PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Regenerating spinal cord fibers may be treatment for stroke-related disabilities

2013-05-23
(Press-News.org) DETROIT – A study by researchers at Henry Ford Hospital found "substantial evidence" that a regenerative process involving damaged nerve fibers in the spinal cord could hold the key to better functional recovery by most stroke victims. The findings may offer new hope to those who suffer stroke, the leading cause of long-term disability in adults. Although most stroke victims recover some ability to voluntarily use their hands and other body parts, about half are left with weakness on one side of their bodies, while a substantial number are permanently disabled. The study is published in the current issue of Stroke and is available online at http://stroke.ahajournals.org/content/early/2013/05/21/STROKEAHA.113.001162.abstract.html?ijkey=vRk14HxuNKPaw51&keytype=ref. Discovering a treatment to improve or restore this lost motor function in stroke patients is a holy grail for neurologists, because none exists, primarily due to unsolved mysteries about how the brain and nerves repair themselves. The new Henry Ford research was intended to solve some of those mysteries. It focused on changes in axons – the fibers, the nerve signal "transmission" lines within the spinal cord that affect voluntary movement after stroke. Researchers used genetically modified mice in which the axons in the corticospinal tract, a bundle of nerves carrying signals from the brain to the spinal cord, were "stained" with fluorescent matter visible under a powerful microscope. The researchers noted that Henry Ford's Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee approved all the experimental procedures. The mice were trained for five days to use their left front paws to retrieve food pellets from a dispenser designed to test their dexterity. They were also given a "foot-fault test" to see how well they could walk on an unevenly spaced grid. Next, the mice were divided into four groups. In one, the carotid arteries were blocked with a suture for one hour, much as a blood clot blocks the flow of blood to the brain in a stroke. After the suture was removed and blood flow was restored, they were given additional surgery to sever the axons of the corticospinal tract. The other groups were either given no surgery or "sham" surgery so they could be used as control groups for comparison to the first. The single-pellet and foot-fault tests were then given three days after surgery, then weekly for 14 to 28 days to reassess dexterity, the amount of "stroke" damage to voluntary movements and the degree of recovery from the lab-induced "stroke." "In both behavioral tests used in this study, the mice need to control the paw movement," explains Yi Li, M.D., a Henry Ford neuroscientist and lead author of the study. "Severe behavioral deficits of the left forepaw were evident in all of the mice three days after stroke. "All animals showed significant improvement 14 days after surgery. This recovery progressed in those mice whose axons were not severed. However, in those whose axons had been eliminated, there was no significant recovery." The researchers concluded that in the early stages after stroke, improvements in voluntary movement can be attributed to a reduction in brain swelling because of the trauma and other spontaneous repairs, while later improvements result from "neuronal plasticity" – the reorganization or regeneration of nerve cells within the spinal cord in response to changes in the nerve network. This "axonal remodeling in the spinal cord" may provide "a treatment target to develop rational therapeutic approaches to enhance neurological recovery for the mass of chronic stroke patients," says Dr. Li. If such a treatment can be developed, it would address the single biggest concern of stroke victims, as well as those with chronic spinal cord damage. The researchers cited a survey of such patients showing that "regaining arm and hand function is considered the highest priority for improving the quality of life." ### Funding source: American Heart Association and National Institutes of Health (R01AG037506 and R01NS066041)


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

The secret lives, and deaths, of neurons

2013-05-23
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – As the human body fine-tunes its neurological wiring, nerve cells often must fix a faulty connection by amputating an axon — the "business end" of the neuron that sends electrical impulses to tissues or other neurons. It is a dance with death, however, because the molecular poison the neuron deploys to sever an axon could, if uncontained, kill the entire cell. Researchers from the University of North Carolina School of Medicine have uncovered some surprising insights about the process of axon amputation, or "pruning," in a study published May 21 in ...

First successful treatment of pediatric cerebral palsy with autologous cord blood

2013-05-23
Bochum's medics have succeeded in treating cerebral palsy with autologous cord blood. Following a cardiac arrest with severe brain damage, a 2.5 year old boy had been in a persistent vegetative state – with minimal chances of survival. Just two months after treatment with the cord blood containing stem cells, the symptoms improved significantly; over the following months, the child learned to speak simple sentences and to move. "Our findings, along with those from a Korean study, dispel the long-held doubts about the effectiveness of the new therapy", says Dr. Arne Jensen ...

Bacterium from Canadian High Arctic offers clues to possible life on Mars

2013-05-23
The temperature in the permafrost on Ellesmere Island in the Canadian high Arctic is nearly as cold as that of the surface of Mars. So the recent discovery by a McGill University led team of scientists of a bacterium that is able to thrive at –15ºC, the coldest temperature ever reported for bacterial growth, is exciting. The bacterium offers clues about some of the necessary preconditions for microbial life on both the Saturn moon Enceladus and Mars, where similar briny subzero conditions are thought to exist. The team of researchers, led by Prof. Lyle Whyte and postdoctoral ...

A hidden population of exotic neutron stars

2013-05-23
Magnetars – the dense remains of dead stars that erupt sporadically with bursts of high-energy radiation – are some of the most extreme objects known in the Universe. A major campaign using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and several other satellites shows magnetars may be more diverse – and common – than previously thought. When a massive star runs out of fuel, its core collapses to form a neutron star, an ultradense object about 10 to 15 miles wide. The gravitational energy released in this process blows the outer layers away in a supernova explosion and leaves the ...

