Thank you Volunteers, Buzz on brain cells, Next Week in HD

Thank you, HD Research Volunteers!  

This week, HDSA is celebrating National Volunteer Appreciation Week. This goes for research, too! We’d like to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who lends a hand to make HDSA’s work possible and contributes to the progress of HD science. Our understanding and our ability to treat HD is constantly expanding because of extraordinary volunteers who participate in research studies and online surveys, or who help a loved one to participate. Thanks to the scientists who volunteer their time to speak at our research webinars, the students around the country who volunteer their time in HD laboratories, and our amazing network of chapters and affiliates whose educational and social events help people to learn about current research and future opportunities. Thanks to all the readers of this blog who take the time to tune in and spread the information and hope. 

How are brain cells affected by HD? HD Buzz covers the latest  

Neurons are the signaling cells in the brain most affected by HD. However, more abundant than neurons in the brain are glia, a type of support cell that contributes to the overall health of the brain. Astrocytes are a type of glial cells that protect neurons and create an ideal environment in the brain for them to send signals. A recently published article explored how astrocytes may be critical to maintaining the health of neurons in HD, and why protecting astrocytes and neurons may be important avenues for treating HD. HD Buzz gave us the breakdown on this comprehensive review article; read their summary here.  

Next Week in HD Research: CHDI’s 18th Annual HD Therapeutics Conference  

Next week, distinguished HD researchers from across the globe will gather in Croatia for CHDI’s 18th Annual HD Therapeutics Conference. The meeting will cover hot topics in HD science, from innovations in our basic understanding of the disease to novel therapeutic approaches to treating it. While this event will not be live streamed, the editors of HD Buzz will be on the scene to give us a play by play in their yearly live tweets from the event. If you’d like a refresher on the HD research landscape before you follow along, this blog is a great place to start, as are recent articles from HDBuzz and HDSA’s HD Research in the Pipeline page.