Standing up to paraplegia with gene therapy
...egia (HSP), a neurodegenerative disorder caused by progressive loss of sensory and skeletal muscle nerve fibers (axons), is characterized by weakness, spasticity, and impaired function of the lower limbs. The disorder is often due to mutations in the gene encoding the paraplegin protein. HSP sufferers are ultima...JCI table of contents: December 15, 2005
...egia (HSP), a neurodegenerative disorder caused by progressive loss of sensory and skeletal muscle nerve fibers (axons), is characterized by weakness, spasticity, and impaired function of the lower limbs. The disorder is often due to mutations in the gene encoding the paraplegin protein. HSP sufferers are ultima...Gladstone study links Alzheimer's with toxic protein fragments
...oms. The devastating effects of AD are well known: progressive and inexorable loss of cognitive function that erases memories, extinguishes personality, and robs people of their ability to think, reason and carry out the activities of everyday life. Despite intensive efforts to identify the underlying causes, an...Univ. of Chicago scientists find potential cause of breathing problems in Rett Syndrome children
...y at Chicago and lead author of the paper. "It's a progressive disease that shows no mercy." In order to study the breathing pattern more closely, Ramirez and his team showed that mice with the RS gene exhibit the same behavior as children: They breathe irregularly and stop breathing often. According to Ramirez,...Atherosclerosis studied at the cellular level
...to how changes in cell function contribute to this progressive and life threatening disease. Dr. Austin, a professor in the department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine and a Career Investigator of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario, said the study found that nitric oxide, normally considered a "good ...Lost neurons affect energy balance
...LoS Biology, Allison Wanting Xu et al. reveal that progressive degeneration of two types of hypothalamic neurons affects energy balance associated with aging. Located in the hypothalamus, the two types of neurons that regulate fat buildup, or adiposity, contain proopiomelanocortin (Pomc) and agouti-related pr...Study links progressive aphasia syndrome to prion gene
...people with a rare type of dementia called primary progressive aphasia (PPA) have a specific combination of prion gene variants, a new study shows. The study is the first to link the prion protein gene to this disorder. It was funded in part by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS...Active psoriatic arthritis patients on REMICADE achieve major clinical response in arthritis
...c arthritis, which like rheumatoid arthritis, is a progressive immune-mediated inflammatory disease," said Desiree van der Heijde, MD, PhD, Professor of Rheumatology, University of Maastricht in the Netherlands and lead study investigator. "The inhibition of joint destruction is critical in the management of di...Centocor & Schering-Plough next generation biologic promising in Phase 2 rheumatoid arthritis trial
...Arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, progressive disease and research demonstrates that a critical therapeutic window exists within the first two years of disease onset when the rate of radiographic progression of the disease can be "reset." 1,2,3 Radiographic changes occur within two years of di...Exercise plus gene therapy shows promise for treating Lou Gehrig's disease
...s (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a chronic and progressive illness that leads to paralysis and ultimately death. There are no known cures, and the only FDA-approved method for treating the disease is a drug that may extend life between three and six months, said Brian Kaspar, the study's lead author and an a......rrent Landscape," analyzes the involvement of both progressive and conservative bioethics centers, including traditional think tanks such as the American Enterprise Institute, as well as religious groups such as James Dobson's Focus on the Family. "The rapid advance of biotechnology is quickly outpacing our ab...ECCO 13 - Sunitinib prolongs survival in GIST patients after imatinib mesylate failure
...ression-free and overall survival in patients with progressive metastatic and/or unresectable GIST whose disease has failed to respond to the standard therapy - imatinib mesylate. This study was a double-blind, placebo-controlled, international, multicentre, Phase III trial involving 312 patients with GIST whose...JCI table of contents November, 2005
...oup of neurodegenerative diseases characterized by progressive weakness and spasticity of the lower limbs. Dominant mutations in the human SPG4 gene, encoding a protein called spastin, are responsible for the most frequent form of HSP. The Drosophila homologue of spastin, Dspastin, has been recently shown to r...New imaging method shows early in treatment if brain cancer therapy is effective
...s would have a response to therapy over those with progressive disease. This corresponded to patients' survival, with those classified as having progressive disease living an average 8.2 months while those with a response to treatment lived an average 18.2 ...Zebrafish and CHIP help untangle protein misfolding in brain disease
...ting, inherited, neurodegenerative disease that is progressive and always fatal. The disease-causing gene produces a protein that is toxic to certain brain cells, and the subsequent neuronal damage leads to movement disorders, psychiatric disturbances and cognitive decline. The mutated protein contains an abnorm...Multiple sclerosis progression linked to immune-cell substance
...ter inoculation, the mice with the MIF gene showed progressive EAE. In contrast, the mice lacking the MIF gene showed signs of early disease, but after about 20 days, these mice recovered and showed no further sign of progression. The study also gave the investigators insights into the mechanism by which MIF in...Scientific institute founded by Jonas Salk to host meeting for polio survivors on Oct. 27
... from paralytic polio, symptoms usually begin with progressive muscle weakness, followed by debilitating fatigue, loss of function and pain, especially in muscles and joints....Prozac improves learning and memory in fatal brain disease
...al disease. People with Huntington's disease have progressive motor problems, cognitive deficits (dementia) and psychiatric symptoms (the most common is depression) that usually start to appear in mid-life. There is no cure and death usually results within 10 to 20 years of symptom onset, or faster in the child...PET's imaging power may be best indicator for determining which patients develop Alzheimer's
...on, said Drzezga. Many patients with MCI develop a progressive decline in their thinking abilities over time, and Alzheimer's disease is usually the underlying cause. Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia among older people; it is a progressive, irreversible brain disorder with no known cause or cure. ......thors identify a null mutation in a patient with a progressive encephalopathy, and show that the defect can be fu...r mitochondrial complex I assembly is mutated in a progressive encephalopathy AUTHOR CONTACT: Eric Shoubridge Montreal Neurological Institute, Montreal, Canad...