news archive October 2008

• Excess Fatty Acid in Alzheimer's Disease
  Correcting altered fatty acid metabolism in the brain of mice with Alzheimer's can reverse the cognitive deficits associated with the disease.
  
• Treating Lou Gehrig's Disease with Glial Stem Cells
  Nerve cell degeneration in a mouse model of Lou Gehrig's disease can be slowed by transplantation of healthy glial cell precursors.
  
• Combating Muscle Fatigue
  Researchers have identified a potential cause of fatigue in patients with neuromuscular diseases such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
  
• Mouse Brain Tumour Model Highlights Causative Role for Gene Duo
  Two genes have been implicated in the development of a lethal brain tumour, highlighting potential targets for therapeutic development.
  
• Profiling Lung Cancer
  By finding genes that are mutated in cancer cells compared with healthy cells, scientists are beginning to build a picture of what goes wrong to cause disease.
  
• Grow Your Own Prostate
  Scientists have isolated single stem cells from the prostate and used them to generate new prostates in mice.
  
• Single Neuron Restores Activity
  The activation of a single neuron in the brain may be enough to help restore muscle activity in the arms of paralysed patients with spinal cord injuries.
  

• A new tool for the screening of literature in genetic epidemiology
  A paper describes a new online tool for the automatic survey of literature in genetic epidemiology
  
• How the Brain Helps Us Deal with Loss
  Researchers have pinpointed a chemical messenger in the brain that plays a crucial role in dealing with the long term separation or loss of a partner.
  
• Linking Schizophrenia to Neuronal Changes
  Alterations in neuronal development and connectivity may contribute to the psychiatric and cognitive symptoms seen in patients with a chromosomal mutation linked to schizophrenia.
  
• Nervous System Signals Direct Host Defence
  Early host defence against pathogens -- at least in earthworms -- relies on communication between the nervous system and the intestine, suggests a paper online.
  
• New Risk Factors for Basal Cell Carcinoma
  Two genetic variants associated with basal cell carcinoma (BCC) are identified online.
  
• Hair Follicle Stem Cells Identified
  Scientists have discovered a group of stem cells in mice that can repopulate and maintain all cell types of the hair follicle.
  
• Susceptibility to Male-Pattern Baldness
  New genetic risk factors for male-pattern baldness have been identified in two studies published online.
  
• Gene Mutation in Retinitis Pigmentosa
  Scientists have found mutations in a gene that account for a significant number of cases of retinitis pigmentosa, a hereditary disorder of the retina that leads to visual impairment, and in some cases, blindness.
  
• The Genetic Origins of Cleft Lip
  The first common genetic variant strongly associated with cleft lip has been identified in a study published online.
  
• Risk Factors for Ulcerative Colitis
  Scientists have discovered genetic variants that predispose people to the common inflammatory bowel disease ulcerative colitis.
  
• Pluripotent Cells from Human Testis
  Pluripotent adult stem cells have been derived from cells in adult human testis for the first time.
  
• Crick Hypothesis Vindicated
  Two groups of brain cells together help to filter visual information before it reaches the brain's higher processing regions.
  

• Cancer Gene Therapy: All of p53
  The fight against cancer takes a step forward with the online publication of a 50 page review on p53.
  
• Complement Enhances Tumour Evasion
  A seemingly illogical link between activation of immune sensors and the ability of tumours to escape the immune system is reported online.
  
• Survival Strategies
  Scientists have discovered a molecule that helps activated immune cells survive in the face of massive amounts of the antimicrobial signalling protein, interferon-gamma.
  
• Risk Factor for Narcolepsy
  A genetic variant that predisposes to narcolepsy has been identified.
  
• Fatty Liver Disease
  Scientists have discovered common genetic variants influencing susceptibility to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
  
• Thwarting Tumour Invasion
  A mechanism used by metastasising tumour cells to invade lung tissue and establish secondary tumours is reported.
  

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