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Dr. John Piacentini of UCLA talks about CBIT, a new therapy that treats tics associated with Tourette's Syndrome (Source: National Institute of Mental Health)

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Authors: Akiko Terauchi, Erin M. Johnson-Venkatesh, Anna B. Toth, Danish Javed, Michael A. Sutton & Hisashi Umemori The differential formation of excitatory (glutamate-mediated) and inhibitory (GABA-mediated) synapses is a critical step for the proper functioning of the brain. An imbalance in these synapses may lead to various neurological disorders such as autism, schizophrenia, Tourette’s syndrome and epilepsy. Synapses are formed through communication between the appropriate synaptic partners. However, the molecular mechanisms that mediate the formation of specific synaptic types are not known. Here we show that two members of the fibroblast growth factor (FGF) family, FGF22 and FGF7, promote the organization of excitatory and inhibitory presynaptic terminals, respectively, as...

Authors: Akiko Terauchi, Erin M. Johnson-Venkatesh, Anna B. Toth, Danish Javed, Michael A. Sutton & Hisashi Umemori The differential formation of excitatory (glutamate-mediated) and inhibitory (GABA-mediated) synapses is a critical step for the proper functioning of the brain. An imbalance in these synapses may lead to various neurological disorders such as autism, schizophrenia, Tourette’s syndrome and epilepsy. Synapses are formed through communication between the appropriate synaptic partners. However, the molecular mechanisms that mediate the formation of specific synaptic types are not known. Here we show that two members of the fibroblast growth factor (FGF) family, FGF22 and FGF7, promote the organization of excitatory and inhibitory presynaptic terminals, respectively, as...

Tourette syndrome, a neurological disorder characterized by tics like grimacing, blinking and vocalizations, is normally treated in children and teens with one of several antipsychotic medications. But such drugs usually don't eliminate all the tics, and worse, they can often have side effects, acting as sedatives, causing weight gain and impairing cognitive function... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)