Schools should provide opportunities for 60 minutes of daily physical activity to all students

2013-05-23
WASHINGTON – Given the implications for the overall health, development, and academic success of children, schools should play a primary role in ensuring that all students have opportunities to engage in at least 60 minutes per day of vigorous or moderate-intensity physical activity, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine. Recent estimates suggest that only about half of school-age children meet this evidence-based guideline for promoting better health and development. The report recommends that most daily physical activity occur during regular school hours ...

Improved chemo regimen for childhood leukemia may offer high survival, no added heart toxicity

2013-05-23
(WASHINGTON, May 23, 2013) – Treating pediatric leukemia patients with a liposomal formulation of anthracycline-based chemotherapy at a more intense-than-standard dose during initial treatment may result in high survival rates without causing any added heart toxicity, according to the results of a study published online today in Blood, the Journal of the American Society of Hematology (ASH). Acute myeloid leukemia (AML), the second most common form of leukemia in children, is a blood cancer in which the bone marrow makes a large number of abnormal white blood cells that ...

Adult day services for dementia patients provide stress relief to family caregivers

2013-05-23
Family caregivers of older adults with dementia are less stressed and their moods are improved on days when dementia patients receive adult day services (ADS), according to Penn State researchers. "Caregivers who live with and care for someone with dementia can experience extraordinary amounts of stress," said Steven Zarit, professor and head, human development and family studies. "The use of adult day services appears to provide caregivers with a much-needed break that can possibly protect them from the negative health effects caused by chronic stress." The researchers ...

Link between war support and PTSD, time it late in negotiations and courtship by narcissists

2013-05-23
Public level of support for war influences soldier PTSD Soldiers returning home from combat may be at a heightened risk for developing post-traumatic stress disorder if public support for a war effort is low, according to recent research. Social validation or invalidation shapes the level of distress soldiers feel from the act of killing, the researchers say. The study involved two experiments that asked participants to exterminate woodlice in a modified coffee grinder – in one, having an actor show either interest or disgust for the act and in another, asking participants ...

Schools should provide students with daily physical activity, IOM recommends

2013-05-23
HOUSTON – (May 23, 2013) – A new report from the Institute of Medicine says schools should be responsible for helping pupils engage in at least 60 minutes of vigorous or moderate intensity activity during each school day. No more than half of American youth meet current evidence-based guidelines of at least an hour of vigorous or moderate intensity physical activity daily, according to the report, which was released today. "Because children are in school for nearly half of their waking hours, the committee recommends a Whole-of-School approach to strengthening physical ...

Researchers find common childhood asthma unconnected to allergens or inflammation

2013-05-23
NEW YORK (May 23, 2013) -- Little is known about why asthma develops, how it constricts the airway or why response to treatments varies between patients. Now, a team of researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College, Columbia University Medical Center and SUNY Downstate Medical Center has revealed the roots of a common type of childhood asthma, showing that it is very different from other asthma cases. Their report, in Science Translational Medicine, reveals that an over-active gene linked in 20 to 30 percent of patients with childhood asthma interrupts the synthesis of ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Signs identified that precede sudden arrhythmic death syndrome in young people

Discovery of bacteria's defence against viruses becomes a piece of the puzzle against resistance

Pre-eclampsia is associated with earlier onset and higher incidence of cardiovascular risk factors

Warwick astronomers discover doomed pair of spiralling stars on our cosmic doorstep

Soil conditions significantly increase rainfall in world’s megastorm hotspots

NK cells complexed with bispecific antibody yield high response rates in patients with lymphoma

Planetary health diet and mediterranean diet associated with similar survival and sustainability benefits

Singapore launches national standard to validate antimicrobial disinfectant products

Molecular stool test could improve detection of tuberculosis in adults with HIV

Suspected fibrocartilaginous embolus in Asian small-clawed otter (Aonyx cinereus)

Enhancing heat transfer using the turbulent flow of viscoelastic fluids

Exercise as an anti-ageing intervention to avoid detrimental impact of mental fatigue

UMass Amherst Nursing Professor Emerita honored as ‘Living Legend’

New guidelines aim to improve cystic fibrosis screening

Picky eaters by day, buffet by night: Butterfly, moth diets sync to plant aromas

Pennington Biomedical’s Dr. Leanne Redman honored with the E. V. McCollum Award from the American Society for Nutrition

CCNY physicists uncover electronic interactions mediated via spin waves

Researchers’ 3D-printing formula may transform future of foam

Nurture more important than nature for robotic hand

Drug-delivering aptamers target leukemia stem cells for one-two knockout punch

New study finds that over 95% of sponsored influencer posts on Twitter were not disclosed

New sea grant report helps great lakes fish farmers navigate aquaculture regulations

Strain “trick” improves perovskite solar cells’ efficiency

How GPS helps older drivers stay on the roads

Estrogen and progesterone stimulate the body to make opioids

Dancing with the cells – how acoustically levitating a diamond led to a breakthrough in biotech automation

Machine learning helps construct an evolutionary timeline of bacteria

Cellular regulator of mRNA vaccine revealed... offering new therapeutic options

Animal behavioral diversity at risk in the face of declining biodiversity

Finding their way: GPS ignites independence in older adult drivers

[Press-News.org] Regenerating spinal cord fibers may be treatment for stroke-related disabilities