Welcome to your daily round-up of everything happening in the world of neurorehabilitation.
Research news
Game-changing blood test for stroke detection
A new study led by investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, and collaborators developed a new test by combining blood-based biomarkers with a clinical score to identify patients experiencing large vessel occlusion (LVO) stroke with high accuracy. “We have developed a game-changing, accessible tool that could help ensure that more people suffering from stroke are in the right place at the right time to receive critical, life-restoring care,” said senior author Joshua Bernstock, MD, PhD, MPH, a clinical fellow in the Department of Neurosurgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Black adults at risk for Alzheimer’s disease live in more polluted areas
A study by Duke and Columbia Universities finds older, non-white adults are more likely to live in areas with higher air pollution and near toxic disposal sites, among or environmental injustices, potentially underlying their cognitive health. The results add to a growing area of research exploring the connections between environmental factors and brain health, racial injustices, and aging, and suggests looking at a patient’s address may be just as important for care providers to consider as listening to their heart or ordering a brain scan.
Tricking the brain’s inner GPS
Researchers have observed grid cell activity in the human brain during self-location illusions induced by multisensory virtual reality, without altering visual perspectives. Dr Hyuk-June Moon from the Bionics Research Center at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), in collaboration with Professor Olaf Blanke’s team at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL), has successfully induced self-location illusions with multi-sensory virtual reality (VR) in the MRI scanner and observed corresponding changes in the human brain’s grid cell activity.
Company and financial neuro-rehab news
Phase 1b/2a Clinical Trial of AJ201 for Kennedy’s Disease
Avenue Therapeutics, a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of therapies for the treatment of neurologic diseases, today announced the completion of the last patient’s final visit in the company’s Phase 1b/2a clinical trial of AJ201 for the treatment of spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy, also known as Kennedy’s Disease. Topline data are expected to be reported mid-year 2024.
Firefly Neuroscience closes merger with WaveDancer
Firefly Neuroscience, an artificial intelligence company developing innovative neuroscientific solutions to improve outcomes for patients with mental illnesses and neurological disorders, today announced the appointment of David Johnson as its Executive Chairman upon closing of its planned merger with WaveDancer. Firefly has entered into a definitive agreement and plan of merger with WaveDancer, which has been approved by the stockholders of both companies and both companies are working towards meeting the final closing conditions.
Technology news
Big tech turning AI spotlight on neurotechnology
Leap Rate reports that AI-driven neurotechnology has opened up new possibilities in the field of healthcare. Advances in AI may enable people suffering from debilitating conditions to communicate, noting that the market for neurotechnological devices had a reported value of approximately $15bn in 2023.
