University of California San Francisco
Give to UCSF
A UCSF-led study examining the impact of statins on the progression of multiple sclerosis found a lower incidence of new brain lesions in patients taking the cholesterol-lowering drug in the early stages of the disease as compared to a placebo.
Learning and memory are possible thanks to the strengthening of synapses between nerve cells. UCSF’s Roger Nicoll has identified molecules and mechanisms responsible.
Roger Nicoll’s skill and drive to discover have led to a rare degree of success and recognition among his fellow neuroscientists, who judged him worthy of the National Academy of Sciences’ Neuroscience Award. <a href="http://www.ucsf.edu/science-cafe/articles/learning-memory-mind-brain-long-term-potentiation-ltp-roger-nicoll/">Read about Nicoll and his research on Science Café</a>.
UCSF scientists have used a novel cell-based strategy to treat motor symptoms in rats with a disease designed to mimic Parkinson’s disease. The strategy suggests a promising approach, the scientists say, for treating symptoms of Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases and disorders, including epilepsy.
People are paying close attention to pediatric endocrinologist Robert Lustig’s message that the obesity epidemic can be blamed on a marked increase in the consumption of a type of sugar called fructose.
Doctors treat millions of children with Ritalin every year to improve their ability to focus on tasks, but scientists now report that Ritalin also directly enhances the speed of learning.
A panel of experts appointed by Mayor Gavin Newsom recently presented an action plan as the approaching “age wave may bring a potential crisis in Alzheimer’s and dementia care” to San Francisco.
Two UCSF scientists have been selected for the American Academy of Neurology’s prestigious Potamkin Prize, for their “outstanding achievements” in research on dementias.
UCSF’s Lily Jan and Yuh-Nung Jan, have been named the joint winners of the 2010 Edward M. Scolnick Prize in Neuroscience for their major contributions in brain research.
UCSF is set to construct a major neuroscience building on its Mission Bay campus. The building will bring under one roof several of the world’s leading clinical and basic research programs seeking cures for intractable neurological disorders.
UCSF is proceeding with the construction of the neurosciences building at Mission Bay, where some of the world’s best scientists and clinicians will collaborate to prevent and cure diseases of the brain.
Cancer survivor David Servan-Schreiber, a physician, neuroscientist and science writer, will speak about preventing and treating cancer at UCSF on Friday, Jan. 15.
Scientists have long thought that processes occurring during sleep were responsible for cementing the salient experiences of the day into long-term memories. Now, however, a study of scampering rats suggests that the mechanisms at work during sleep are also active while the animals are awake -- and that they encode events more accurately.