Gladstone Scientist Finds New Target For Treating Symptoms of Parkinson's Disease SAN FRANCISCO, CA - A scientist at the Gladstone Institutes has identified how the lack of a brain chemical known as dopamine can rewire the interaction between two groups of brain cells and lead to symptoms of Parkinson's disease. This discovery offers new hope for treating those suffering from this devastating neurodegenerative disease. In a paper being published online today in Neuron, Gladstone Investigator Anatol Kreitzer, PhD, identifies how the loss of dopamine alters the wiring of a small group of brain cells, kicking off a chain of events that eventually leads to difficulties controlling movement—a hallmark of Parkinson's disease. More than a half-million people suffer from Parkinson's in the United States, including the boxer Muhammad Ali and the actor Michael J. Normally, two types of brain cells called medium spiny neurons, or MSNs, work together to coordinate body movements, with one type acting like a gas pedal and the other as a brake. Dr. Dr.
GLYCOPROTEINS For many years glycoproteins have been a subject of interest. However, it is in the second half of this century that they have aroused the interest of biochemists and biologists from a wide range of fields. This increased interest is partly due to the fact that glycoproteins were discovered to be abundant in living organisms. It is also due to the diverse functions of glycoproteins; glycoproteins appear in nearly every biological process studied. Many glycoproteins have structural functions. The diverse function of glycoproteins is a direct result of their structure. Controlling of glycoproteins is achieved through synthesis and degradation. Structure Structurally, glycoproteins consist of a polypeptide covalently bonded to a carbohydrate moiety. As stated above, O-linked glycans consist of N-acetylgalactosamine attached to the O-terminus of a threonine or serine residue. The other class of glycoproteins are N-linked glycans. Function Enzymes: Glycoprotein enzymes are of three types.
Exact brain electrode placement for Parkinson’s patients now possible; Research opens the way to more precise deep brain stimulation Deep brain stimulation stops limb tremors in Parkinson's patients. But positioning the stimulation electrode in the brain must be done very precisely to avoid undesired side-effects. To make this possible, researcher Ellen Brunenberg of Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) has developed a method for precise, external localization of the right part of the brain: the motor area of the subthalamic nucleus. She has found an ingenious way to localize this 'magic area': by using MRI to visualize the pathways in the brain that lead to it. "If you take away the towns and cities on a map, you can still see where they are located from the pattern of the roads," says Brunenberg, who will earn her PhD on Sept. 8 for her thesis entitled 'Hitting the right target'. Deep brain stimulation has been used since the 1980s on patients with a severe form of Parkinson's disease. By using a few complicated techniques, Brunenberg can see the 'roads' in the brain.
HIV and AIDS How Can It Be Prevented? That person can then spread the virus to others through high-risk behaviors. HIV transmission can be prevented by: not having oral, vaginal, or anal sex (abstinence) always using latex condoms for all types of sexual intercourse avoiding contact with the bodily fluids through which HIV is transmitted never sharing needles How Do Doctors Test for and Treat HIV? Doctors now recommend that all people have at least one HIV test by the time they are teens. If you have questions about HIV and want to get tested, you can talk to your family doctor, pediatrician, adolescent doctor, or gynecologist. Clinics offer both anonymous testing (meaning the clinic doesn't know a person's name) and confidential testing (meaning they know who a person is but keep it private). The HIV test can be either a blood test or a swab of the inside of your cheek. Reviewed by: Nadia Dowshen-Atanda, MD Date reviewed: February 2012
New target for treating symptoms of Parkinson's disease A scientist at the Gladstone Institutes has identified how the lack of a brain chemical known as dopamine can rewire the interaction between two groups of brain cells and lead to symptoms of Parkinson's disease. This discovery offers new hope for treating those suffering from this devastating neurodegenerative disease. In a paper being published online September 8 in Neuron, Gladstone Investigator Anatol Kreitzer, PhD, identifies how the loss of dopamine alters the wiring of a small group of brain cells, kicking off a chain of events that eventually leads to difficulties controlling movement -- a hallmark of Parkinson's disease. More than a half-million people suffer from Parkinson's in the United States, including the boxer Muhammad Ali and the actor Michael J. Normally, two types of brain cells called medium spiny neurons, or MSNs, work together to coordinate body movements, with one type acting like a gas pedal and the other as a brake. Dr. Dr.
Are Viruses Alive? Created by George Rice, Montana State University "Viruses straddle the definition of life. They lie somewhere between supra molecular complexes and very simple biological entities. Viruses contain some of the structures and exhibit some of the activities that are common to organic life, but they are missing many of the others. Artists conception of the T4 virus from Michael G. Background: When researchers first discovered agents that behaved like bacteria but were much smaller and caused diseases such as rabies and foot-and-mouth disease, it became the general view that viruses were biologically "alive." "Viruses exist in two distinct states. Related Resources:Origins of Viruses (more info) Brief discussion on the origins and evolution of virus. What Defines Life? There is no precise definition of what separates the living from the non-living. Related Resources:Define Life (more info) . Viral Dominance: Organization: Related Resource:On the Evolution of Cells. Teaching Activities:
Cogane Study on Neurotrophic Factors European Journal of Pharmacology : Effect of rasagiline on the molecular composition of the excitatory postsynaptic density Neuropharmacology and Analgesia a Department of Pharmacological Sciences University of Milan, Via Balzaretti 9, 20133 Milan, Italyb DiSCAFF and DFB Center, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italyc H Lundbeck A/S, Valby, Copenhagen, Denmark Received 28 February 2011, Revised 31 August 2011, Accepted 7 September 2011, Available online 21 September 2011 Choose an option to locate/access this article: Check if you have access through your login credentials or your institution Check access Show more Show less Get rights and content Abstract In the last decade, several neuroprotective therapies have been proposed for Parkinson's disease and rasagiline was indicated as one of the most promising candidates by preclinical studies. Keywords Rasagiline; NMDA receptor; Postsynaptic density; Neuroprotection; Rat; Parkinson's disease Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V.
New Modeling of Brain’s Circuitry May Bring Better Understanding of Parkinson’s Disease September 27, 2011 INDIANAPOLIS -- Researchers from the School of Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis have developed a mathematical model of the brain’s neural circuitry that may provide a better understanding of how and why information is not transmitted correctly in the brains of Parkinson’s disease patients. This knowledge may eventually help scientists and clinicians correct these misfires. Work led by Leonid L. “This mathematical model of the brain’s circuitry provides insight that we could not obtain from animal or human brains in experimental or clinical studies. Parkinson's disease is a progressive disorder causing degeneration of neurons in the substantia nigra, a region of the brain that produces the chemical dopamine. In addition to his research, Rubchinsky, a computational neuroscientist, teaches courses in calculus for the life sciences to undergraduate students and several biomathematics courses to graduate students in the School of Science.