Stroke in Biological News

Penn research team tests bedside monitoring of brain blood flow and metabolism in stroke victims

PHILADELPHIA A University of Pennsylvania team has completed the first successful demonstration of a noninvasive optical device to monitor cerebral blood flow in patients with acute stroke, a leading cause of disability and death. The ultimate goal of this research is to improve the management...

Predicting risk of stroke from one's genetic blueprint

Boston, MAA new statistical model could be used to predict an individual's lifetime risk of stroke, finds a study from the Children's Hospital Informatics Program (CHIP). Using genetic information from 569 hospital patients, the researchers showed that their predictive model could estimate an indi...

Researchers identify a cell type that limits stroke damage

Quebec City, January 27, 2009A research team including Serge Rivest of University Laval's Faculty of Medicine has demonstrated the existence of a type of cells that limits brain damage after a stroke. The study was recently published in the online version of Nature Medicine . Laboratory experi...

Study helps explain connection between sleep apnea, stroke and death

BETHESDA, Md. (Jan. 6, 2009) − Obstructive sleep apnea decreases blood flow to the brain, elevates blood pressure within the brain and eventually harms the brain's ability to modulate these changes and prevent damage to itself, according to a new study published by The American Physiological...

New sensory devices will aid Parkinson's and stroke patients

People who have suffered a stroke or who have been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, could benefit from new research at Queen's University Belfast. Dr Cathy Craig from Queen's School of Psychology is researching the development of new sensory devices for those who normally have difficulty con...

Even low levels of air pollution may pose stroke risk

ANN ARBOR, Mich.---Short-term exposure to low levels of particulate air pollution may increase the risk of stroke or mini-stroke, according to findings that suggest current exposure standards could be insufficient to protect the public. "The vast majority of the public is exposed to ambient ai...

Study finds possible connection between marijuana abuse and stroke or heart attacks

Long-term harmful effects of marijuana (MJ) include risk for heart attacks and strokes in addition to impaired learning and memory. The active chemical in MJ called delta-9-tetrahyrdocannabinol (THC) is believed to exert these effects by binding to cannabinoid (CB) receptors located on several cel...

New 3-D ultrasound could improve stroke diagnosis, care

DURHAM, N.C. Using 3-D ultrasound technology they designed, Duke University bioengineers can compensate for the thickness and unevenness of the skull to see in real-time the arteries within the brain that most often clog up and cause strokes. The researchers believe that these advances will ul...

Scientists ask whether microscaffolding can help stem cells rebuild brain after stroke damage

Inserting tiny scaffolding into the brain could dramatically reduce damage caused by strokes the UK National Stem Cell Network Annual Science Meeting will hear today (10 April). Speaking at the conference in Edinburgh, Dr Mike Modo from the Institute of Psychiatry will explain how combining scaff...

Blueberry and green tea containing supplement protects against stroke damage

Tampa, Florida (March 4, 2008) A unique dietary supplement called NutraStem has been shown to have beneficial effects following experimental stroke. A nutritional supplement product, NutraStem also known as NT-020, is a proprietary formulation of blueberry, green tea, vitamin D3 and carnosine e...

Tracking stroke

This release is available in German . Every two minutes in Germany, one person suffers a stroke. About one third of the affected do not survive the sudden lack of blood in the brain, many others are left with serious disabilities. Since the brain is a high-performance organ with an immen...

Blood pressure drug telmisartan shows powerful activity against stroke

NEW YORK (Dec. 12, 2007) -- Telmisartan, a drug widely used to help control blood pressure, may have uniquely potent activity in preventing stroke, according to a new study conducted in an animal model. Whether they used the drug alone or in combination with a different type of antihypertensive...

Risk of stroke doubles if diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes

Individuals diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes are at double the risk of having a stroke compared to those without diabetes, according to new research from the University of Alberta. It was found that the risk of a stroke is considered high within the first five years of treatment for Type 2 diabetes ...

