Posts Tagged ‘Brain’
A new research revealed some of the complex mechanisms behind the plaques in the brain which are the trademark of Alzheimer’s. The fatal disease of brain accompanied by confusion, memory loss and finally makes oneself unable to care for him.
The researchers studied the brains of mice, having Alzheimer’s like plaques in the brain, with the help of an advanced optical imaging technique. They found that the same proteins (prions) in mice, which are known for playing havoc in the diseases of mad cow and Creutzfeldt-Jakob, hit by amyloid beta that made them toxic.
It was observed that a star-shaped type of brain cell (astrocytes), which helped in the normal functioning of the brain, turned to hyperactivity in the presence of amyloid plaques.
Researchers from Oxford Centre for Health Economics find that people in UK have to spend nearly £939m every year.
In their study, the researchers estimated how much the people in UK will have to spend during first 18 years of those preterm babies who born in 06.
They calculated healthcare, education and off work costs, which the parents of these babies have to pay for them.
They say that considerable increase in funding for research to find ways to delay preterm births can save nearly £260m every year.
Tommy’s, the well-known baby Charity, funded for the study that was first of its kind to find out the cost to public on such births.
A Canadian study finds that a drug that is used to treat epilepsy and bipolar disorder may prove helpful to prevent and treat Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers found that valproic acid stopped the development of Alzheimer’s –related brain plaques in mice.
The researchers from the University Of British Columbia And Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute have already found that If VPA is used in the early stages of the disease, it can reverse memory decline.
The study has been published in The Journal of Experimental Medicine.
Weihong Song, who led the study, said: “We found that the drug helped to block plaque formation and prevented brain cell and axon death when it was used at the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease in model mice. Similarly, it also improved performance in memory tests.”
A new study says that you can avoid the devastating impact of Alzheimer’s disease on memory if you go to university and then choose a mentally demanding job for yourself, as the researchers find that less intellectual stimulation often causes to quick tissue damage that leads to memory loss.
The researchers suggest that tough mental work or genes that make people have such careers may prove helpful for the brain to compensate for disease.
This Italian study has been published in the journal Neurology.
There are many other studies (based on age and symptoms) that suggest mental activities can help to avoid Alzheimer’s.
The researchers from the San Raffaele University, Milan used brain scan tests to examine the distinctive ‘tangles’ and protein deposits characteristic of Alzheimer’s in 242 old people. In these people 144 had no memory problems, while 72 had mild cognitive impairment.
US researchers found insufficient levels of vitamin D in 55 percent Parkinson’s patients, while these levels were 36 percent in healthy elderly people. Now the scientists are trying to know that the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease can be eased with vitamin D supplements.
The researchers from Emory University do not find yet whether vitamin D deficiency is a cause of developing Parkinson’s or not.
The study has been published in the journal Archives of Neurology.
Due to Parkinson’s nerve cells gets affected in many parts of the mind and especially in those parts that use dopamine (chemical messenger) to control movement. Read the rest of this entry
