A chemical in the brain may explain why some people become suicidal and it may link inflammation of the body to disorders of the mind. According to new research, suicidal individuals have elevated levels of quinolinic acid in the fluid surrounding the central nervous system. The discovery could explain a missing link between inflammation and mental illness, said study researcher Lena Brundin, a professor of molecular medicine at Michigan State University. Previously, scientists had linked suicidal feelings to the kind of bodily inflammation that occurs during illness or stress, but they weren't able to explain how inflammation could translate to depression, hopelessness and a desire to kill oneself. The new study of 100 Swedish patients finds that the higher the level of quinolinic acid in the spinal fluid, the stronger their desire to commit suicide. "The sicker the patient, the higher the quinolinic acid," Brundin told LiveScience. The roots of suicide There were nearly 37,000 suicide deaths in 2009 in the United States and 633,000 emergency room visits for self-inflicted injury, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Between 2000 and 2009, suicide surpassed car accidents as the No. 1 cause of injury-related deaths in the United … Continue reading →

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- InVivo Therapeutics Holdings Corp. (NVIV), a developer of groundbreaking technologies for the treatment of spinal cord injuries (SCI) and other neurotrauma conditions, today announced that Kenneth DiPietro, Executive Vice President Human Resources at Biogen Idec, has joined InVivos Board of Directors. DiPietro has also been appointed as Chair of the Boards Governance, Nominating and Compensation committee. InVivo has pioneered a new technology platform utilizing a variety of biocompatible polymer-based devices to provide structural support to a damaged spinal cord in order to spare tissue from scarring while improving functional recovery and prognosis after a traumatic spinal cord injury. Today there is no effective treatment for traumatic spinal cord injuries, and the market potential is estimated to exceed $10 billion. Mr. DiPietro brings 30 years of experience in the human resources field to InVivos Board. As a senior executive and respected global business leader, Mr. DiPietro is accomplished at linking human resources functional excellence to the achievement of corporate objectives. He has gained broad cultural transformation, organizational development and corporate re-engineering experience with several Global 500 companies including Biogen, Microsoft, and PepsiCo, Inc. We expect that 2013 will be a breakout year for InVivo and that the next … Continue reading →