SHARON BEGLEY, The Wall Street Journal According to Plutarch, the inscription at the Delphic Oracle advised, "Know thyself." To which Timothy D. Wilson, professor of psychology at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, responds, "Good luck." Dr. Wilson is one of a growing number of psychologists and neuroscientists whose research is showing the importance of the unconscious -- "mental processes that are inaccessible to consciousness but that influence judgments, feelings or behavior," as he puts it. But this isn't Freud's unconscious, that maelstrom of primitive emotions and repressed memories. Instead, the unconscious being excavated by scientists processes data, sets goals, judges people, detects danger, formulates stereotypes and infers causes, all outside our conscious awareness. ©2002 Associated Press

Keyword: Attention; Intelligence
Link ID: 2559 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Rats could hold the key to new treatments for men with sexual problems, scientists believe. Researchers in the United States said they have identified nerves in the spinal cords of rats which trigger ejaculations. They believe the findings may also apply to humans, prompting hopes of improved treatment for men who suffer from premature ejaculation and other sexual disorders. William Truitt and colleagues at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio identified a group of nerve cells in the male rat's spinal cord that relay ejaculation signals from the reproductive organs to the brain. They then deactivated a small group of neurons in the spinal cords of male rats which were then placed in a cage with a "sexually receptive" female. (C) BBC

Keyword: Sexual Behavior
Link ID: 2558 - Posted: 08.30.2002

Just a few minutes around a newborn is enough to get anyone babbling like, well, a baby. But just what drives an infant's babbles remains a matter of much debate. Some scientists posit that the sounds result from a baby's attempts to gain control over his mouth, tongue and lips and, therefore, are not related to language. A second hypothesis holds that babbling instead represents a key step on the way to speaking real words. New research published today in the journal Science further supports the latter theory--scientists say they have linked baby babbling to the brain's language-center. © 1996-2002 Scientific American, Inc.

Keyword: Language; Laterality
Link ID: 2557 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Rat study shows spinal-cord neurons control ejaculation. KENDALL POWELL Researchers have located the spinal-cord neurons that control ejaculation. The finding opens new avenues for treating premature ejaculation and problems with sexual function in paraplegic men. Injecting male rats with a toxin that kills only one group of nerves in the spinal cord disrupts the very last step of their otherwise normal sexual behaviour, report researchers at the University of Cincinnati1. Encountering a willing female rat, the males still "act interested, get erections, chase her, mount her, and penetrate - they just never climax," says neuroscientist Lique Coolen. Coolen targeted the lumbar spinothalamic neurons in the lower back because they are active only after a normal male rat ejaculates, and not simply at mounting or penetration. Truitt, W.A. & Coolen, L. Identification of a potential ejaculation generator in the spinal cord. Science, 297, 1566 - 1569, (2002). |Homepage| © Nature News Service / Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2002

Keyword: Sexual Behavior
Link ID: 2556 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Whether baby babbling is fundamentally linguistic (absorbing the elements of language) or just exercising motor activity (practicing the mechanics of mouth movement) has never been effectively addressed. Until now. A team of researchers based at Dartmouth has discovered a strong link between baby babbling and the language processing centers in the brain. Laura Ann Petitto, Professor in Dartmouth's Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Department of Education, and graduate student, Siobhan Holowka at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, report their findings in the August 30, 2002, issue of Science. "This discovery is the first to demonstrate left hemisphere cerebral specialization for babies' production of language, just like we see in adults," says Petitto. "This suggests that language functions specialize in the brain at a very early age." Copyright 2002 Trustees of Dartmouth College

Keyword: Language; Laterality
Link ID: 2555 - Posted: 08.30.2002

Forgetting useless information crucial for development, tests on mice show Carl T. Hall, Chronicle Science Writer A molecular "eraser" has been found in the brain, scientists report today, suggesting that without it our memory tracks would function about as well as a computer without a delete key. Reporting in the journal Nature, scientists describe the intricate workings of an enzyme of forgetting called PP1, shorthand for protein phosphatase 1. And if you find that name hardly worth recording and soon forget it, it might be because you have a healthy amount of the stuff. A series of experiments on genetically altered laboratory mice suggests that the newfound mental eraser is part of a healthy tension between learning and unlearning that keeps synaptic circuits from becoming saturated early in life with needless information. ©2002 San Francisco Chronicle.

