News and Events from the UCSD Department of Neurosciences

Discovery could help lead to prevention of radical surgery in rare childhood disease Hemimegalencephaly is a rare but dramatic condition in which the brain grows asymmetrically, with one hemisphere becoming massively enlarged. Though frequently dia... (More)

MRI study finds genetic basis of brain development largely similar in mice and humans A new study using magnetic resonance imaging data of 406 adult human twins affirms the long-standing idea that the genetic basis of human cortical regionalization... (More)

Cells develop and thrive by turning genes on and off as needed in a precise pattern, a process known as regulated gene transcription. In a paper published in the November 9 issue of the journal Cell, researchers at the University of California, San ... (More)

In a paper published in the November 9 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and University of Washington describe in deeper detail the pathology of a devastating neurological... (More)

A study by researchers at the University of California, San Diego Autism Center of Excellence shows that brain overgrowth in boys with autism involves an abnormal, excess number of neurons in areas of the brain associated with social, communication ... (More)

Human memory has historically defied precise scientific description, its biological functions broadly but imperfectly defined in psychological terms. In a pair of papers published in the November 2 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience, researchers a... (More)

With age, forgetfulness and other signs of memory loss sometimes appear, prompting elderly individuals to seek a medical evaluation amid fears that they may be experiencing early symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the most common type of dementia... (More)

In a paper published today in the journal Scientific Reports, a pair of researchers at the University of California, San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences report that inhibiting the ability of immune cells to use fatty acid... (More)

As part of its $50 million Blueprint for Neuroscience Research, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine an inaugural grant designed to fast-track development of a ... (More)

A new study led by a researcher with the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and VA San Diego Healthcare System suggests that Alzheimer’s disease (AD) may be more difficult to detect in people over the age of 80 than in those betw... (More)

UCSD researchers say finding could lead to earlier diagnoses and treatment In a novel imaging study of sleeping toddlers, scientists at the University of California, San Diego Autism Center of Excellence report that a diminished ability of a young ... (More)

An international team of scientists led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have used induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived from patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) to reveal for the fi... (More)

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, the Medical University of South Carolina and American Life Science Pharmaceuticals of San Diego have demonstrated that oral administration of a cysteine protease inhibitor, E64d, not only reduc... (More)

With NASA’s help, UCSD students to study what happens when blood floods headward in microgravity In space, the old movie slogan declares, “no one can hear you scream.” On the other hand, you might look like it, with puffy face, swollen eyes and dis... (More)

Highly conserved dual mechanism regulates both brain development and function Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have uncovered new details of an unusual biological mechanism in the brains of diverse species t... (More)

UCSD scientists say molecule moderates condition linked to neurodegenerative diseases Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have discovered a steroid hormone that inhibits inflammation in the brain. The findings,... (More)

Researchers explain why some neuronal proteins take their time getting to the terminal Grappling with a question that has defied scientific explanation for decades, a small team of researchers from the University of California, San Diego School of ... (More)

$40-million, five-year observational clinical study, sponsored by Michael J. Fox Foundation, will seek biomarkers of Parkinson’s disease The University of California, San Diego School of Medicine is one of 18 official study sites for the Parkinson’... (More)

Effort will study and treat condition in adults Doctors and scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine will soon open one of the first programs in the United States to combine academic research with the treatment of a... (More)

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, known as ALS or more popularly, Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a notorious neurodegenerative condition characterized by the progressive deterioration of brain and spinal cord neurons, resulting in the gradual but catastrophi... (More)

Recent studies suggest that neurons in a particular area of the brain called the lateral habenula (LHb) are activated in models of depression. These neurons are activated by stimuli linked to disappointment or anticipation of a negative outcome, and... (More)

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have identified the motors that move non-infectious prion proteins (PrPC) – found within many mammalian cells – up and down long, neuronal transport pathways.  Identifying nor... (More)

When a laboratory rat learns how to reach for and grab a food pellet – a pretty complex and unnatural act for a rodent – the acquired knowledge significantly alters the structure of the specific brain cells involved, which sprout a whopping 22 perce... (More)

In a major advance for schizophrenia research, an international team of scientists, led by Jonathan Sebat, PhD, assistant professor of psychiatry and cellular and molecular medicine at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, has ... (More)

Research from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine provides new clues for the compulsive behavior and cognitive defects associated with a rare childhood neurological disease called Lesch-Nyhan Disease (LND). Two pathways found ... (More)