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

Molecular knock-out alleviates Alzheimer's symptoms in mice

2012-11-30
(Press-News.org) This press release is available in German.

Scientists from the DZNE sites in Göttingen and Bonn, the UMG as well as from the US participated in this basic research project on Alzheimer's disease. The study is published in "EMBO Molecular Medicine".

The researchers led by Prof. André Fischer, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at the University Medical Center Gottingen and Site Speaker of the DZNE in Göttingen, investigated mice with a modified genetic background. The animals showed behavioural disorders and brain deposits that are typically associated with Alzheimer's disease. The researchers went a step further with a group of other animals by removing the genes responsible for the production of the HDAC6 enzyme (histone deacetylase 6). This intervention proved to be effective: while these mice also exhibited the pathological features of Alzheimer's disease in the brain, their behaviour was significantly ameliorated. "The animals' ability to learn and to find their spatial bearings was relatively normal", says Prof. Fischer. "Their cognitive abilities were fully comparable to those of healthy mice."

Improved cellular traffic

In the researchers' view, this effect is at least partly attributable to the fact that important transport processes within the nerve cells are facilitated when the HDAC6 enzyme is not around. This meant in particular that the cells' power plants, also known as "mitochondria", can travel to their final destinations. "It is known that in various neurodegenerative diseases cellular transport is no longer functional. The substances that are to be transported along axons are left behind", Fischer says. "Measures which improve trafficking seem to have a positive effect."

Possible target for therapy?

The researchers' findings suggest that the HDAC6 enzyme could be a possible target for therapies against Alzheimer's disease. However, treatments would require an active substance that can disable the enzyme in a targeted fashion. Unfortunately, the active substances known to date are too unspecific. Prof. Fischer explains that their application resembles a broad-spectrum treatment: "We don't know precisely what is the therapeutic effect of the inhibitors, since they simultaneously block several enzymes from the histone deacetylase family", he says. "And we still don't know enough about how the individual enzymes function".

Improving the accuracy of the inhibitors is therefore the aim of further research. "We will continue to work toward this goal. On one hand, we want to improve our understanding of how the various histone deacetylases function. On the other hand, we want to test inhibitors that operate in a more targeted manner", says Prof. André Fischer.

### END


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Carbon dioxide could reduce crop yields

Carbon dioxide could reduce crop yields
2012-11-30
This press release is available in German. The carbon dioxide content of the atmosphere continues to climb and heat up the climate. The gas is, however, indispensable for plants, as they use the carbon it provides to form glucose and other important substances. Therefore, the more carbon dioxide the better? The equation is unfortunately not as simple as that. The plants, which ensure our basic food supply today, have not been bred for vertical growth but for short stalks and high grain yields. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology ...

The Counter Terrorist Magazine Will Be Easy to Find During the 2013 Shot Show in Las Vegas - January 15th, Through the 18th, 2013 - Now In Its Fifth Year!

The Counter Terrorist Magazine Will Be Easy to Find During the 2013 Shot Show in Las Vegas - January 15th, Through the 18th, 2013 - Now In Its Fifth Year!
2012-11-30
The Counter Terrorist Magazine's 28th issue will be available at several events including the NRA Life of Duty ATACTV Law Enforcement & Military Range Day and the 3 Gun Nation Pro Series Event. In addition to these key shooting events you can pick up your copy on the show floor at exhibitor booths throughout the Shot Show. As part of the continuous commitment to make sure that The Counter Terrorist Magazine has the best distribution in the industry, we've partnered with some of the best names in the business to have free copies of the magazine available at their ...

Adapting fish defenses to block human infections

Adapting fish defenses to block human infections
2012-11-30
Worcester, Mass. -- Living in an environment teaming with bacteria and fungi, fish have evolved powerful defenses against waterborne pathogens, including antimicrobial peptides located in their gills. Undergraduate researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) are studying the biology and the mechanics of one of those peptides with the hope they can use that knowledge to create engineered surfaces that kill bacteria responsible for foodborne illnesses and hospital-acquired infections. The research team, led by Terri Camesano, professor of chemical engineering, ...

Which group of Asian-American children is at highest risk for obesity?

Which group of Asian-American children is at highest risk for obesity?
2012-11-30
New Rochelle, NY, November 29, 2012—Asian-American children have been at low risk for being overweight or obese compared to other racial and ethnic groups in the U.S., but that may be changing. Yet as rates of overweight and obesity rise, the risk appears to vary depending on the Asian country of origin, according to an article in Childhood Obesity, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Childhood Obesity website at http://www.liebertpub.com/chi. In the article "Prevalence of Obesity among Young Asian-American ...

