Read articles from the MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Disease (MIND) annual Research Reviews, plus articles from the MGH Hotline, Mass General Magazine, and Mass General Public Affairs.
05/08/2013: NeuroBlast
NeuroBlast: the newsletter of translational neuroscience and clinical care advances in neurology, neurosurgery, and neuroscience from Massachusetts General Hospital.
04/25/2013: Alzheimer's risk gene presents potential treatment target
MGH investigators have determined that one of the recently identified genes contributing to the risk of late-onset Alzheimer's disease regulates the clearance of the toxic amyloid beta (A-beta) protein that accumulates in the brains of patients with the disease.
12/17/2012: Genetic manipulation of urate alters neurodegeneration in mouse model of Parkinson's disease
A study by MGH researchers adds further support to the possibility that increasing levels of urate may protect against Parkinson's disease. The investigators report that mice with a genetic mutation increasing urate levels were protected against Parkinson's-like neurodegeneration, while the damage was worse in animals with abnormally low urate.
11/29/2012: Enzyme inhibition protects against Huntington's disease damage in two animal models
Treatment with a novel agent that inhibits the activity of SIRT2, an enzyme that regulates many important cellular functions, reduced neurological damage, slowed the loss of motor function and extended survival in two animal models of Huntington's disease.
10/18/2012: $5.4 Million Awarded for Research to Guide Alzheimer's Drug Development
Understanding who is most susceptible to Alzheimer's disease and developing early detection models, effective therapies and possibly a cure, is the goal of the largest single private scientific grant ever invested in Alzheimer's Whole Genome Sequencing focused on families afflicted with the disease.
05/23/2012: Study supports urate protection against Parkinson's disease, hints at novel mechanism
Use of the antioxidant urate to protect against the neurodegeneration caused by Parkinson's disease appears to rely on more than urate's ability to protect against oxidative damage.
12/18/2011: Increased expression of regulatory enzyme may protect against neurodegeneration in Huntington's disease
Treatment that increases brain levels of an important regulatory enzyme may slow the loss of brain cells that characterizes Huntington's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.
11/24/2011: Rebuilding the Brain’s Circuitry
Neuron transplants have repaired brain circuitry and substantially normalized function in mice with a brain disorder, an advance indicating that key areas of the mammalian brain are more reparable than was widely believed.
10/03/2011: Biomarker for Huntington's disease identified
In a new research paper BWH and MGH researchers identify a transcriptional biomarker that may assist in the monitoring of Huntington's disease activity and in the evaluation of new medications.
06/23/2011: Rare genetic disorder provides unique insight into Parkinson’s disease
MGH investigators may have found the mechanism behind a previously reported link between the rare genetic condition Gaucher disease and the common neurodegenerative disorder Parkinson's disease.
05/11/2011: Mild obesity appears to improve survival in ALS patients
Patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) may be an exception to the rule that being overweight is a health hazard. In a retrospective study of over 400 ALS patients, MGH researchers found that those who were mildly obese survived longer than patients who were normal weight, underweight or even overweight.
04/08/2011: Anne Young, MD, PhD, donates $1M to Department of Neurology
ANNE YOUNG, MD, PHD, chief of Neurology, made history for women in academic medicine by making a $1 million gift to the Department of Neurology through a deferred charitable gift annuity.
05/17/2010: New study characterizes cognitive and anatomic differences in Alzheimer’s disease gene carriers
In the most comprehensive study to date, neurologists have clearly identified significant differences in the ways that Alzheimer’s disease (AD) affects patients with and without the apolipoprotein E ε4 gene, a known genetic risk factor for the neurodegenerative disease.
03/02/2010: Alzheimer's-associated protein may be part of the innate immune system
Amyloid-beta protein – the primary constituent of the plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients – may be part of the body's first-line system to defend against infection. In their report in the March 3 issue of PLoS One, a team led by MGH researchers describe their evidence that amyloid-beta protein is an antimicrobial peptide.
03/02/2010: Mass. General Researchers Seek Participants for Parkinson’s Disease Clinical Trial
Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital are seeking recently diagnosed Parkinson's disease (PD) patients to participate in a clinical trial investigating whether inosine taken to raise the body’s level of urate — a naturally occurring antioxidant — can be used to slow the progress of PD.
01/01/2010: Largest-ever drug trial launched in Huntington’s disease
Therapeutic drug trial is a definitive test of whether high-dose creatine can slow the progression of HD.
01/01/2010: Testing new drugs for ALS
Merit Cudkowicz, MD, director of the Mass General Neurological Clinical Research Institute, talks about clinical trials for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also known as ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease.
10/12/2009: Study supports possible role of urate in slowing Parkinson’s disease progression
By examining data from a 20-year-old clinical trial, a research team based at the MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases and Harvard School of Public Health, has found evidence supporting the findings of their 2008 study – that elevated levels of the antioxidant urate may slow the progression of Parkinson’s disease.
05/26/2009: Mass. General’s Rudy Tanzi a “Rock Star of Science”
Alzheimer’s disease researcher Rudolph Tanzi, PhD, of Massachusetts General Hospital adds another distinction to his scientific career when he joins Aerosmith’s Joe Perry and other rock celebrities in a designer menswear photo shoot as a “Rock Star of Science” in the June issue of GQ Magazine.
04/02/2009: Modification of mutant huntingtin protein increases its clearance from brain cells
A new study has identified a potential strategy for removing the abnormal protein that causes Huntington’s disease from brain cells, which could slow the progression of the devastating neurological disorder.
02/26/2009: Alzheimer’s-associated plaques may have impact throughout the brain
The impact of the amyloid plaques that appear in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease may extend beyond the deposits’ effects on neurons– the cells that transmit electrochemical signals throughout the nervous system.
02/26/2009: International collaboration identifies new gene associated with ALS
A collaborative research effort spanning nearly a decade between researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and King’s College London has identified a novel gene for inherited amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease).
01/01/2009: Gender differences in Parkinson’s disease
Drs. Anne B. Young, Ippolita Cantuti-Castelvetri and Michael Schwarzschild study gender differences in Parkinson’s disease from three different investigative approaches.
01/01/2009: Genetic treasure hunt finds trove of Alzheimer’s disease genes
Leveraging Alzheimer’s Genome Project™ data, geneticist Rudy Tanzi, PhD, completes research to discover all gene variants that increase a person’s risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
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