Archive for the ‘Neurological Info’ Category

Neurology and Neurologist

Monday, July 19th, 2010

neurologicalNeurology is the science of diseases affecting the nervous system. Neurologist is a physician who specializes in diagnosing and treating these diseases.

The nervous system consists of the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), peripheral nervous system (nerve roots, nerves, union muscle and nerve and muscles) and autonomic nervous system (responsible for regulating blood pressure, heart rate, sweating, etc.).

Neurological diseases are many, some common (migraine, stress and depression, stroke and cerebral hemorrhage, etc.). And not so common (multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, Guillain Barre syndrome, etc.)..

The diagnosis of these diseases is first of all clinical, ie, based on history and patient history and physical examination. Then, when the neurologist sees fit, request more specific examinations such as computed tomography, MRI, EEG, EMG, transcranial Doppler, etc.

Once the diagnosis, the neurologist will find the most effective treatment for the patient. As every patient is different each other, the physician should indicate the drug that creates more appropriate for your patient.

Once the treatment, the patient must go to his neurologist checks prompted. Some diseases require a few checks (eg attacks of vertigo or dizziness) and others require more controls (epilepsy, cerebral vascular attacks, etc.)..

Finally, the main objective is to solve the problem the patient, and if there is no definitive treatment for their disease and find ways to best manage the symptoms the patient may have.

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Fibroblasts become neurons, with three genes

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

It appears that the state of pluripotency is not necessary to achieve a certain type. It is at least what has been demonstrated in a study published today in Nature.

A team of researchers from Stanford University in California has successfully transformed murine skin cells into nerve cells functioning to the implementation of only three genes. These cells have not previously had to become stem cells, the previous step for cells to acquire a new identity. In this way, and do not have to revert to this state, prevents the teratogenic effect. Marius Wernig’s team published the results of their work today in Nature, which shows that only three factors, Ascl1, Brn2 (also called Pou3f2) and Myt1l, can become postnatal human fibroblasts and murine embryonic cells into functioning neurons in vitro.

This group has used a panel of 19 genes that are involved in epigenetic reprogramming in neuronal development and function, up to three required for reprogramming. They then applied the procedure in skin cells and mouse tail. They noted that about 20 percent of skin cells transformed into neurons in less than a week. “At first it seems a quick change, but it is an important step on the iPS, which takes several weeks. In addition, the iPS process is inefficient, because normally only between 1 and 2 percent of the original cells become pluripotent “, pointed Wernig.

Cells appeared not only neurons, but expressed neuronal proteins and formed synapses with other neurons in lab dishes. The researchers believe that this is a more direct way to achieve the desired cells to get through the iPS. Neurological cells can get directly from the patient will allow researchers to study a disease determinded such as Parkinson’s, in a laboratory dish. Someday be used for cell therapy.

Wernig’s group suggests that the pluripotent state, rather than changing an element of cells, may be more than just another cell state. Thus, with the appropriate combination of specific genes for each of the desired cell types can have a ripple effect on the target cell, erasing the modifications of DNA restriction and printing a new target for development in the genome. “This is a difficult theory to prove, but we believe that the induction of iPS is an investment for development. It’s probably more than a direct conversion of what we are looking for, from one cell to another is happening is more than simply to the embryonic state. This makes our ideas on the epigenetic regulation are reversed. “

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Neurological Diseases: are you at risk?

Tuesday, April 6th, 2010

Neurological diseases are those in which an injury or dysfunction of the nervous system, either central or peripheral.  If we make a comparison with computing, neurological diseases would be a hardware problem, machinery, and psychiatric would rather the software, the system program.

Neurologists often have patients with diseases which can detect lesions in the central nervous system, such as vascular brain, which is a dysfunction of neurotransmitters such as Parkinson Sea.

Perhaps one of the most prominent pathology is the stroke, also known as brain circulatory disease or cerebrovascular accident (CVA) before misnamed cerebral atherosclerosis.

This is a neurological disease that occurs most often disabling or fatal consequences, although many things you can do to avoid them.

Everyone knows what a heart attack, but what a brain infarction. Myocardial infarction or heart is a matter of urgent consultations everywhere and people know what it is.

Myocardial ischemia and brain are less known. Occurs anywhere in the body including the brain, where lack of circulation and oxygen can not reach.

Cerebral artery is covered and the most common failure is that the functioning of the body part that depends on the cerebral artery. The brain is organized as a map, so that failure of the movement in a particular area, that will speak with the failure of such a function linked to a body part.

What we know everyone is hemiplegia, which occurs when you flip one of the major cerebral arteries.  They are conditions that may be transient, with recovery and may even be reversed, so the patient must make a query quickly, because once installed it is more difficult to overcome.

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