Keyword: Learning & Memory
Link ID: 2554 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Some children being treated in hospital might not be having their pain adequately controlled, research suggests. The problem is that many drugs are not tested on children before they are made available. Instead, standard doses are determined by testing drugs on adults, and doctors are left to estimate what dose would be effective for children. The study, led by Professor James McElnay, of Queen's University of Belfast, examined the use of 10 commonly prescribed drugs on nearly 500 children. It found that most doctors selected doses that were appropriate and safe. However, he did find evidence that in some cases doctors were giving children doses that were too low to control their symptoms - particularly when administering painkillers. (C) BBC

Keyword: Pain & Touch; Development of the Brain
Link ID: 2553 - Posted: 08.29.2002

Children become addicted to cigarettes very quickly, and in some cases just one puff is enough to get them hooked. US researchers say teenagers appear to be more vulnerable than adults to the addictive effects of nicotine because their brains are still developing. Two other studies found children's smoking habits were heavily influenced by teachers and peers who smoked. Forty per cent of 332 children studied in the US research who had tried tobacco, even just once, reported symptoms of addiction. Just over half of the 237 who had inhaled reported addiction symptoms. (C) BBC

Keyword: Drug Abuse
Link ID: 2552 - Posted: 08.29.2002

Scientists have found a molecule that may be too blame for loss of memory as we get older. It raises the tempting prospect of new therapies to restore memory. The enzyme helps the brain delete unwanted information. But a team from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich believe it may become too active as we get older. The researchers carried out tests on mice that showed those animals with low levels of the enzyme, called protein phosphatase-1 (PP1), were less likely to forget what they had learned. It appears that PP1 actively suppresses memories in mice, both during and after a learning exercise. And as the mice get older, the level of PP1 increases. (C) BBC

Keyword: Learning & Memory
Link ID: 2551 - Posted: 08.29.2002

Exclusive from New Scientist Print Edition Two men paralysed on one side of their body can walk again, thanks to an ingenious implant that uses signals from a healthy leg to control a paralysed one. Both men, aged 47 and 64, had been paralysed by strokes. Previously neither could walk unaided. But after sensors were placed over certain muscle groups on the healthy leg and stimulators implanted in the paralysed leg, they can now walk, stand and sit. The unique therapy allows a patient to move their paralysed leg in a natural way without being aware that they are doing it, says Wenwei Yu, who developed the technique at Hokkaido University in Sapporo, Japan. But it could be another five years or more before the technology becomes available, he says. © Copyright Reed Business Information Ltd.

Keyword: Regeneration
Link ID: 2550 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By Rossella Lorenzi, Discovery News — Humans took a genetic leap away from the apes more than 2 million years ago, an international team of researchers announced in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Using ancient fossils and advanced molecular techniques, the researchers determined that the gene mutation, when a gene fell out of the human genetic code, probably occurred 2.5 to 3 million years ago. It was after humans stood upright — about 6 to 7 million years ago — but before hominid brains began to expand about 2 million years ago. "It occurred after our last common ancestors with bonobos (pygmy chimpanzees) and chimpanzees, and before the origin of present-day humans," wrote the study's senior author, Ajit Varki, director of the University of California San Diego's Glycobiology Research and Training Center. Copyright © 2002 Discovery Communications Inc.

Keyword: Evolution
Link ID: 2549 - Posted: 06.24.2010

DALLAS – Every morning millions of Americans reach for the world's most popular drug to help them start their day. "That drug is caffeine," said Dr. James Bibb, assistant professor of psychiatry at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. Bibb is one of the authors of a new report explaining how caffeine exerts its stimulatory effect by altering the biochemistry of the brain. The findings appear in an August issue of Nature. "Caffeine is the most frequently self-administered drug in recreational use worldwide today," Bibb said. "And yet we know little about how caffeine works in the brain, whether with the kick from a double espresso or small jolts from tea or cola. We do know it is rewarding, can enhance cognition and performance, and induce dependence at the same time."

