of our cell enzymes, implicated in causing tissue damage after heart attacks and strokes, is normally kept under control. Led by Biochemistry professor Peter Davies, the research team's discovery will be useful in developing new drug treatments that can aid recovery in stroke and heart disease, as well as lessen the effects of Alzheimer's and other neurologically degenerative diseases.

The Effects Of Carpal Tunnel On Hand Dexterity Studied By ASU Researchers, Funded By NIH Grant
Grasping an object is as easy as reading a newspaper for most people. It's a natural function, honed by years of experience. But take away several of the sensory inputs (as happens when a person suffers from carpal tunnel syndrome), and the brain is left grasping at straws in trying to decipher incomplete and "noisy" information from only a portion of its normal inputs (fingers). The result can be a noticeable loss of hand dexterity for the carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) sufferer.

Memory Mission Explores New Territory In Neuroscience
Astrophysicists peer into the far corners of deep space for dark matter, but for neuroscientists at the Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) exploring the unknown is much closer to home. They have discovered a mechanism vital to the development of the hippocampus * - a region of the brain crucial to the formation of memories, and the lifelong production and integration of new nerve cells.

Researching Next-Generation Deep Brain Stimulation Devices For The Treatment Of Central Nervous System Disorders
Eindhoven, the Netherlands - NeuroNexus Technologies and Philips Research today announced that they have signed a joint research agreement to develop next-generation deep brain stimulation devices with the ambition to improve the treatment of neurological diseases and psychiatric disorders.

Sosei And NeuroSolutions Present Further Data On NSL-043/SD118 At The Society For Neuroscience 38th Annual Meeting
NeuroDiscovery Ltd (ASX: NDL), a specialty neuroscience service provider and drug development Company, and Sosei Group Corporation ("Sosei"; TSE Mothers Index: 4565), a leading international biopharmaceutical company, announce that NeuroSolutions is presenting further pivotal pre-clinical efficacy data for NSL-043/SD118. This investigational drug is a potential therapy for neuropathic pain and has successfully completed Phase I clinical studies and is now ready for Phase II studies.

Scientists Are High On Idea That Marijuana Reduces Memory Impairment
The more research they do, the more evidence Ohio State University scientists find that specific elements of marijuana can be good for the aging brain by reducing inflammation there and possibly even stimulating the formation of new brain cells. The research suggests that the development of a legal drug that contains certain properties similar to those in marijuana might help prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease.

Cedars Sinai Researchers Present New Findings At Neuroscience Meetings
Researchers from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center are presenting findings during the 38th annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience. Neuroscience 2008 is at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., Nov. 15 through 19, and is expected to draw more than 30,000 attendees from around the world.