Scientists have found a new drug treatment that can slow the progression of neurodegenerative disease in mice. The breakthrough research may offer fresh hope in tackling currently untreatable conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease.

The study—led by researchers at the University of Glasgow’s new Advanced Research Center (ARC) and published today in Science Signaling —found that by using a novel drug, which selectively activates a brain protein called the M1-receptor, the lifespan of mice suffering from neurodegeneration could be extended. The M1-receptor is a key brain protein, involved in memory and learning in people, and is an important potential target for neurodegenerative disease treatment.

Currently, Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of neurodegenerative disease, affecting more then 850,000 people in the U.K. and over 55 million worldwide. The study demonstrates how many of the features of human Alzheimer’s disease, including memory loss and inflammation of the brain, could be treated in mice when they were given the new drug, known as a positive allosteric modulator (M1-PAM). The breakthrough described in this study indicates that, beyond treating symptoms, M1-PAMs may also be able to slow the overall progression of the disease.

Basically this is one of the cure all options for thousands of brain disorders.

Researchers in Portugal have discovered a new collaborative mechanism that unveils how neural stem cells sense injury and communicate for tissue repair, moving science closer to boosting neuron regeneration after brain damage.

Stroke and traumatic brain injury can permanently damage neurons and, depending on injury site, patients may experience long-term impairments of critical motor or cognitive functions. For this reason, the brain has a reserve of special cells—known as neural stem cells—that can partially activate after tissue damage.

However, though many stem cells begin the process of regeneration, complete activation only happens in a few, meaning only a small number of fresh neurons are created. Fewer still survive to re-populate the damaged site. Instead, the area is typically filled by glia, a common non-neural support cell, which acts as the “glue” of the nervous system.

Individuals suffering from severe depression may find relief from just a single dose of a synthetic version of psilocybin, or “magic mushrooms,” according to a new study published this week.

The findings, which were published Wednesday by The New England Journal of Medicine, come from a double-blind trial involving 233 “randomly assigned adults with treatment-resistant depression [who received] a single dose of a proprietary, synthetic formulation of psilocybin at a dose of 25 mg, 10 mg, or 1 mg (control), along with psychological support.”

“In this phase 2 trial involving participants with treatment-resistant depression, psilocybin at a single dose of 25 mg, but not 10 mg, reduced depression scores significantly more than a 1-mg dose over a period of 3 weeks but was associated with adverse effects,” the authors wrote in their conclusions, adding that “larger and longer trials, including comparison with existing treatments, are required to determine the efficacy and safety of psilocybin for this disorder.”

CHICAGO, Nov 29 (Reuters) — The first big breakthrough in 30 years of Alzheimer’s research is providing momentum for clinical trials of “cocktail” treatments targeting the two hallmark proteins associated with the mind-robbing disease, according to interviews with researchers and pharmaceutical executives.

Drugmakers Eisai Co Ltd (4523.T) and Biogen (BIIB.O)

Reported in September that their therapy lecanemab could slow progress of the disease by 27% over 18 months compared with a placebo [ read more.

‘This is the first drug that provides a real treatment option,’ says leading researcher Scientists are hailing a historic step in the fight against Alzheimer’s, after a drug was proven to slow the disease in long-awaited clinical trials. The breakthrough comes after decades of failed attempts to find a way to do so, and has prompted hope among experts that it could eventually pave the way for treatments which could ultimately lead to a cure.