Scientists describe the genetic signature of a vital set of neurons

2012-11-30
Scientists at NYU Langone Medical Center have identified two genes involved in establishing the neuronal circuits required for breathing. They report their findings in a study published in the December issue of Nature Neuroscience. The discovery, featured on the journal's cover, could help advance treatments for spinal cord injuries and neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which gradually kill neurons that control the movement of muscles needed to breathe, move, and eat. The study identifies a molecular code that distinguishes a group ...

Predicting material fatigue

Predicting material fatigue
2012-11-30
The scientists of Kiel University, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and the Technische Universität München (TUM) have published their results in the current issue of the journal Advanced Materials. "The luminescent features of zinc oxide tetrapod crystals are well established. According to our work hypothesis, these characteristics showed pronounced variations under a mechanical load, and we realised that it could help to detect internal damages of composite materials", says Dr. Yogendra Mishra of Kiel University's Technical Faculty. In one experiment, the scientists ...

Young surgeons face special concerns with operating room distractions

2012-11-30
CORVALLIS, Ore. – A study has found that young, less-experienced surgeons made major surgical mistakes almost half the time during a "simulated" gall bladder removal when they were distracted by noises, questions, conversation or other commotion in the operating room. In this analysis, eight out of 18, or 44 percent of surgical residents made serious errors, particularly when they were being tested in the afternoon. By comparison, only one surgeon made a mistake when there were no distractions. Exercises such as this in what scientists call "human factors engineering" ...

A human-caused climate change signal emerges from the noise

2012-11-30
Livermore, Calif. -- By comparing simulations from 20 different computer models to satellite observations, Lawrence Livermore climate scientists and colleagues from 16 other organizations have found that tropospheric and stratospheric temperature changes are clearly related to human activities. The team looked at geographical patterns of atmospheric temperature change over the period of satellite observations. The team's goal of the study was to determine whether previous findings of a "discernible human influence" on tropospheric and stratospheric temperature were sensitive ...

Delayed treatment for advanced breast cancer has 'profound effect'

2012-11-30
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Results from a new study conducted by researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC-James) show women who wait more than 60 days to begin treatment for advanced breast cancer face significantly higher risks of dying than women who start therapy shortly after diagnosis. "We wanted to see whether delaying treatment affected mortality rates among women with breast cancer," says Electra D. Paskett, associate director for population sciences at OSUCCC-James. ...

Diabetics with cancer dangerously ignore blood sugar

2012-11-30
CHICAGO --- When people with Type 2 diabetes are diagnosed with cancer -- a disease for which they are at higher risk -- they ignore their diabetes care to focus on cancer treatment, according to new Northwestern Medicine® research. But uncontrolled high blood sugar is more likely to kill them and impairs their immune system's ability to fight cancer. However, people with Type 2 diabetes who received diabetes education after a cancer diagnosis were more likely to take care of their blood sugar. As a result, they had fewer visits to the emergency room, fewer hospital admissions, ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Inability to pay for healthcare reaches record high in U.S.

Science ‘storytelling’ urgently needed amid climate and biodiversity crisis

KAIST Develops Retinal Therapy to Restore Lost Vision​

Adipocyte-hepatocyte signaling mechanism uncovered in endoplasmic reticulum stress response

Mammals were adapting from life in the trees to living on the ground before dinosaur-killing asteroid

Low LDL cholesterol levels linked to reduced risk of dementia

Thickening of the eye’s retina associated with greater risk and severity of postoperative delirium in older patients

Almost one in ten people surveyed report having been harmed by the NHS in the last three years

Enhancing light control with complex frequency excitations

New research finds novel drug target for acute myeloid leukemia, bringing hope for cancer patients

New insight into factors associated with a common disease among dogs and humans

Illuminating single atoms for sustainable propylene production

New study finds Rocky Mountain snow contamination

Study examines lactation in critically ill patients

UVA Engineering Dean Jennifer West earns AIMBE’s 2025 Pierre Galletti Award

Doubling down on metasurfaces

New Cedars-Sinai study shows how specialized diet can improve gut disorders

Making moves and hitting the breaks: Owl journeys surprise researchers in western Montana

PKU Scientists simulate the origin and evolution of the North Atlantic Oscillation

ICRAFT breakthrough: Unlocking A20’s dual role in cancer immunotherapy

How VR technology is changing the game for Alzheimer’s disease

A borrowed bacterial gene allowed some marine diatoms to live on a seaweed diet

Balance between two competing nerve proteins deters symptoms of autism in mice

Use of antifungals in agriculture may increase resistance in an infectious yeast

Awareness grows of cancer risk from alcohol consumption, survey finds

The experts that can outsmart optical illusions

Pregnancy may reduce long COVID risk

Scientists uncover novel immune mechanism in wheat tandem kinase

Three University of Virginia Engineering faculty elected as AAAS Fellows

Unintentional drug overdoses take a toll across the U.S. unequally, study finds

[Press-News.org] Molecular knock-out alleviates Alzheimer's symptoms in mice