http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. As pediatric specialists become increasingly aware that surgical anesthesia may have lasting effects on the developing brains of young children, new research suggests the threat may also apply to adult brains. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-06-anesthesia-impact-brain.html Neuroscience Wed, 05 Jun 2013 12:00:08 EST news289645853 Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease, and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) are devastating neurodegenerative diseases with no effective treatment. Researchers are beginning to recognize ALS and FTD as part of a spectrum disorder with overlapping symptoms. Now investigators reporting online February 12 in the Cell Press journal Neuron have discovered an abnormal protein that first forms as a result of genetic abnormalities and later builds up in the brains of many patients with either disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-identification-abnormal-protein-als-frontotemporal.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Tue, 12 Feb 2013 12:30:01 EST news279894429 Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting over 35 million people worldwide. It is generally assumed that the clumping of beta-amyloid (Aß) protein causes neuronal loss in patients. Medication focuses on reducing Aß42, one of the most common proteins and the most harmful. University of Twente PhD student Annelies Vandersteen is refining the current approach. She explains: "The results of my research provide a broader understanding of the processes that lead to Alzheimer's disease and in this way may help to bring about new medication". http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-alzheimer-disease-treatment.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Fri, 14 Dec 2012 09:43:09 EST news274700548 Deciphering what causes the brain cell degeneration of Parkinson's disease has remained a perplexing challenge for scientists. But a team led by scientists from The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) has pinpointed a key factor controlling damage to brain cells in a mouse model of Parkinson's disease. The discovery could lead to new targets for Parkinson's that may be useful in preventing the actual condition. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-potential-parkinson-disease.html Parkinson's & Movement disorders Mon, 19 Nov 2012 16:51:33 EST news272566120