Neural Cell News Volume 4.36 | Sep 15 2010

TOP STORY

Scientists Glimpse Dance of Skeletons Inside Neurons
Scientists have uncovered how a structural component inside neurons performs two coordinated dance moves when the connections between neurons are strengthened. [Press release from Emory University School of Medicine discussing online prepublication in Nature Neuroscience]

SCIENCE NEWS

UC Davis School of Medicine Investigators Discover a New Hot Spot for the Genesis of Signaling Neurons in the Adult Brain
In an unanticipated finding, researchers have discovered that, during early adulthood, the brain produces new excitatory neurons, and that these neurons arise from non-neuronal support cells in an area of the brain that processes smell. [Press release from the UC Davis School of Medicine discussing online prepublication in the Journal of Neuroscience]

Researchers Identify New Gene for Memory
A team has for the first time identified a new gene that is required for memory formation in Drosophila. The gene may have similar functions in humans, shedding light on neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease or human learning disabilities. [Press release from The Scripps Research Institute discussing online prepublication in Neuron]

Cell Quality Control Mechanism Research Paves Way for New Understanding of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Scientists have solved a long-standing mystery of how cells conduct “quality control” to eliminate the toxic effects of a certain kind of error in protein production. The findings may lead to a better understanding of a host of neurodegenerative diseases. [The Medical News]

Compounds Fend Off Alzheimer’s Disease Amyloid Pathology
A team of scientists has synthesized hundreds of new compounds with the potential of reducing the production of the A-beta 42 peptide, a primary component of Alzheimer’s disease. [Press release from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine discussing online prepublication in Neuron]

Small Synaptic Impulses Key to Rapid Non-Linear Information Processing in the Brain
A novel theoretical framework for mathematically modeling nerve cells has illuminated for the first time how small synaptic impulses enable non-linear information processing in the brain. The findings offer fundamental insights relevant to a wide range of biological, physical and technical systems. [Press release from RIKEN Brain Science Institute discussing online prepublication in PLoS Computational Biology]

Neuralstem Stem Cells Survive and Differentiate Into Neurons in Rats With Stroke
Neuralstem, Inc. announced that its spinal cord stem cells survived in rat brains affected by stroke and differentiated predominantly into neurons. [Neuralstem, Inc. Press Release]

New Pathway Identified in Parkinson’s Through Brain Imaging
A new study has identified a novel molecular pathway underlying Parkinson’s disease and points to existing drugs which may be able to slow progression of the disease. [Press release from Columbia University Medical Center discussing online prepublication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA]

Cockroach Brains Could be Rich Stores of New Antibiotics
Experts have discovered powerful antibiotic properties in the brains of cockroaches and locusts which could lead to novel treatments for multi-drug resistant bacterial infections. [The University of Nottingham Press Release]

Mental Maturity Scan Tracks Brain Development
Five minutes in a scanner can reveal how far a child’s brain has come along the path from childhood to maturity and potentially shed light on a range of psychological and developmental disorders, scientists have shown. [Press release from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis discussing online prepublication in Science]

Single Gene Regulates Motor Neurons in Spinal Cord
In a surprising and unexpected discovery, scientists have found that a single type of gene acts as a master organizer of motor neurons in the spinal cord. [Press release from NYU Langone Medical Center discussing online prepublication in Neuron]

Role of a Ribosome-Associated E3 Ubiquitin Ligase in Protein Quality Control
Here researchers show that the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Ltn1 RING-domain-type E3 ubiquitin ligase acts in the quality control of non-stop proteins, in a process that is mechanistically distinct but conceptually analogous to that performed by ssrA: Ltn1 is predominantly associated with ribosomes, and it marks nascent non-stop proteins with ubiquitin to signal their proteasomal degradation. [Nature ]

Greater Neural Pattern Similarity Across Repetitions Is Associated with Better Memory
Using functional magnetic resonance imaging and representational similarity analysis of brain activity, researchers found that, compared with forgotten items, subsequently remembered faces and words showed greater similarity in neural activation across multiple studies in many brain regions, including (but not limited to) the regions whose mean activities were correlated with subsequent memory. [Science]

