Welcome to your daily round-up of everything happening in the world of neurorehabilitation.
Research news
Mutation that alters Alzheimer’s progression identified
The Faculty of Medicine of the University of Malaga José Luis Royo has published work in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease that has characterised a genetic variant in SIRPβ1 gene, which affects the way in which the immune system fights against beta-amyloid deposits, the cause that leads to this pathology.
How the brain translates motivation into goal-oriented behaviour
In a new study published Current Biology, researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the National Institute of Mental Health, describe how two major neuronal subpopulations in a part of the brain’s thalamus called the paraventricular nucleus participate in the dynamic regulation of goal pursuits. This research provides insight into the mechanisms by which the brain tracks motivational states to shape instrumental actions.
Fatty food before surgery may impair memory
Eating fatty food in the days leading up to surgery may prompt a heightened inflammatory response in the brain that interferes for weeks with memory-related cognitive function in older adults – and, new research in animals suggests, even in young adults. The study, building upon previous research from the same lab at The Ohio State University, also showed that taking a DHA omega-3 fatty acid supplement for a month before the unhealthy eating and surgical procedure prevented the effects on memory linked to both the high-fat diet and the surgery in aged and young adult rats.
Company and financial neuro-rehab news
New clinical research sites in Texas
Cedar Health Research, a multi-therapeutic independent clinical research site and patient network, has announced two new sites in Texas located in Arlington, TX and Midland, TX. The Arlington site will now serve as the Tarrant County mid-cities hub location for Cedar Health Research’s Dallas-Fort Worth clinical operations. Arlington is ranked as the fifth most diverse city based on a U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. Religious Census study in 2023 and is centrally located in the fourth largest metropolitan area in the US. The Arlington independent site supports a variety of outpatient phase I-IV trials inclusive of vaccines, neurology, metabolic disease, women’s health, cardiovascular, endocrinology, and general medicine.
Blackford and Pixyl partner to aid detection and monitoring of neurological diseases
Blackford, the pioneering strategic AI platform and solutions provider, and Pixyl, an award-winning French MedTech firm specializing in AI-powered MRI solutions, today announced a commercial partnership to bring Pixyl.Neuro, a next-generation AI software for brain MRI analysis, to healthcare professionals via the Blackford Platform.
Technology news
iBCI-CC to drive innovation in Neurotechnology
Mass General Brigham is establishing the Implantable Brain-Computer Interface Collaborative Community (iBCI-CC). This is the first Collaborative Community in the clinical neurosciences that has participation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
