April 10, 2008

For the first time, researchers have developed a way to view stem cells in the brains of living animals, including humans—a finding that allows scientists to follow the process neurogenesis (the birth of neurons). The discovery comes just months after scientists confirmed that such cells are generated in adult as well as developing brains.

This is important because we need to be able to measure the effects of treatments targeted at repair in the brain. If you can't prove a drug is doing repair, you don't know if it is working. It's also nice to know that our brains do more repair on their own than previously thought.

I just received this month's Prevention Magazine. In it is a story about 3 women who used alternative therapies for their various ailments. At the end of the article Prevention is asking its readers to share stories about their alternative/unconventional therapies that they have found beneficial, via a chat. This takes place during the month of May.

Lori