ADF/Cofilin-Mediated Actin Dynamics Regulate AMPA Receptor Trafficking During Synaptic Plasticity
Findings suggest that temporally regulated ADF/cofilin activities function in postsynaptic modifications of receptor number and spine size during synaptic plasticity. [Nat Neurosci]

Gilgamesh Is Required for rutabaga-Independent Olfactory Learning in Drosophila
From a screen for new memory mutants, researchers identified alleles of the gilgamesh (gish) gene, which encodes a casein kinase Igamma homolog that is preferentially expressed in the mushroom body neurons. [Neuron]

Modulation of Gamma-Secretase Reduces Beta-Amyloid Deposition in a Transgenic Mouse Model of Alzheimer’s Disease
Researchers synthesized over 1200 novel gamma-secretase modulator compounds that reduced Abeta42 levels without inhibiting epsilon-site cleavage of APP and Notch, the generation of the APP and Notch intracellular domains, respectively. [Neuron]

Global Control of Motor Neuron Topography Mediated by the Repressive Actions of a Single Hox Gene
Researchers show that a single Hox gene, Hoxc9 , has an essential role in organizing the motor system through global repressive activities. [Neuron]

Polyamine Pathway Contributes to the Pathogenesis of Parkinson Disease
The full complement of molecular pathways contributing to the pathogenesis of Parkinson disease remains unknown. Here researchers address this issue by taking a broad approach, beginning by using functional MRI to identify brainstem regions differentially affected and resistant to the disease. [ Proc Natl Acad Sci USA]

A Small Molecule Accelerates Neuronal Differentiation in the Adult Rat
Here, researchers report the characterization of a small molecule (KHS101) that selectively induces a neuronal differentiation phenotype. [Proc Natl Acad Sci USA]

Pyramidal Neurons are Generated from Oligodendroglial Progenitor Cells in Adult Piriform Cortex
Previous studies have shown that oligodendroglial progenitor cells (OPCs) can give rise to neurons in vitro and in perinatal cerebral cortex in vivo. Researchers now report that OPCs in adult murine piriform cortex express low levels of doublecortin, a marker for migratory and immature neurons. [J Neurosci]

Instantaneous Non-Linear Processing by Pulse-Coupled Threshold Units
Contemporary theory of spiking neuronal networks is based on the linear response of the integrate-and-fire neuron model derived in the diffusion limit. Researchers find that for non-zero synaptic weights, the response to transient inputs differs qualitatively from this approximation. [PLoS Comput Biol]

STEMSOFT® Software Inc. Licenses StemLab® Software to Arizona’s Celebration Stem Cell Centre
STEMSOFT Software Inc., the leading provider of software solutions for the cell therapy and transplant community, is pleased to announce the licensing of StemLab, the leading cell therapy and cord blood banking laboratory software, to the Celebration Stem Cell Centre in Gilbert, Arizona. [STEMSOFT Software Inc. Press Release]

Leading Brain Scientists Meet in Milwaukee To Examine How to Uncover the Brain’s Secrets
Top brain researchers from around the world will be in Milwaukee, September 16-19, 2010, for a neuroscience conference focused on gaining insights into the brain’s inner workings to better understand how the brain thinks, how the brain develops, and how the brain is altered by neurological diseases and how it responds to treatment. [Health News Digest Press Release]

AVANIR Pharmaceuticals Announces Phase III STAR Trial Results Published in Annals of Neurology
AVANIR Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced the electronic publication of the results of the pivotal Phase III STAR trial of its investigational drug AVP-923 (dextromethorphan/quinidine) in the Annals of Neurology. [AVANIR Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Press Release]

Neurocrine Announces Top-Line Results of Corticotropin Releasing Factor Antagonist GSK561679 for Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder
Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. announced top-line efficacy and safety results from a Phase II clinical trial utilizing Corticotropin Releasing Factor (CRF1) receptor antagonist GSK561679 in patients currently experiencing a major depressive episode. [Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. Press Release]

