Research suggests that fetal exposure to chemicals or drugs can cause neurological problems. Babies whose mothers take the epilepsy drug valporic acid (VPA) during pregnancy, for example, appear to have an elevated risk of developing an autism spectrum disorder. In a new study, scientists who developed a tadpole model of this exposure directly observed deleterious […]
Vanderbilt scientists shed new light on how the brain executes ‘mental time travel’ In Proust’s novel Recollection of Things Past, the distinctive smell of a lemon madeleine launches the narrator on a long, involved reminiscence of his past that fills seven chapters. It is an extreme example of what neuroscientists term “mental time travel” – […]
When a scorpion stings someone, its toxins attack specific regions in the human body, interrupting electric signals to the brain. Depending on the type of toxin, the victim either suffers paralysis or seizures. What makes scorpions dangerous in the wild, though, provides interesting insights in the lab. Scorpion toxins and diseases like epilepsy affect the […]
A team of Stony Brook University researchers have identified fatty acid binding proteins (FABPs) as intracellular transporters for two ingredients in marijuana, THC and CBD (cannabidiol). The finding, published early online in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, is significant because it helps explain how CBD works within the cells. Recent clinical findings have shown that […]
The history of medical marijuana and its use for epilepsy is a curious one. The marijuana plant, cannabis sativa, has been a part of folk medicine since antiquity and it has been used in Western medicine since the 19th century. One of its early uses was to control epileptic seizures. An obvious drawback, however, was […]
Stem cell transplants may be more effective than the drug mitoxantrone for people with severe cases of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new study published in the February 11, 2015, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study involved 21 people whose disability due to MS had […]