Tracing broken wiring in stroke patients

Researchers have used a technique to trace the functional disruption in brain circuitry that causes stroke patients to show a lack of awareness or response to the side of the body opposite to the side of the stroke lesion in the brain. The researchers said their findings shed new light on the neuro...

Brain protein improves stroke symptoms in rats, even when injected after 3 days

A protein naturally occurring in the brain improves recovery from stroke when injected up to three days after the onset of the stroke, and could be used as an effective stroke drug. A study in rats published today in the open access journal BMC Biology shows that an injection of Granulocyte-Colony ...

High hourly air pollution levels more than double stroke risk

High hourly levels of air pollution, more than double the risk of one type of stroke, suggests research published ahead of print in Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Currently, the risk of respiratory and cardiovascular problems tends to be linked to the average daily amount of air polluti...

Incidence of stroke decreases over last 50 years

The incidence of stroke in the U.S. over the past 50 years has declined, although the severity of stroke has not, according to a study in the December 27 issue of JAMA. Stroke continues to be a major public health concern, with more than 750,000 new strokes occurring each year in the United State...

UBC researchers find stroke death channel

New therapies for stroke patients may soon be possible, thanks to a discovery made by a team of University of British Columbia neuroscience researchers who have found a new stroke death channel ?the conduit through which key chemicals are lost from brain cells during stroke, causing the cell death ...

Acidity in the brain could hold the key to stroke treatment

Development of a new technique for detecting brain damage caused by stroke has been boosted up by a £1m grant to scientists at The University of Manchester. Professor Gareth Morris of the School of Chemistry and Professor Risto Kauppinen of the University of Birmingham are to lead the development o...

New compound reduces stroke damage

A group of German scientists has synthesized a new compound that dramatically decreases the damage to neurons in rats demonstrating stroke symptoms. The research appears as the "Paper of the Week" in the May 26 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, an American Society for Biochemistry and M...

Molecular cabal contributes to stroke damage

In the neural train wreck that is stroke, the cutoff of oxygen kills brain cells through a buildup of acid, as well as by overexciting receptors on the surface of brain cells. Now, researchers exploring the detailed mechanism of this excitotoxicity and acidotoxicity have discovered how an insidious...

Leicester research paves way for first use in Europe of an insect to fight invasive plant

...range. At this point they were contacted by Dick Shaw of CABI, who was contemplating starting a Biological Control program for Japanese Knotweed. At a stroke the Japanese Knotweed research program that had been carried out from pure academic interest acquired an important and unforeseen application. Two of ...

Research shows rates of severe childhood obesity have tripled

... found that a third of children in the severely obese category were classified as having metabolic syndrome, a group of risk factors for heart attack, stroke and diabetes. These risk factors include higher-than normal blood pressure, cholesterol and insulin levels. "These findings demonstrate the signif...

UTMB study identifies women at risk of gaining excessive weight with injectable birth control

... increased abdominal fat, a known component of metabolic syndrome, which raises the risk of obesity-related conditions such as cardiovascular disease, stroke and diabetes," said corresponding author Dr. Abbey Berenson, professor in UTMB's department of obstetrics and gynecology. The researchers recommen...

Study explains potential failure of oral contraceptives with obese women

... obese patients in an effort to decrease their risk of venous thrombosis. These are blood clots in the legs or elsewhere that can increase the risk of stroke and heart attacks. The study was done with 20 women of ages 18 to 35, all of them healthy and seeking contraception, 10 of whom were of normal weig...

Engineering innovative solutions for 21st century medicine

...implants will reduce the need for further replacements, avoiding costly and painful surgery; New imaging technologies have the potential to predict stroke and heart attack, improve early detection of cancer, help surgeons perform less invasive operations, and even play a role in the diagnosis and treatme...

Protein regulates movement of mitochondria in brain cells

... the cell has a greater capacity to filter out toxic levels of calcium. Rempe and his colleagues are now investigating the role that HUMMR may play in stroke models, particularly whether or not this activity helps protect vulnerable cells that lie just outside the core areas of the brain that are damaged by...

