Neurological Disease News and Research

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Combination of Viral Antibodies and Genetic Risk Factors Linked to Increased MS Risk

In multiple sclerosis (MS), antibodies to the common Epstein-Barr virus can accidentally attack a protein in the brain and spinal cord. New research shows that the combination of certain viral antibodies and genetic risk factors can be linked to a greatly increased risk of MS.

12 Mar 2025

Researchers Discover New Role of Mitofusin 2 in Cellular Health

Researchers from Cologne, Bochum, Padova and Angers have discovered a novel connection between mitochondrial function, protein quality control and cellular health, whose failure could be the leading cause in the currently incurable neurological disease Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT).

17 Feb 2025

First Cell Atlas of Focal Cortical Dysplasia Offers New Insights for Treatment

Using a single-cell sequencing technique, Brazilian researchers have created the first cell atlas of focal cortical dysplasia (FCD), a malformation of the cerebral cortex that leads to drug-resistant epilepsy.

31 Jan 2025

Lice as Models for Studying Mitochondrial Disorders

A set of genes that in humans would suggest a late-stage degenerative disease like Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s disease are present in lice throughout their lives.

10 Dec 2024

Study Links Archaic Gene Variant to Health Risks in First Nations Oceanians

An ancient gene mutation among First Nations inhabitants of Oceania may make them more susceptible to infectious diseases like influenza, according to a new study by scientists at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

30 Oct 2024

Innovative Stem Cell Research Unveils Glial Cell Dynamics in Multiple Sclerosis

Researchers from The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) Research Institute and Case Western Reserve University have discovered novel ways in which glia, by using the largest known collection of stem cell models from MS patients, essential brain support cells contribute to the disease.

27 Aug 2024

Understanding How the Human Forebrain Develops at the Cellular Level

A group of researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine led an investigation that offers new insight into the development of the human forebrain.

17 Apr 2024

Traffic Jam in the Brain: Study Uncovers Cellular Cause of Rare Neurological Disease

Researchers from McGill University, led by Professor Alanna Watt of the Department of Biology, have identified previously unknown changes in brain cells affected by a neurological disease.

22 Jan 2024

The Pathogenic Mechanism Underpinning MEPAN Syndrome

New research published in Nature Metabolism discovered the pathogenic mechanism driving mitochondrial enoyl reductase protein-associated neurodegeneration (MEPAN) syndrome, a rare pediatric neurodegenerative disease.

1 Sep 2023

Viral Proteins Promote the Spread of Protein Aggregates in the Brain

Viral genetic remnants found naturally in the human genome may influence the development of neurodegenerative diseases.

22 Aug 2023

Study Uncovers Somatic Mutations That Play a Role in Common Form of Adult Epilepsy

Epilepsy affects approximately 1-in-26 people and the most common form, known as temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), often cannot be adequately treated with anti-seizure medications.

2 May 2023

Researchers Explain How a Single Mutation Causes Ataxia

Worldwide, only a handful of patients are known to suffer from episodic ataxia type 6, a neurological disease that causes transient loss of muscle control.

4 Apr 2023

Astrocytes in the Brain may Play a Key Role in Regulating Information

Long thought of as "brain glue," the star-shaped cells called astrocytes-;members of a family of cells found in the central nervous system called glial that help regulate blood flow, synaptic activity, keep neurons healthy, and play an important role in breathing.

3 Apr 2023

WashU researcher receives NIH grant to study a poorly understood protein linked to ALS

The relentless neurological disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) eventually shuts down the entire body, but the devastation starts at a molecular level.

14 Feb 2023

Rare disease involving speech and motor coordination difficulties identified

Scientists from the National Institutes of Health recently identified a new neurological condition characterized by issues with motor coordination and speech. Their observations were published in the journal npj Genomic Medicine.

From National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) 13 Feb 2023

Study identifies genetic mutation in the SPTSSA gene as cause of Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia

A genetic mutation in the SPTSSA gene is identified as the cause of Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia, a rare disease that causes progressive weakness, stiffness and spasticity in the lower extremities, according to a study, "SPTSSA variants alter sphingolipid synthesis and cause a complex hereditary spastic paraplegia," published in Brain on on Jan. 30.

1 Feb 2023

Exploring how smoking cannabis alters the oral microbiome and its impact on the brain

Inspiration strikes when you least expect it. For Wei Jiang, M.D., a professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), inspiration came in 2018 on a smoke-filled boat tour around Amsterdam during an international conference.

30 Jan 2023

“Junk” DNA could provide access to innovative treatments for neurological conditions

The breakthrough study from the University of Sheffield’s Neuroscience Institute and Healthy Lifespan Institute offers critical new insights into the so-called junk DNA, or DNA that was previously believed to be unimportant to the coding of the genome, and how it affects neurological disorders like Motor Neuron Disease (MND) and Alzheimer’s.

29 Sep 2022

Noncoding DNA mutations prevent the brain from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

When a condition is connected to a genetic mutation, it is generally negative news.

4 Apr 2022

Researchers develop an antibody as a tool for opening the blood-brain barrier

The brain is composed of billions of neurons-; vulnerable cells that require a protective environment to function properly.

17 Mar 2022