�㽶��Ƶ News - Alanna Watt

A promising discovery in a rare neurodegenerative disease

webfull — Fri, 05 Apr 2024 16:13:27 +0000

Imagine being middle aged and starting to feel that you are off balance a lot and that you are having a hard time coordinating your movements. Those are among the symptoms of Spinocerebellar ataxia type 6, known as SCA6, a rare neurodegenerative disease which typically appears in adulthood and worsens over time. Over time, other problems such as slurred speech and difficulty seeing or seeing double, may also appear. It is estimated that fewer than 5,000 people in the US have the condition, which is the result of genetic mutations in the cerebellum.

Published: 5 April 2024

Stuck in traffic: Researchers identify cellular traffic jams in a rare disease

webfull — Wed, 10 Jan 2024 16:26:26 +0000

Researchers from �㽶��Ƶ, led by Professor Alanna Watt of the Department of Biology, have identified previously unknown changes in brain cells affected by a neurological disease. Their research, published in eLife, could pave the way to future treatments for the disease.

Published: 10 January 2024

Exercise may be key to developing treatments for rare movement disorder

webfull — Fri, 16 Sep 2022 19:22:46 +0000

Spinal cerebellar ataxia 6 (SCA6) is an inherited neurological condition which has a debilitating impact on motor coordination. Affecting around 1 in 100,000 people, the rarity of SCA6 has seen it attract only limited attention from medical researchers. To date, there is no known cure and only limited treatment options exist.

Now, a team of �㽶��Ƶ researchers specializing in SCA6 and other forms of ataxia, have published findings that not only offer hope for SCA6 sufferers but may also open the way to developing treatments for other movement disorders.

Published: 16 September 2022

Cell structure previously associated with disease actually improves brain function

webfull — Thu, 08 Jul 2021 18:43:30 +0000

Researchers at �㽶��Ƶ have shown that a brain cell structure previously thought to be pathological in fact enhances cells’ ability to transmit information and correlates with better learning on certain tasks.

In a study published in Nature Communications, the team investigated swellings that occur in the axons of Purkinje cells in the cerebellum. In results that contradict established expectations, they found that axons with swellings did a better job of conducting electrical signals than those without.

Published: 8 July 2021