Daniela F Hernandez, MA, MPhil

Macroautophagy and Synaptic Transmission: A new role for an old pathway
Synapses: From Molecules to Circuits & Behavior
2 Jun 2009 01:48 PM EST
I am currently working on macroautophagy - an evolutionarily conserved lysosomal process through which organelles, such as mitochondria, and long-lived, misfolded and aggregated proteins are degraded ... 
Oxi-alpha to the rescue?
Oxidative Stress
6 Nov 2009 07:32 AM EST
This week, in the Journal of Neurochemistry, Choi and colleagues report protection against oxidative stress (OS)-induced cell death by a novel gene, Oxi-alpha, which is expressed specifically in DA ... 
Ghrelin and neuroprotection
The metabolic hormone ghrelin protects against MPTP-induced toxicity
11 Nov 2009 04:12 AM EST
Even though Dr. Andrews and colleagues find that ghrelin protects against MPTP-induced toxicity by activating uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) and thus promoting mitochondrial function, it should be noted ... 
Responses: 1
Beclin-1 gene delivery and autophagy
Autophagy in neurodegeneration: fire-fighter and/or incendiarist?
7 Dec 2009 02:22 PM EST
Given that autophagy has been implicated in a several neurodegenerative disorders, including PD, targeting this pathway, may be a possible therapeutic strategy.  In a recent paper, Spencer et ... 
Dopamine, Alpha-synuclein, and autophagic cell death
How can oxidative stress contribute to alpha-synuclein pathology/toxicity? What oxidative modifications of alpha-synuclein are relevant to the PD pathogenic process?
4 Feb 2010 12:10 PM EST
Elevated cytosolic DA levels have been shown to result in increased neurotoxicity in cellular models of PD (Mosharov et al., 2009). In a new study published in the Journal of Neuroscience Research, ... 
Q&A with Dr. Cristina Malagelada -- Rapamycin protects against neuronal cell death
Hot Topics@SfN 2009
26 Jan 2010 01:50 PM EST
In a new paper published in the Journal of Neuroscience, Malagelada et al. demonstrate that rapamycin can prevent neuron cell death in in vitro and in vivo models of  PD. Previously highlighted ... 
Could targeting alpha-synuclein oligomers be a novel therapeutic strategy in PD?
Hot Topics@SfN 2009
19 Oct 2009 05:41 PM EST
In the poster "Secreted alpha-synuclein oligomers -- A new target for therapeutic intervention in Parkinson's Disease?, Dr. Karin Danzer et al reported that secreted alpha-synuclein oligomers are ... 
DBS may lead to dopamine release
Hot Topics@SfN 2009
20 Oct 2009 03:31 AM EST
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) is a common therapy for Parkinson's disease, but the exact mechanism by which it ameliorates motor symptoms is not known. Covey and ... 
Parkin and apoptosis
Hot Topics@SfN 2009
24 Oct 2009 12:04 PM EST
Parkin mutations are associated with early onset Parkinson's Disease, and there is some data that suggests that parkin mutations results in abnormal mitochondria and apoptosis (Van Laar and Berman, ...