A recent study used the xCELLigence System of Roche to investigate the response of the neuronal-like cell line HT-22 and cultured primary rat cortical neurons to different cell death stimuli and neuroprotectants. The xCELLigence System provides a non-invasive and label-free way to continuously monitor cellular parameters such as viability, death, adhesion, and proliferation. It records electrical impedance of cells grown on microelectrode arrays integrated into the bottom of each well of an E-Plate 96.

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The Hospital Universitario Donostia has incorporated a new glioblastoma multiforme treatment protocol, which could be the starting point for a more effective treatment of this type of cancer. The new protocol incorporated into the hospital analysed in this thesis puts forward a more multidisciplinary approach to the treatment of patients suffering from this type of cancer. The idea is to provide a more personalized treatment and monitoring.

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Researchers from the German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) and the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) in Munich have shown that the ADAM10 protein can inhibit the formation of beta-amyloid, which is responsible for Alzheimer’s disease. ADAM10 acts like a pair of molecular scissors to cut the protein from which beta-amyloid is formed, effectively preventing the formation of beta-amyloid. This makes ADAM10 a key molecule in Alzheimer’s therapy.

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Edge Therapeutics, Inc. has announced that it has entered into a feasibility agreement with SurModics, Inc. According to the agreement, SurModics will develop a novel biodegradable, site-specific, sustained-release formulation (NimoGel™, EG-1961) for treatment of delayed complications of ruptured brain aneurysms or traumatic brain injury (TBI). NimoGel, Edge’s lead drug, is a combination of the FDA-approved drug nimodipine, a calcium channel blocker, and a proprietary biodegradable delivery system.

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ArmaGen Technologies has developed the BBB molecular Trojan horse platform technology for solving the BBB drug delivery problem, and has used this technology to create a brain penetrating form of human EPO. ArmaGen® has successfully re-engineered human EPO as an IgG fusion protein that penetrates the brain following intravenous (IV) administration. Human EPO is fused to a genetically engineered monoclonal antibody (MAb) to the human insulin receptor (HIR).

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Neuronetrix for the first time publicly demonstrated their COGNISION™ System, an innovative platform which enables objective assessment of cognitive function, at ICAD 2010. The demonstration focused on the COGNISION™ System’s ability, using a non-invasive technology called event-related potentials (ERP), to accurately measure the cognitive performance of a patient’s brain. Neuronetrix previously completed a pilot clinical study with Alzheimer’s patients and healthy controls at the Sanders-Brown Alzheimer’s Disease Center at the University of Kentucky.

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Boston Scientific Corporation has announced FDA approval and launch of two spinal cord stimulation lead splitters for use with its Precision Plus™ Spinal Cord Stimulator System. The W4 and D4 splitters each enable multi-site placement of up to four leads, which are designed to deliver electrical pulses to the spinal cord that mask pain signals to the brain. The products will be introduced at the annual meeting of the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians.

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K2M, Inc. has announced the launch of the TERRA NOVA^® Minimally Invasive Access System and the SERENGETI^® Disposable Kit at the North American Spine Society (NASS) 2009 Annual Conference. TERRA NOVA is a minimally invasive spine-based access system used in conjunction with K2M’s revolutionary SERENGETI percutaneous retractor. TERRA NOVA has the potential to minimize tissue disruption by utilizing a small incision and muscle splitting technique.

Covidien has launched Mallinckrodt TaperGuard and TaperGuard Evac endotracheal tubes. The TaperGuard line of endotracheal tubes incorporates a taper-shaped cuff made from polyvinylchloride. The TaperGuard Evac endotracheal tube additionally provides for secretion drainage through an integrated suction lumen. As a result, the TaperGuard Evac endotracheal tube is associated with a reduction in ventilator-associated pneumonia. Microaspiration refers to the entry of foreign material into the respiratory tract.

An experimental test, which involves placing of six electrodes around the forehead and on the earlobes, can accurately predict within a week whether a particular antidepressant will be effective by using brain-wave patterns on an EEG. The lead author of the study and professor of psychiatry at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA, Dr. Andrew Leuchter, said that until now there had been no reliable method for predicting whether a medication would lead to a good response or remission. The test can be performed in 10 to 15 minutes in any office setting.