Posts by: Joana Fernandes, PhD

Joana Fernandes, PhD

Joana brings more than 8 years of academic research and experience as well as Scientific writing and editing to her role as a Science and Research writer. She also served as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology in Coimbra, Portugal, where she also received her PhD in Health Science and Technologies, with a specialty in Molecular and Cellular Biology.

April 4, 2017

Huntington’s Expert to Give Webinar on Environmental Factors Influencing the Disease

News

Huntington’s disease specialist Herwig Lange will give an online presentation Thursday, April 6, on environmental factors that impact the disease’s onset, progression and severity. Patients, caregivers, disease advocates, foundation members ... Read more

March 30, 2017March 30, 2017

Blood Samples May Help Track Disease Progression in Huntington’s Patients

News

Blood samples may be crucial in tracking brain changes that occur in people with Huntington’s disease, a new study finds. Researchers also report that Huntington’s and Alzheimer’s patients have certain inflammatory mechanisms in common, suggesting ... Read more

March 23, 2017March 23, 2017

Depression in Huntington’s Is Linked to Early Changes in Brain Wiring, Study Finds

News

Depression, one of the symptoms of Huntington’s disease, may be associated with structural and functional changes in brain wiring occurring before the most common symptoms appear, according to new ... Read more

March 21, 2017March 21, 2017

Study Finds Novel Insight into ‘Ballooning Cell Death’ in Huntington’s Patients

News

A new Japanese study confirms that a phenomenon called “ballooning cell death” (BCD) occurs in patients with Huntington’s disease. The study, “A novel form of necrosis, TRIAD, occurs in human Huntington’s ... Read more

March 14, 2017

Usefulness of Animal Models to Study Stem Cell Therapy in Huntington’s Is Reviewed

News

A recent study reviewed the strengths and weaknesses of using animal studies to investigate the potential of stem cell therapy to treat Huntington’s disease. The review, titled “Regenerative Medicine ... Read more

March 7, 2017March 7, 2017

Levels of NFL Protein Could Help Track Huntington’s Progression, Study Suggests

News

Levels of a protein called neurofilament light (NFL) could be a valuable biomarker for tracking Huntington’s disease progression, according to a study. The research, “Tau Or Neurofilament Light—Which Is ... Read more

February 28, 2017February 28, 2017

BRACE Award Furthers Research into Faulty Cell ‘Recycling’ Process Tied to Huntington’s

News

BRACE, a U.K. charity supporting dementia research, awarded more than £58,500 ($72,631) to a team of scientists investigating how a faulty “recycling” mechanism in neurons contributes to the onset of neurological ... Read more

February 23, 2017

Researchers Identify New Biomarkers of Early Stage Huntingon’s in Sheep Study

News

Researchers discovered new biomarkers of early-stage Huntington’s disease in sheep with the disease, according to a new study. These findings may help detect the disease before symptoms appear, and ... Read more

February 21, 2017February 21, 2017

Targeting Faulty HTT Gene with Antisense Oligonucleotide May Be Way of Stopping Huntington’s Progression

News

Blocking the expression of mutated huntingtin — the protein involved in Huntington’s disease — by directly targeting the faulty gene may be a way of stopping disease progression in patients, according ... Read more

February 14, 2017

Scientists Discover the Way Huntington’s-related Protein Errors Occur

News

Enhancing a cell’s quality control mechanism to get rid of the faulty proteins that are a hallmark of Huntington’s disease may help prevent patients’ motor and cognitive loss, a ... Read more