An article published in The Journal of Biological Chemistry presents a novel pharmacological target that, in combination with a neurotrophic factor, could be used to improve the survival of striatal neurons, the principal nerve cells affected by the neurodegeneration observed in Huntington’s disease. The study was conducted by the researchers at the University of Barcelona. Huntington’s chorea is a progressive neurodegenerative disease caused by a genetic mutation of the gene encoding for the protein Huntingtin.

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A group of researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization in Göttingen, and Princeton University (USA) have now put forward a new explanation regarding growth of brain. Using a combination of experiments, mathematical models and computer simulations they showed that neuronal connections in the visual cortex of cats are restructured during the growth phase and that this restructuring can be explained by self-organizational processes.

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Johns Hopkins researchers have shown that brain damage was reduced by as much as 62.2 percent in mice who inhale low amounts of carbon monoxide after an induced stroke. The scientists say that although carbon monoxide (CO) gas has a long reputation as an odorless, colorless cause of organ damage and even death, there is now evidence that it can protect nerve cells from damage. Some of the brain damage associated with stroke results directly from a cut-off in blood supply to nerve cells.