Brain-computer interface, developed at Brown, begins new clinical trial

...technology. The research is focused not only on the ability to operate a computer but also to assist people with ALS, spinal cord injury and brainstem stroke to control their environment. "Through ongoing development and testing, it is hoped that these technologies will eventually help to improve the com...

Resilin springs simplify the control of crustacean limb movements

...the space that would be required for a muscle to do the job of 'resetting' the movement, the resilin spring allows the muscle that generates the power stroke to become larger and hence more powerful. Second, the amount of nervous control required can be reduced because one direction of movement is controlle...

New evidence of how high glucose damages blood vessels could lead to new treatments

...he researchers suspect increased modification of proteins by a glucose-derived molecule is a player in vascular problems associated with hypertension, stroke and obesity as well. One aftermath of high glucose levels is low levels of the powerful vasodilator nitric oxide in blood vessels, a shortfall that...

Georgetown University's Howard J. Federoff, M.D., Ph.D. receives Bernard Sanberg Memorial Award

...rd is named for Bernard Sanberg, father of Dr. Paul Sanberg, (University of South Florida), a co-founder of the ASNTR. After Bernard Sanberg died of a stroke in 1999, the award bearing his name was established and is given by the ASNTR annually to an individual who has made outstanding research contribution...

Genetic study confirms the immune system's role in narcolepsy

...little doubt that autoimmunity plays a role," says Merrill Mitler, Ph.D., a program director with the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and stroke (NINDS). The study was funded principally by NINDS, with additional support from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the National Heart, ...

Single gene defect can cause stroke, other artery diseases

...l as early onset coronary artery disease, ischemic stroke and Moyamoya disease. The research is led by scien...(ACTA2) Cause Early Onset Coronary Artery Disease, stroke and Moyamoya Disease, Along with Thoracic Aortic A...death for both men and women in the United States. stroke is the third leading cause of death in the country...

New findings in taste and smell

... experience loss of smell or taste each year resulting from head trauma, sinus disease, normal aging and neurological disorders, such as brain injury, stroke and Alzheimer's disease. By providing a better understanding of the function of chemosensory systems, scientific and biomedical research is leading to...

Researchers use brain interface to post to Twitter

...or users whose bodies do not work, but whose brains function normally. Among those are people who have amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), brain-stem stroke or high spinal cord injury. Some brain-computer interface systems employ an electrode-studded cap wired to a computer. The electrodes detect electr...

Research suggests vegetable juice may help people with metabolic syndrome lose weight

...sure, high blood sugar and abnormal blood lipids. If left uncontrolled, metabolic syndrome increases risk for chronic diseases, such as heart disease, stroke or diabetes. An estimated 47 million Americans have some combination of these risk factors and are often overweight or obese as well. Participan...

'First aid' for brain cells comes from blood

...his protection, perhaps offering a new approach to stroke therapy. The study has now been published in Nat...ine . Every year, some 200,000 people suffer a stroke in Germany. It is still frequently fatal or causes...or developing and testing innovative approaches to stroke treatment. Immune cells produce the protectiv...

Therapeutic hypothermia is promising strategy to minimize tissue damage

...es several aspects of hypothermia, including studies in animal models, its use in the operating room, and its role in the treatment of cardiac arrest, stroke and subarachnoid hemorrhage, traumatic brain (TBI) and spinal cord injury, and pediatric TBI and asphyxia. Mackensen et al. focus on "Perioperative...

Simple test helps predict heart attack risk

....1 million Americans every year have heart attacks, and almost a third of those heart attacks results in death. Another 750,000 individuals experience stroke each year. Risk factorslike smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure and obesityincrease one's risk of heart attack and are associated with 75 percent o...

Stem cells replace stroke-damaged tissue in rats

...ls attached, it is possible to fill a hole left by stroke damage with brand new brain tissue within 7 days. ...tem cells have been injected into the void left by stroke damage have had some success in improving outcomes...e a much better improvement in the outcome after a stroke if we can fully replace the lost brain tissue, and...