Human neural stem cells. Courtesy UC Irvine radiation oncology professor Charles Limoli. Human neural stem cells restored memory in mice with brain symptoms similar to Alzheimers disease, UC Irvine scientists reported Tuesday, opening the door to eventual treatment for human sufferers. The announcement, made at an Alzheimers science conference in Vancouver, involves versatile though still largely mysterious neural stem cells grown in the lab by StemCells Inc., of Newark, Ca. The cells, researchers at UCI and elsewhere have shown, can become many types of cells once injected into the body restoring limb movement in mice with crushed spines, halting blindness in rats and, now, improving memory and brain function in mice bred to exhibit the kinds of impairment seen in Alzheimers. Youve probably heard about the God particle scientists have been working on, said Martin McGlynn, president and CEO of StemCells Inc. This isnt quite the God cell, but its an incredibly fascinating biological agent. Over the past 12 to 18 months, scientists including Frank LaFerla, director of UCI MIND, worked on a treatment involving injection of the human neural stem cells into the brains of two kinds of mouse models those bred to model the effects of Alzheimers, and … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (July 17, 2012) Scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) pioneered the study of the link between irregularities in the immune system and neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism a decade ago. Since then, studies of postmortem brains and of individuals with autism, as well as epidemiological studies, have supported the correlation between alterations in the immune system and autism spectrum disorder. What has remained unanswered, however, is whether the immune changes play a causative role in the development of the disease or are merely a side effect. Now a new Caltech study suggests that specific changes in an overactive immune system can indeed contribute to autism-like behaviors in mice, and that in some cases, this activation can be related to what a developing fetus experiences in the womb. The results appear in a paper this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). "We have long suspected that the immune system plays a role in the development of autism spectrum disorder," says Paul Patterson, the Anne P. and Benjamin F. Biaggini Professor of Biological Sciences at Caltech, who led the work. "In our studies of a mouse model based on an environmental risk factor for … Continue reading →

ALAMEDA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Penumbra, Inc., announces the launch of an educational website QuEST2StopStroke.com, designed to empower the public with the knowledge they need to help stop stroke. The website asks visitors to Join the Quest and learn where to find their closest advanced stroke center that offers lifesaving inside-the-artery clot removal. The website also provides educational information about ischemic stroke and common treatment methods, as well as testimonials from patients whose lives were saved by the Penumbra System, an innovative clot-removal technology that uses suction and acts as a tiny vacuum cleaner to remove blood clots from the brain. Ischemic stroke, caused by a blood clot in the brain, accounts for approximately 87 percent of all strokes, and is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States.1 The standard protocol in hospital stroke centers is the administering of a clot-busting medication called tPA (tissue plasminogen activator), but it must be given within 3 hours after symptoms begin to be effective. Even though tPA drug therapy can be very successful, many stroke victims do not make it to their local stroke center in time, and even if they do tPA does not always work if the clot is too … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (July 17, 2012) A team led by a physician-scientist at the University of Southern California (USC) has created an experimental drug that reduces brain damage and improves motor skills among stroke-afflicted rodents when given with federally approved clot-busting therapy. Clinical trials to test the safety of the drug in people are expected to start later this summer. Stroke, which occurs when blood flow to a part of the brain stops, is the No. 4 cause of death and the leading cause of adult disability in the United States. According to the American Stroke Association, the Food and Drug Administration-approved tPA (tissue plasminogen activator) is the best treatment for stroke caused by a blocked artery, but to be effective, it must be administered within three hours after symptoms start. If given outside that three-hour window, tPA has shown serious side effects in animal and human brains, including bleeding and breakdown of the brain's protective barrier. Generally, according to the American Stroke Association, only 3 to 5 percent of those who suffer a stroke reach the hospital in time to be considered for tPA treatment. "What tPA does best is to break down clots in the blood vessel and restore blood … Continue reading →