FDA Grants Fast Track Status to Tideglusib (Zentylor TM) for Progressive Supranuclear Palsy
Noscira, a Grupo Zeltia subsidiary specialised in research and development of drugs to treat neurodegenerative diseases, has announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Fast Track status to its neuroprotector drug Tideglusib (Zentylor TM) to treat Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. [Noscira Press Release]

World Renowned Neuroscientist to join Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute
Leading brain researcher P. Read Montague will join the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute on Nov. 15, announced institute director Michael Friedlander. [Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute Press Release]

Anavex 2-73: Journal of Psychopharmacology Publishes Anti-Amnesic and Neuroprotective Data Against Amyloid Toxicity for First of a New Class in Alzheimer’s Disease
Anavex Life Sciences Corp. announced that the Journal of Psychopharmacology has published an original paper showing that ANAVEX 2-73 and its only and active metabolite ANAVEX 19-144 alleviate neurotoxicity and cognition deficits associated with Alzheimer’s disease. [Anavex Life Sciences Corporation Press Release]

Jefferson Establishes Neuroscience Network to Promote Collaboration Among Hospitals to Advance Care Throughout Region
Jefferson Hospital for Neuroscience is launching the Jefferson Neuroscience Network to promote collaboration among area hospitals to advance neuroscience care throughout the region. [Jefferson University Hospitals Press Release]

Kennedy Krieger Institute Awarded $8.5 Million to Study Aging and Dementia in Adults With Down Syndrome
To address crucial gaps in knowledge about Alzheimer’s disease in adults with Down syndrome, the Kennedy Krieger Institute has been awarded an $8.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. [Kennedy Krieger Institute Press Release]

Maryland Stem Cell Research Commission to Host Third Annual Maryland Stem Cell Research Symposium
The Maryland Stem Cell Research Commission will host the Third Annual Maryland Stem Cell Research Symposium in partnership with the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Standards and Technology on Wednesday, Sept. 22, 2010. [Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund Press Release]

New Animal-Research Regulations for the European Union
European scientists will use fewer animals in research when newly approved regulations come into effect across the European Union. [European Union, Europe]

NIH Expands Network Focused on How Genes Affect Drug Responses
The National Institutes of Health plans to spend $161.3 million over the next five years to expand the Pharmacogenomics Research Network, a nationwide collaborative of scientists focused on understanding how genes affect a person’s response to medicines. [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Notice of Intent to Publish a Request for Applications for Clinical Research Centers to Establish the Network for Excellence in Neuroscience Clinical Trials (NEXT Sites – U10) (NOT-NS-10-025) [National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, United States]

Notice of Intent to Publish a Request for Applications for a Clinical Coordinating Center to Establish the Network for Excellence in Neuroscience Clinical Trials (NEXT-CCC) (U01) (NOT-NS-10-026) [National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, United States]

Notice of Intent to Publish a Request for Applications for a Data Coordinating Center to Establish the Network for Excellence in Neuroscience Clinical Trials (NEXT-DCC) (U01) (NOT-NS-10-027) [National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, United States]

National Institute of Mental Health Announces Availability of Funds for Competitive Revision Applications for a Repository Supporting Stem Cell Research Relevant to Mental Disorders (U24) (NOT-MH-10-032) [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Notice of Correction:  Application Due Date for RFA-HG-10-012, Revolutionary Genome Sequencing Technologies – The $1000 Genome (R01) and RFA-HG-10-013, Revolutionary Genome Sequencing Technologies – The $1000 Genome (R21) (Notice Number:NOT-HG-10-021) [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Knockout Mouse Production and Cryopreservation (U42) (RFA-RM-10-013) [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Knockout Mouse Phenotyping Project Database (U54) (RFA-RM-10-012) [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Knockout Mouse Phenotyping (U54) (RFA-RM-10-011) [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Notice of Correction to RFA-AG-11-010, Basic Research on Self-Regulation (R21) (NOT-AG-10-011) [National Institutes of Health, United States]