Sexual desire and migraine appear to be partially affected by serotonin, researchers reported in the June Headache. Sixty-eight persons participated in the Brief Headache Diagnostic Interview and the Sexual Desire Inventory and then were grouped according to presence of migraine or tension-type headache. Patients with migraine had higher Sexual Desire Inventory scores and gave higher ratings of their perceived sexual desire than did those in the tension-type headache group. The symptom "headache aggravated by routine physical activity" was a significant predictor of a higher Sexual Desire Inventory score. The investigators concluded that the "results are consistent with the hypothesis that migraine and sexual desire both may be modulated by similar serotonergic phenomena."

Researchers have found a possible cause of Parkinson’s disease symptoms as well as a way to save dying neurons in animal models of the disorder, according to the online June 22 Science Express. Investigators first conducted a genetic screen in yeast that showed genes preventing a-synuclein toxicity; one protein, Ypt1p, could also be used to suppress a-synuclein toxicity in yeast cells. Using the fruit fly, roundworm, and rat neurons, the researchers next found that Rab1 resulted in significant, although incomplete, suppression of toxicity. The investigators noted that their findings possibly explain why dopamine-producing neurons are most vulnerable when exposed to toxic a-synuclein accumulation. They concluded that "synucleinopathies may result from disruptions in basic cellular functions that interface with the unique biology of particular neurons to make them especially vulnerable."

More than 80% of 500 European patients with Parkinson’s disease reported concurrent depressive symptoms, according to a recent survey announced by the European Parkinson’s Disease Association. However, approximately 40% of respondents to the Pan-European Sociological Survey stated that they "only occasionally," "rarely," or "never" discussed their depressive symptoms with their physicians. Among 500 physicians in Europe who also responded to the survey, 97% reported that their patients with Parkinson’s disease either "often" or "sometimes" experienced symptoms of depression, but 49% stated that depressive symptoms were difficult to recognize in their patients. Both patients and physicians responded that depressive symptoms had nearly as much of an impact on patients’ quality and enjoyment of life as did the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.

Further evidence points to viral vector delivery of glial cell line– derived neurotrophic factor as a possible treatment for patients with Huntington’s disease, according to a report in the June 13 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Mice modeled to have Huntington’s disease genetics received active glial cell line–derived neurotrophic factor gene therapy or placebo gene therapy; a third group received no gene therapy. Mice treated with active gene therapy had a lower percentage of neurons with mutant huntingtin-stained inclusion bodies. These mice also performed significantly better when walking on a rotating rod and demonstrated decreased hind limb clasping, compared with the other two groups of mice.

The FDA has approved Exelon® (rivastigmine tartrate), developed by Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, for patients with mild to moderate Parkinson’s disease dementia. The approval stems from results of a trial in which Parkinson’s disease patients with symptoms of mild to moderate dementia were randomized to receive either rivastigmine treatment or placebo. Results showed significant improvements in the mental processes of patients taking rivastigmine, compared with patients in the placebo group. However, the FDA reported that significant gastrointestinal side effects, such as nausea, weight loss, vomiting, anorexia, dyspepsia, and asthenia, have been associated with the treatment. Rivastigmine was also associated with a worsening of tremor in some patients with Parkinson’s disease.

Women who develop dementia may experience weight loss as many as 10 years before the onset of memory loss, according to data reported at the Alzheimer’s Association’s 10th International Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders. The researchers assessed 560 patients with dementia and compared them with persons without dementia. Women with and without dementia weighed an average of 140 pounds 30 years before the dementia symptom onset. At the time of onset, women who did not develop dementia weighed an average of 142 pounds, while those who did develop dementia weighed an average of 128 pounds. These findings suggest that changes in the brain may occur well before actual memory loss in women, the researchers reported.

A healthy lifestyle may significantly reduce total and ischemic stroke risk—but not risk of hemorrhagic stroke—in women, according to the July 10 Archives of Internal Medicine. Researchers assessed 37,636 women 45 and older for smoking, alcohol consumption, exercise habits, body mass index, and diet and used these factors to develop a health index for the participants. A total of 450 strokes occurred during 10 years of follow-up. Women with 17 to 20 health index points had hazard ratios of 0.45 for total stroke, 0.29 for ischemic stroke, and 1.27 for hemorrhagic stroke, compared with participants with 0 to 4 health index points. The researchers concluded, "Our findings underscore the importance of healthy behaviors in the prevention of stroke."

A strong correlation exists between T2 lesions and brain tissue loss and integrity in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study in the online June 19 Annals of Neurology. Thirty patients with relapsing-remitting MS were studied for 13 years. Investigators found correlations between T2 lesion volume and brain parenchymal fraction at the last visit. Change in T2 lesion volume in the first two years also correlated with brain parenchymal fraction at the last visit. Age was also found to have a significant effect on the correlations. "The results provide direct evidence for the disability threshold hypothesis in MS and support monitoring T2 lesions in relapsing-remitting MS," concluded the investigators.

The risk of Parkinson’s disease may increase with exposure to pesticides, as reported in the online June 26 Annals of Neurology. In a survey of 143,325 participants who did not have a diagnosis or symptoms of Parkinson’s disease at baseline, a total of 7,864 persons reported exposure to pesticides. Farmers and nonfarmers demonstrated a similar relative risk for pesticide exposure, the investigators reported. Compared with persons not exposed to pesticides, those who did have exposure had a 70% greater occurrence of Parkinson’s disease. Exposure to asbestos, chemicals/acids/solvents, coal or stone dust, or eight other occupational factors was not associated with a risk of Parkinson’s disease. "Future studies should seek to identify the specific chemicals responsible for this association," noted the researchers.

Patients with posttraumatic amnesia for more than four weeks may have emerged from the condition when they obtain a maximum score (12/12) on two related posttraumatic amnesia procedures, per a study published in the July Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry. Investigators administered the Westmead Posttraumatic Amnesia Scale and the Modified Oxford Posttraumatic Amnesia Scale to 82 patients in the early stages of posttraumatic amnesia. The Galveston Orientation and Amnesia Test was also used. No significant difference was noted between scores on the Westmead and modified Oxford tests, and both scales recorded longer posttraumatic amnesia durations than did the Galveston test. However, "emergence from the late stages of posttraumatic amnesia occurred more promptly" with the modified Oxford scale, the investigators reported.

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