A Target for Stroke Therapy Drugs

New understanding of post-stroke neurons could transform patient treatment and recovery. A drug that aids neuron repair has improved recovery in mice by as much as 50 percent.

Every year, nearly 800,000 people in the U.S. suffer a stroke. It's the country's third-leading cause of death, and a primary cause of severe, long-term disability—the damage it does to the brain is largely irreparable. But a study published online yesterday in the journal Nature describes how a drug helped repair the brains of mice to a degree that was previously impossible.