Researchers have identified well-delineated brain networks that are linked to five distinct neurodegenerative diseases, according to a paper published in Neuron today (April 15).
Image: flicker/linkurl:twitchcraft;http://www.flickr.com/photos/twitchcraft
"I think our data gives researchers a road map -- hopefully a treasure map -- saying this is where we should be looking" when studying both neurodegenerative diseases and cognition in non-diseased brains, said linkurl:William Seeley,;http://www.ucsfhealth.org/adult/cgi-bin/prd.cgi?action=DISPLAYDOCTOR&doctorid=28917 a neurologist at the University of California, San Francisco, Medical Center. It's well known that different neurodegenerative disorders preferentially target specific regions of the brain. "The reason for that," explained linkurl:Marsel Mesulam,;http://www.brain.northwestern.edu/about/core.html a neurologist at Northwestern University in Chicago, "is that different parts of the brain have different properties" on a chemical and immunological level. "The diseases are in some way recognizing that." The idea that damage in one part of the brain can affect other areas connected to that region has been around for more than a...



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