ScienceDaily (Oct. 11, 2012) Three studies conducted as part of Wayne State University's Systems Biology of Epilepsy Project (SBEP) could result in new types of treatment for the disease and, as a bonus, for behavioral disorders as well. The SBEP started out with funds from the President's Research Enhancement Fund and spanned neurology, neuroscience, genetics and computational biology. It since has been supported by multiple National Institutes of Health-funded grants aimed at identifying the underlying causes of epilepsy, and it is uniquely integrated within the Comprehensive Epilepsy Program at the Wayne State School of Medicine and the Detroit Medical Center. Under the guidance of Jeffrey Loeb, M.D., Ph.D., associate director of the Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics (CMMG) and professor of neurology, the project brings together researchers from different fields to create an interdisciplinary research program that targets the complex disease. The multifaceted program at Wayne State is like no other in the world, officials say, with two primary goals: improving clinical care and creating novel strategies for diagnosis and treatment of patients with epilepsy. The three studies were published in high-impact journals and use human brain tissue research to identify new targets for drug development, generate a new … Continue reading →

DETROIT Three studies conducted as part of Wayne State Universitys Systems Biology of Epilepsy Project (SBEP) could result in new types of treatment for the disease and, perhaps, for behavioral disorders as well. The SBEP started out with funds from the Presidents Research Enhancement Fund and spanned neurology, neuroscience, genetics and computational biology. It since has been supported by multiple National Institutes of Health-funded grants aimed at identifying the underlying causes of epilepsy, and it is uniquely integrated within the Comprehensive Epilepsy Program at the Wayne State School of Medicine and the Detroit Medical Center. Under the guidance of Jeffrey Loeb, M.D., associate director of the Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics and professor of neurology, the project brings together researchers from different fields to create an interdisciplinary research program that targets the complex disease. The multifaceted program at Wayne State is like no other in the world, officials say, with two primary goals: improving clinical care and creating novel strategies for diagnosis and treatment of patients with epilepsy. The three studies were published in high-impact journals and use human brain tissue research to identify new targets for drug development, generate a new animal model and identify a new class … Continue reading →

Public release date: 11-Oct-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Julie O'Connor julie.oconnor@wayne.edu 313-577-8845 Wayne State University - Office of the Vice President for Research Three studies conducted as part of Wayne State University's Systems Biology of Epilepsy Project (SBEP) could result in new types of treatment for the disease and, as a bonus, for behavioral disorders as well. The SBEP started out with funds from the President's Research Enhancement Fund and spanned neurology, neuroscience, genetics and computational biology. It since has been supported by multiple National Institutes of Health-funded grants aimed at identifying the underlying causes of epilepsy, and it is uniquely integrated within the Comprehensive Epilepsy Program at the Wayne State School of Medicine and the Detroit Medical Center. Under the guidance of Jeffrey Loeb, M.D., Ph.D., associate director of the Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics (CMMG) and professor of neurology, the project brings together researchers from different fields to create an interdisciplinary research program that targets the complex disease. The multifaceted program at Wayne State is like no other in the world, officials say, with two primary goals: improving clinical care and creating novel strategies for diagnosis and treatment of patients with epilepsy. The three … Continue reading →

TORONTO A Canadian effort to develop a drug to limit the brain damage caused by strokes has made an important step forward. Scientists involved in the project reported Sunday that in a trial conducted on patients undergoing repair of brain aneurysms, the drug, called NA-1, reduced the number of postprocedure strokes by about half. This is rare good news in the quest to develop a neuroprotective drug, a field where more than 1,000 compounds have been tested, and all failed. The researchers have founded a biotechnology company NoNO Inc. to finance the work, because the pharmaceutical industry has essentially left the field. NoNO means no nitric oxide, the free radical produced during a stroke that damages brain tissues. The issue with Pharma is that stroke has been such a wasteland for them that no ones willing to invest, said Dr. Michael Hill, a stroke neurologist with the University of Calgarys Hotchkiss Brain Institute and the Calgary Stroke Program at Foothills Hospital. Hill is first author on the scientific paper outlining the findings, published in the journal Lancet Neurology. The paper reports the results of a Phase II trial, which is the first level in the hierarchy of clinical trials where … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (Oct. 10, 2012) New research reveals that stroke may be affecting people at a younger age. The study is published in the October 10, 2012, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. "The reasons for this trend could be a rise in risk factors such as diabetes, obesity and high cholesterol," said study author Brett Kissela, MD, MS, with the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine in Ohio and a Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology. "Other factors, such as improved diagnosis through the increased use of MRI imaging may also be contributing. Regardless, the rising trend found in our study is of great concern for public health because strokes in younger people translate to greater lifetime disability." For the study, researchers looked at occurrences of strokes in people between the ages 20 and 54 in the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area during three separate, one year-long periods between July of 1993 and June of 1994, and the calendar years of 1999 and 2005. Only first ever strokes were included in the analysis. The study found that the average age of people who experienced stroke fell from 71 years in 1993 and 1994 … Continue reading →

GAITHERSBURG, MD--(Marketwire - Oct 11, 2012) - Cytomedix, Inc. ( OTCQX : CMXI ) (the "Company"), a leading developer of biologically active regenerative therapies, today announced that safety data from the first 10 patients in the Phase II RECOVER-Stroke study of ALD-401, a unique and differentiated stem cell population derived from patients' own bone marrow, are being presented today at the World Stroke Congress in Brazil.This initial part of the study, primarily designed to assess the safety of ALD-401, showed no severe adverse events. The study was expanded to a target enrollment of 100 patients following a review of these initial data by an independent Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) earlier this year. The study data are being presented today by Sean Savitz, M.D., professor of neurology and director of the stroke program at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth). Ten patients who had suffered MCA ischemic stroke were enrolled and randomized to one of two groups: 1) a bone marrow harvest followed by intra-carotid infusion of purified ALDHbr cells or 2) a sham harvest followed by sham angiography. As this is the only randomized, double-blind, intra-arterial stem cell trial of its kind in the world, … Continue reading →