Author: Katie Cammarata

Every 40 seconds, someone in the United States suffers a stroke, in which blood flow to the brain is blocked. For the survivors, the ensuing brain damage can lead to lifelong disabilities, making mundane tasks, such as using the toilet and taking a shower, risky ventures.

Roughly 50 families scattered across the world share ultra-rare variants in a particular gene. Silent for years, the inherited mutations make themselves known when patients reach the fourth decade of life. Changes in vision start a cascade of symptoms. Five to 20 years later, the illness is fatal.

Erin Foster, an associate professor of occupational therapy, and Scott Norris, MD, an associate professor of neurology, have established a site at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis for the Black and African American Connections to Parkinson’s Disease (BLAAC PD) study, an international study aimed at understanding the gene changes that may lead to […]

There is increasing evidence that the immune system is involved in the development and progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Most research has focused on the innate immune system and its role in mediating neuroinflammation and degeneration.

Looking back, Tammy Maida, 67, said things started to change in her late 50s. At first, she would lose track of her belongings: her keys multiple times a day, a ring, eyeglasses, her purse. She would drive to the grocery store in her hometown of San Jose, California, and forget where she parked the car. […]

Anne Cross, MD, FAAN, professor of neurology at Washington University, who was not involved with the studies, said that, coupled with similar findings from a research group in Germany and an earlier analysis from Dr. Bove’s group, the data on ocrelizumab are “very reassuring.”