Human embryonic stem cells could help people with learning and memory deficits after radiation treatment for brain tumors, a new UC Irvine study suggests. Research with rats found that transplanted stem cells restored learning and memory to normal levels four months after radiotherapy. In contrast, irradiated rats that didn't receive stem cells experienced a more than 50 percent drop in cognitive function. "Our findings provide the first evidence that such cells can be used to ameliorate radiation-induced damage of healthy tissue in the brain," says Charles Limoli (pictured), UCI radiation oncology associate professor and senior author of the study, which appears in the Nov. 10 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.   More »

Bad drivers may in part have their genes to blame, suggests a new study by UC Irvine neuroscientists. People with a particular gene variant performed more than 20 percent worse on a driving test than people without it - and a follow-up test a few days later yielded similar results. About 30 percent of Americans have the variant. "These people make more errors from the get-go, and they forget more of what they learned after time away," says Dr. Steven Cramer (pictured), neurology associate professor and senior author of the study, published recently in the journal Cerebral Cortex.   More »

Dr. Stanley van den Noort (pictured), a former dean of medicine at UC Irvine and a pioneer in multiple-sclerosis education, research and patient care, has died at the age of 79. Noort joined UCI in 1970 and as dean from 1973-85 was a key figure in the medical school's growth into a nationally ranked institution. He was an internationally acclaimed leader in the neurosciences and built at UCI one of the country's first and most successful multiple-sclerosis clinics. For these accomplishments, he received the UCI Medal, the campus's highest honor, in 2008. "Quite simply, Dr. van den Noort was a giant – both at UCI and in the field of multiple sclerosis – and his care and compassion brought tremendous relief to so many," says Dr. Ralph V. Clayman, UCI interim dean of medicine.   More »

Short-term stress lasting as little as a few hours can impair brain-cell communication in areas associated with learning and memory, according to Dr. Tallie Z. Baram, lead author of a new study in the current edition of the Journal of Neuroscience. It has been known that severe stress lasting weeks or months can impair cell communication in the brain’s learning and memory region, but this study provides the first evidence that short-term stress has the same effect. Baram, the Danette Shepard Chair in Neurological Sciences in the School of Medicine, added that the findings can play an important role in developing drugs that might prevent these undesirable effects and offer insights into why some people are forgetful or have difficulty retaining information during stressful situations.   More »

Children conceived through the use of assisted reproductive technology (ART) have a significantly higher risk of autism, a UC Irvine child neurologist has observed. In reviewing the charts of more than 1,200 children treated at the For OC Kids Neurodevelopmental Center in Orange, Dr. Pauline A. Filipek found that 10 percent of the clinic’s autism patients were conceived using ART, which is eight times higher than the 1.2 percent of all births nationwide that are the result of ART. This is the first known report of an association between autism and ART, Filipek said, and the reasons why ART children have higher autism rates are unknown. Further studies on ART-conceived children with autism will be needed, she added. Filipek will present this data at the 36th annual meeting of the Child Neurology Society in Quebec, Canada, Oct. 11. As director of the OC Kids clinic, Filipek is recognized as one of the nation’s leading autism researchers, and her findings stressing early diagnosis are improving clinical opportunities for children worldwide.   More »

Dr. Tahseen Mozaffar, a neurologist and director of the MDA ALS and Neuromuscular Diseases Center at the UC Irvine Medical Center, is part of a national group of scientists who have identified the active genes in sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a discovery that provides expanded opportunities for developing therapies to treat this chronic, incurable disease. A comprehensive scan of the human genome has identified more than 50 genetic abnormalities in people with sporadic ALS, the most prevalent form of the disease. Study results appear online in the New England Journal of Medicine. The study was supported by Augie’s Quest, a fast-track ALS research program, in conjunction with Muscular Dystrophy’s ALS Division. Fitness pioneer Augie Nieto started Augie’s Quest after being diagnosed with ALS in March 2005. He receives treatment at UC Irvine. Last year, Augie’s Quest donated $500,000 to UC Irvine’s MDA ALS and Neuromuscular Diseases Center.   More »

Dr. Tahseen Mozaffar, an associate professor of clinical medicine at UC Irvine, has been elected to the American Neurological Association for his substantial academic contribution to the field of neurology and his future promise. ANA is a 132-year-old professional organization and considered to be the most prestigious society in neurology. Mozaffar is a leading expert on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and director of the UC Irvine MDA ALS and Neuromuscular Center. Along with winning the Faculty Teaching Award in the Department of Neurology four times, he received the National Teaching Recognition award from the American Academy of Neurology in 2003. He is current president of the Orange County Neurological Society and sits on numerous committees of professional associations and medical research foundations.   More »