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People with Paralysis Control Robotic Arms using Brain-Computer Interface

By Guest PostMay 17, 2012Health, Technologybrain computer interface, braingate neural interface, braingate system, brainstem stroke, deka prosthetic arm, people with paralysis, people with tetraplegia

A new study in Nature reports that two people with tetraplegia were able to reach for and grasp objects in three-dimensional space using robotic arms that they controlled directly with brain activity. They used the BrainGate neural interface system, an investigational device currently being studied under an Investigational Device Exemption. One participant used the system to serve herself coffee for the first time since becoming paralyzed nearly 15 years ago.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — On April 12, 2011, nearly 15 years after she became paralyzed and unable to speak, a woman controlled a robotic arm by thinking about moving her arm and hand to lift a bottle of coffee to her mouth and take a drink. That achievement is one of the advances in brain-computer interfaces, restorative neurotechnology, and assistive robot technology described in the May 17 edition of the journal Nature by the BrainGate2 collaboration of researchers at the Department of Veterans Affairs, Brown University, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and the German Aerospace Center (DLR). (more…)

Feeding Tubes May Worsen Pressure Ulcer Risk

By Guest PostMay 16, 2012Healthadvanced dementia, feeding tube insertion, gastric feeding tube, getting an ulcer, peg feeding tubes, pressure ulcer, propensity match cohort

In the Archives of Internal Medicine, researchers report that despite the conventional wisdom that feeding tubes help dementia patients resist pressure ulcers, feeding tubes actually are associated with an increased risk of ulcers developing. The tubes also don’t promote healing.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — A new study led by Brown University researchers reports that percutaneous endoscopic gastric (PEG) feeding tubes, long assumed to help bedridden dementia patients stave off or overcome pressure ulcers, may instead make the horrible sores more likely to develop or not improve. (more…)

This is Your Brain on Sugar: UCLA Study Shows High-Fructose Diet Sabotages Learning, Memory

By Guest PostMay 15, 2012Healthbrain dysfunction, corn syrup, fatty acids, fructose in fruits, high fructose diet, omega-3, synaptic function

Eating more omega-3 fatty acids can offset damage, researchers say

Attention, college students cramming between midterms and finals: Binging on soda and sweets for as little as six weeks may make you stupid. (more…)

New Biomarker Test Predicts Arthritis at Much Earlier Stage, MU Researchers Say

By Guest PostMay 15, 2012Healtharthritic joints, biomarker test, early detection system, osteoarthritis, predict future arthritis

Early detection system would allow better treatment options

COLUMBIA, Mo. — More than 27 million adults currently suffer from osteoarthritis, which is the most common form of arthritis. In the past, doctors have been unable to diagnose patients with arthritis until they begin to show symptoms, which include joint pain and stiffness. (more…)

Evolution’s Gift May Also be at The Root of a Form of Autism

By Guest PostMay 14, 2012Healthautism, cognitive abilities, evolutionary mechanism, fragile x syndrome, gene activity, learning disabilities, psychiatric disorders

A recently evolved pattern of gene activity in the language and decision-making centers of the human brain is missing in a disorder associated with autism and learning disabilities, a new study by Yale University researchers shows. (more…)

Insect Glands May Illuminate Human Fertilization Process

By Guest PostMay 12, 2012Health, Scienceallan spradling, bee, cellular physiology, egg, fertilization, fruit fly, gene, hr39, human, insect glands, jianjun sun, lrh 1, mammals, receptor protein, reproductive glands, secretion, secretion glands, sperm

Baltimore, MD — Insect glands are responsible for producing a host of secretions that allow bees to sting and ants to lay down trails to and from their nests. New research from Carnegie scientists focuses on secretions from glands in the reproductive tract that help sperm survive and guide the sperm on the trip to fertilize an egg. The gene that controls the development of these glands in fruit flies provides important information about gland development in all insects, as well as potential clues to similar human reproductive glands. Their work is published this month in Current Biology.

When a female fruit fly receives sperm from a male fruit fly, lubricating secretions in her reproductive tract activate the sperm, store it, and guide it to fertilization. Without the aid of these secretions, sperm would not make it to the eggs. Carnegie’s Allan Spradling and Jianjun Sun demonstrated that the gene in charge of regulating the development of fruit fly secretion glands is called Hr39. It encodes a steroid receptor protein. (more…)

Peak Risk About 16 Years Old for Teens Misusing Prescription Drugs

By Guest PostMay 11, 2012Healthacceleration, adolescents, college age years, data, james c anthony, jonathan troost, michigan state university, misusing, prescriber, prescription drugs, public health, teens

EAST LANSING, Mich. — The peak risk for misusing prescription pain relievers occurs in mid-adolescence, specifically about 16 years old and earlier than many experts thought, according to a new study by Michigan State University researchers.

The results, based on recent nationwide surveys of nearly 120,000 U.S. adolescents, suggest prevention programs may need to be introduced earlier, in childhood and early adolescence, said James C. Anthony of MSU’s Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. (more…)

Neuro Researchers Sharpen our Understanding of Memories

By Guest PostMay 11, 2012Healthbrain, chemical functioning, memory impairments, neurodegenerative disorders, understanding of memories

Scientists now have a better understanding of how precise memories are formed thanks to research led by Prof. Jean-Claude Lacaille of the University of Montreal’s Department of Physiology. “In terms of human applications, these findings could help us to better understand memory impairments in neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s disease,” Lacaille said. The study looks at the cells in our brains, or neurons, and how they work together as a group to form memories. (more…)

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