IRCM researchers identify new proteins crucial for hearing

Michel Cayouette
Dr. Michel Cayouette

A team of researchers led by Dr. Michel Cayouette at the IRCM made an important discovery, published online yesterday by the scientific journal Developmental Cell, that could better explain some inherited forms of hearing loss in humans. The Montréal scientists identified a group of proteins crucial for shaping the cellular organ responsible for detecting sounds. Continue reading

A Pain Pump

Dr. Yves De Koninck
Dr. Yves De Koninck

Yves De Koninck’s team shows that chronic pain depends on a cellular disorder that can be corrected

Researchers from the Faculty of Medicine of Université Laval have just taken a step towards the development of a new class of drugs to relieve chronic pain. Continue reading

A world first: Douglas Institute researchers identify the neural circuits that modulate REM sleep

Antoine Adamantidis
Dr. Antoine Adamantidis

A team of scientists led by Dr. Antoine Adamantidis, a researcher at the Douglas Mental Health University Institute and an assistant professor at McGill University, has released the findings from their latest study, which will appear in the October issue of the prestigious scientific journal Nature Neuroscience. Continue reading

Delayed brain development may lead to brain injury in newborns with heart birth defects

Dr. Steven Miller
Dr. Steven Miller

Newborns with congenital heart disease are found to be highly vulnerable to brain injuries. While the link between heart defects and slower brain development has long been demonstrated, a new study published on July 16 in Neurology has further uncovered a direct connection between altered brain development and brain injuries in newborns with congenital heart disease. Continue reading

Identifying genes that maintain stem cells and healthy cognition

Dr. David Kaplan
Dr. David Kaplan

The cellular mechanisms that promote long-term cell survival and maintenance of the adult nervous system are only poorly-understood, in spite of their clinical relevance. A study from the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto and the University of Toronto has identified one such mechanism in brain stem cells that may be important for healthy cognitive aging. Continue reading

McMaster study debunks controversial MS theory

Dr. Ian Rodger
Dr. Ian Rodger

There is no evidence that impaired blood flow or blockage in the veins of the neck or head is involved in multiple sclerosis, says a McMaster University study.

The research, published online by PLOS ONE Wednesday, found no evidence of abnormalities in the internal jugular or vertebral veins or in the deep cerebral veins of any of 100 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) compared with 100 people who had no history of any neurological condition. Continue reading