Welcome to the 8th edition of HD Insights, released at the 8th European Huntington Disease Network Plenary Meeting in Barcelona, Spain. We are grateful to the Huntington Study Group (HSG), our sponsors, and our more than 1500 subscribers for their continuing support of our mission. HD Insights relies on the support of firms dedicated to developing novel treatments to bring the latest research to the international HD research community. If you are interested in becoming a supporter, please contact me at editor@hdinsights.org .
This issue explores the variety of animal models currently used to support ongoing discovery in HD pathology and drug development. Dr. Mahmoud Pouladi provides an overview of HD animal models based on his exhaustive review published last September in Nature Reviews Neuroscience. Dr. Hoa Nguyen describes his research at the University of Tuebingen, developing a BACHD rat model and evaluating the cholesterol analog olesoxime in vitro and in vivo, and his clinical work with predictive genetic testing. The HD highlights of June’s MDS Congress in Stockholm, Sweden give a glimpse into the future of HD trials, while Dr. Christiane Dascher-Nadel describes the latest European initiative to advance stem cell research for HD through the Repair-HD project.
We are also excited to announce the first Insights of the Year competition, in which our frequent contributor Dr. Lise Munsie has nominated eleven publications from the last year in HD basic science, clinical, and biomarkers research for consideration by our Editorial Board. The board will vote for the most influential paper in each category, and the authors of the chosen papers will be invited to present in a special panel session at November’s HSG meeting in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
We welcome new contributors, suggestions for topics, and suggestions for how we can better serve you. If you or someone you know have ideas that you would like to share with 1500 HD researchers and clinicians around the world, please contact me at editor@hdinsights.org .
Finally, subscription to HD Insights is always free: simply send us an email at subscribe@hdinsights.org
Ray Dorsey, MD
Editor, HD INSIGHTSTM
HD DISCLOSURES: DR. DORSEY RECEIVES GRANT SUPPORT FROM LUNDBECK AND PRANA BIOTECHNOLOGY AND CONSULT S FOR AMGEN, LUNDBECK, AND MEDTRONIC.
Editorial Board Members
Ray Dorsey, MD — Editor, University of Rochester
Donald Kennedy, PhD — Stanford University
Nobuyuki Nukina, MD, PhD — Riken Brain Science Institute
Rodrigo Osorio — Agrupación Chilena de Huntington
Bernard Ravina, MD — Voyager Therapeutics
Ralf Reilmann, MD, PhD — George Huntington Institute
Sarah Tabrizi, MBChB, PhD — University College London
Leslie Thompson, PhD — University of California Irvine
Huntington Study Group
Shari Kinel, JD — HSG Executive Director
Liz McCarthy, BA — HSG Administrative Manager
Contributors
Meredith A. Achey, BM
Christiane Dascher-Nadel, PhD
Stephen Dunnett, PhD, DSc
Lise Munsie, PhD
Mahmoud A. Pouladi, PhD
Anne Rosser, PhD, FRCP
Publication Staff
Meredith A. Achey, BM — Deputy Editor
Robin Taylor — Production Editor
Martin Holmes — Technical Editor
David Kolko — Distribution Specialist
For more information on HD Insights, or to receive a free subscription, please visit us at www.hdinsights.org or email us at editor@hdinsights.org .
