neurotransmitter news from FierceBioResearcher

A team of scientists say they have developed a drug that blocks the SIRT2 enzyme, which protects the neurons damaged by Parkinson's disease. In an article to come out this week in the journal Science, researchers at Harvard show how inhibition of SIRT2--a member of the sirtuin family, which is linked to aging--prevents the toxicity of the protein aggregates that are believed to be behind the neuronal death characteristic of PD. Contrary to "classic" approaches that try to …

An experimental cancer therapy may help point the way to a new treatment for clinical depression. The approach was inspired by work done by Dr. Mary O'Brien at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London, who injected lung cancer victims with Mycobacterium vaccae, a harmless version of bacteria that causes tuberculosis and leprosy. After the therapy was injected, the physician noted not only fewer symptoms of cancer, but an improvement in emotional health as well. Researchers followed …

Researchers using a new dosing schedule of an old drug--PTZ--were able to improve the cognition skills of mice suffering from Down syndrome. Craig C. Garner, a Stanford School of Medicine professor, said that mice given 17 daily doses of the therapy were able to recognize objects and navigate mazes with the same dexterity as healthy mice. A considerable amount of work still needs to be done, researchers note, as high concentrations of the drug have been known to cause seizures in humans. …

New research published in The Journal of Neuroscience asserts that transplanted neural stem cells can reduce the destruction of dopaminergic cells and replace cells lost to Parkinson's. A neural stem cell transplant in an animal study demonstrated that the animals continued to function normally, without the progressive loss of physical control that characterizes Parkinson's. The transplant occurred after a toxin was used to destroy neurons that are needed to make dopamine, a key …

Researchers at the University of Washington say they've found that the tissue that surrounds neurons in the central nervous system--known as glia-plays a role in neurodegeneration. Using a mouse model, the scientists found that the reduced transfer of glutamate into glial cells played a role in the degeneration of Purkinje neurons. The theory is that that may be the cause of neuronal death seen in diseases like Alzheimer's, Huntington's and prion disease. Their focus was on …