Medical research

Deadly brain illness discovered in British family

(HealthDay)—A British family harbors a deadly inherited illness that destroys the brain in a way that is similar to the dreaded mad cow disease, researchers report.

Medical research

Lab mice breakthrough offers Alzheimer's hope (Update)

Scientists on Thursday said they had tested a drug that in mice prevented the death of brain cells, boosting hopes in the fight against Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative diseases.

Medical research

Recombinant human prion protein inhibits prion propagation

Case Western Reserve University researchers today published findings that point to a promising discovery for the treatment and prevention of prion diseases, rare neurodegenerative disorders that are always fatal. The researchers ...

Medical research

Prion-like proteins drive several diseases of aging

Two leading neurology researchers have proposed a theory that could unify scientists' thinking about several neurodegenerative diseases and suggest therapeutic strategies to combat them.

Neuroscience

Receptor may aid spread of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's in brain

(Medical Xpress)—Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found a way that corrupted, disease-causing proteins spread in the brain, potentially contributing to Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's ...

Medical research

New models advance the study of deadly human prion diseases

By directly manipulating a portion of the prion protein-coding gene, Whitehead Institute researchers have created mouse models of two neurodegenerative diseases that are fatal in humans. The highly accurate reproduction of ...

Medical research

The flexible tail of the prion protein poisons brain cells

For decades, there has been no answer to the question of why the altered prion protein is poisonous to brain cells. Neuropathologists from the University of Zurich and University Hospital Zurich have now shown that it is ...

Medical research

New approach to protecting prion protein from altering shape

A team of researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have identified a mechanism that can prevent the normal prion protein from changing its molecular shape into the abnormal form responsible for ...

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