Bill Nye the Science Guy is speaking at the 2024 Annual Ataxia Conference! Register now. LEARN MORE!
The human brain contains about 170 billion cells. Half of these are neurons and the other half are lesser known cells called glia. Glial cells include astrocytes, oligodendrocytes and microglia. Astrocytes tile the entire brain and interact closely with neurons. Astrocytes are very important for neuronal function, in many ways Read More…
Written by Stephanie Coffin Edited by Dr. Brenda Toscano Ataxin-1 may not be the only protein important in driving neurodegeneration in SCA1 Why does a protein that cause disease only cause toxicity in specific regions of the brain, despite being in all cells of the body? This is the question Read More…
A gene is the basic physical unitof heredity. Every living cell contains genetic information that determines an organism’s development, form, and function. This genetic information is encoded by two macromolecules: DNA and RNA. DNA consists of two strands of phosphate and sugar molecules connected by pairs of nitrogenous bases to Read More…
Autophagy is an important disposal mechanism in our bodies, and it is not as scary as the word sounds. The word autophagy is derived from Greek, with ‘auto’ referring to ‘self’ and ‘phagy’ meaning ‘eating’. Autophagy is important for the growth and development of our cells. It helps to restructure Read More…
Hi everyone! This is a quick message from the volunteers behind SCAsource. We are super excited to announce that we have received our first external financial support, a £1,200 grant from Ataxia UK. Ataxia UK is a charity organization located in the United Kingdom which supports people affected by any Read More…
Written by Dr. Ambika Tewari Edited by Dr. Gulin Oz Neurofilament light chain could provide a reliable readout of how far an SCA3 patient’s disease has progressed How often have you heard that the most effective way to treat a disorder is early intervention? In reality, “early” is not possible Read More…
Patients with ataxia share many common symptoms, including a loss of coordination. While these symptoms might be easy to see in patients, testing movement ability is not as straightforward in mouse models of ataxia. Because of this, researchers use something called the “rotarod performance test” to assess motor coordination and Read More…
The process of publishing a scientific article begins when a group of scientists set out to answer an outstanding question in their field. They then design and conduct a set of experiments to answer this question. Once the scientists feel that their results answer their questions, one of them – Read More…
The Life Cycle of a Protein No protein is made to last forever. Just as DNA and RNA direct a coordinated process for protein creation, there is also a process for proteins to be broken down by the cell. We call this proteolysis or protein degradation. Proteins are broken down Read More…
Written by Brenda Toscano Marquez Edited by Marija Cvetanovic Insoluble clumps of mutated ataxin-1 capture essential proteins and trigger the creation of toxic reactive oxygen species. All proteins produced by our cells consist of long chains of amino acids that are coiled and bent into a particular 3D structure. Changes Read More…
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