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Cover Article
Genetics of Parkinson’s Disease Zeros in on Alpha-Synuclein
Recent findings from the ongoing study of a large Iowa kindred have shown that a rare familial form of early-onset Parkinson’s disease is caused by four, instead of two, copies of the normal alpha-synuclein gene. The finding also provides further evidence that a given genetic mutation can lead to multiple clinical and pathologic synucleinopathies in one family.

Selected Articles

• IHS Unveils New Headache Guideline
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• Concussion Concerns Prompt NFL to Commission Studies
• Allodynia Predicts Triptans’ Ability to Abort Migraines
• Who Needs Epilepsy Surgery?—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
Therapeutic Cloning Cures Parkinson’s-Like Disease in an Animal Model
Researchers have reported the first proof-of-principle demonstration of therapeutic cloning in an animal model of Parkinson’s disease. Parkinsonian mice treated with dopaminergic neurons derived from cloned embryonic cells appeared to have permanent relief of their symptoms, and even Lorenz Studer, MD, one of the study authors, was surprised that “the therapeutic effect occurs in nearly every single animal.”

Selected Articles

• Are Antidepressants Beneficial for All Patients Who Have Stroke?
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• The Cornerstones of MS Research
• The Key to Optimal MS Therapy: Start Right Away
• Are New Treatments Getting Us Closer to Finding the Cause of or Preventing Parkinson’s Disease?
• Benefit From Exercise and Caregiver Training Shown in Alzheimer’s Disease—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
First Parkinson’s Disease Gene Therapy Administered
A team from New York Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York City recently used a virus to deliver the first gene therapy to a human patient with Parkinson’s disease. The goal of this ongoing five-year phase I trial is to “restore the normal chemical balance of the subthalamic nucleus by enabling patients with Parkinson’s disease to synthesize their own GABA,” said Michael G. Kaplitt, MD, PhD, the study’s primary investigator.

Selected Articles

• Is Myasthenia Gravis Overlooked in the Elderly?
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• New AEDs Offer Improved Seizure Control and Tolerability in Elderly With New-Onset Seizures
• MRIs Help Diagnose Multiple Sclerosis Faster
• Higher Concentrations of Anticoagulants Reduce Stroke Severity and Mortality—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
“Operation Stroke” Races Against Time to Save Lives
With the creation of the Dallas Area Stroke Network, Dallas joins more than 125 other US cities participating in “Operation Stroke,” the American Stroke Association’s three-year-old national program designed to mobilize communities to strengthen stroke awareness and optimize treatment availability.

Selected Articles

• Is Gambling a Risk for Patients With Parkinson’s Disease?
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• Antisense Therapy Makes Perfect Sense for Duchenne’s Muscular Dystrophy
• Pediatric Studies Are Vital to Understanding the Link Between Epstein-Barr Virus and MS
• Can NSAIDs Reduce the Risk of Parkinson’s Disease?—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
What to Watch For—Clinical Presentations of West Nile Virus
The mosquito season, which runs from July to October, carries with it the seasonal threat of West Nile virus infection. With this possibility, physicians are advised to keep in mind that focal neurologic deficits, polio-like symptoms, gastrointestinal distress, and muscle weakness have been identified as major—and sometimes unexpected—presenting symptoms of patients with West Nile virus infection.

Selected Articles

• The Silence of the Genes
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• Assessing the Risk for Alzheimer’s Disease—A Closer Look at Four Factors
• PD or Not PD—Can Family History Studies Answer the Question?
• Can a Blood Test Predict MS?—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
More Bad News From the Women’s Health Initiative
Results of the Women’s Health Initiative trial of estrogen plus progestin in 16,608 postmenopausal women revealed that combined hormone replacement therapy increases the risk of stroke, dementia, and global cognitive decline and does not protect against mild cognitive impairment.

Selected Articles

• The Neurologic Benefits of Cholesterol Reduction
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• Tremor, Ataxia, and Dementia—The Expanding Role of FMR1 in Neurologic Disease
• Early Treatment—The Key to Success With Campath-1H in MS
• Subarachnoid Hemorrhage in Young Is Largely Preventable—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
Smallpox Vaccination Can Lead to Neurologic Complications
Only about 27,000 of the approximately 450,000 health care workers who would presumably be “first responders” in the aftermath of a large-scale bioterrorist attack have opted to receive the smallpox vaccination. For many who decided against it, fear of vaccine-related complications may have been a factor in their decision. This article discusses some of the neurologic complications associated with smallpox vaccination.

Selected Articles

• Olfactory Dysfunction May Signal Cognitive Dysfunction
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• Protective Effect of Leisure Activities Varies By APOE Genotype
• Levodopa and Parkinson’s Disease Progression—Contradictory Results From the ELLDOPA Study
• JNC7: New Hypertension Guidelines—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
Have We Proven That Stroke Thrombolysis Works?
Two noted stroke experts recently sparred over the question of whether the research community has amassed enough evidence on t-PA’s effectiveness in acute ischemic stroke to sway clinical practice trends.

Selected Articles

• Diaphragm Nerve Pacing May Help Christopher Reeve Breathe
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• Results From Five Clinical Studies on Stroke Treatment
• MRI Instead of CT for Initial Stroke Evaluation?
• Two Perspectives of MS Disability—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
A Window to the Future of Acute Stroke Therapy
A wealth of research has led to major advances in acute stroke, but substantial hurdles still lie ahead. At the 28th International Stroke meeting, Marc Fisher, MD, discussed the challenges inherent in developing therapies that work in a more extended time window.

Selected Articles

• CDC Finds No Link Between Fatal Illness and Eating Wild Game
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• Is There More Time To Treat Patients With Ischemic Stroke?
• Migraines Often Misdiagnosed—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
Should Epilepsy Surgery Be Considered Sooner Rather Than Later?
Based on the belief that the best treatment for epilepsy is to stop seizures as soon as possible, the ongoing Early Randomized Surgical Epilepsy Trial (ERSET) is a head-to-head trial that seeks to determine whether early surgical intervention or AEDs provide the best opportunity to stop seizures without side effects.

Selected Articles

• Can Bone Marrow Seed the Brain With New Neurons?
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• Early To Rise—Morning Blood Pressure Predicts Stroke
• Are Men With Epilepsy at Risk for Osteoporosis?
• Positive Response to Epilepsy Medication Does Not Ensure Good Prognosis—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
Promising New Treatments For Parkinson’s Disease
While researchers agree that levodopa remains the gold standard for treating Parkinson’s disease, pursuit of alternatives continues. Trial results for a host of emerging therapeutics were presented at the 7th International Congress of Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders. Among them were disappointing updates on the use of fetal stem cell transplants and some encouraging news about the use of growth factors, implants, novel drug delivery systems, and a host of drugs, both old and new.

Selected Articles

• Epilepsy and Pregnancy—A Mixed Bag of Results
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• Who Is at Risk for Post-Stroke Dementia?
• Predicting Memory Decline After Anterior Temporal Lobectomy
• Diet and Dementia—Does Fat Matter?—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology

Cover Article
Can Gene Therapy Protect Against Neurologic Insult?
To date, delivery of neuroprotective genes to the central nervous system via viral vectors has been limited to laboratory and animal studies but researchers hope that in the not too distant future, gene therapy may become a viable tool of clinical neurology.

Selected Articles

• Building A Better Migraine Blocker
• News Roundup: Late-Breaking Neurologic News
• An Uncommon Complication of Iron Deficiency in Children
• Progression to Alzheimer's Dementia Can Be Predicted
• Abnormality of Gait May Predict Dementia—and Other Recent Articles of Interest in Neurology