Keyword: Drug Abuse
Link ID: 2548 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Enzyme could lead to treatments for forgetfulness ASSOCIATED PRESS — Scientists have boosted learning and memory in mice by blocking a brain enzyme, and they say the result could point to therapy for reducing forgetfulness in older people. THEY SAID the work implicates the enzyme, called PP1, as a key actor in the brain’s system for erasing memories. • MSNBC Terms, Conditions and Privacy © 2002

Keyword: Learning & Memory
Link ID: 2547 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By Ross Grant TUESDAY, (HealthScoutNews) -- The essential fats found in fish and nuts help more than your heart. They can also reduce memory loss and strokes, claims a new study. "When we don't have enough omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in our system, it can lead to a heart attack or a stroke. You're not getting enough oxygen to your brain, and you are overloading your heart," explains study author Vallie Holloway, a researcher at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, Ill. Copyright © 2002 ABCNEWS Internet Ventures.

Keyword: Development of the Brain
Link ID: 2546 - Posted: 06.24.2010

St. Paul, MN – Using transplants of bone marrow cells improved the recovery from stroke in rat experiments, according to a study published in the August 27 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The rats treated with an intravenous transplant of adult human stromal cells (mature cells from bone marrow) had significant improvements in their ability to function 14 days after the stroke, compared to rats that did not receive transplants after a stroke. "These are smart cells that selectively migrate to the site of injury and become little factories producing an array of helpful molecules to repair the tissue," said study author Michael Chopp, PhD, of Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Mich., and Oakland University in Rochester, Mich. "We believe this therapy shows promise in treating stroke, Parkinson's disease, spinal cord injury and traumatic brain injury."

Keyword: Stroke; Stem Cells
Link ID: 2545 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Only one in four cases of postnatal depression are diagnosed and treated by doctors, despite the common nature of the condition, research suggests. Independent market analysts Datamonitor say that the postnatal condition is "under-treated" in the UK. They call for hospitals to make more effort to screen new mothers for the condition. It is thought that full postnatal depression affects as many as 15% of women shortly after birth. Many more have a short period of feeling low after the birth, often described as the "baby blues". However, postnatal depression may emerge, either as a worsening of these feelings, or several weeks after the birth, and require anti-depressant treatment or counselling to resolve it. (C) BBC

Keyword: Depression; Hormones & Behavior
Link ID: 2544 - Posted: 08.28.2002

Plans for Britain's first stem cell bank are to be given the final go ahead next month, it is reported. The bank, run by the Medical Research Council (MRC), would collect stem cells from human embryos for medical research. Supporters say the resource could one day be used to treat conditions like Alzheimer's and diabetes. But there are fears that couples undergoing IVF treatment could be put under pressure to donate spare embryos. This has been denied by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), which regulates embryo research. HFEA head Suzi Leather told the BBC that strict guidelines were in place to stop that happening. (C) BBC

Keyword: Stem Cells; Parkinsons
Link ID: 2543 - Posted: 08.28.2002

Rush is one of only two sites in nation testing the drug that may provide new treatment option Physicians at Rush-Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center have begun to recruit patients as part of a clinical research study that will evaluate the effectiveness of a new drug as a potential treatment for fragile X syndrome and autism. "Currently there are no therapies on the market to treat cognitive deficits associated with fragile X syndrome or autism," said Berry-Kravis. "However, in the past five years, basic research has led to an improved understanding of these diseases and a number of scientists have suggested that the use of a drug to enhance glutamate transmission could be beneficial." The study will evaluate CX516 (Ampalex®), an Ampakine® compound, which has been proven to enhance glutamate transmission in the brain through activation of AMPA receptors. Ampalex® is made by Cortex Pharmaceuticals which will provide the study medication. The research is funded by the FRAXA Research Foundation.

Keyword: Development of the Brain; Autism
Link ID: 2542 - Posted: 08.28.2002

Tampa, FL — Marijuana may alter immune function in people — but the jury is still out on whether it hurts or helps the body's ability to fight infection or other diseases, report researchers at the University of South Florida College of Medicine and the UCLA School of Medicine in Los Angeles. "The bottom line is you cannot routinely smoke marijuana without it affecting your immune system," said Thomas Klein, PhD, professor of medical microbiology and immunology at USF. "However, because of the complexity of the immune system, we can't say yet whether the effect we've observed in humans is good or bad." A study by USF and UCLA is the first to show that healthy humans who smoke marijuana appear to alter the expression of marijuana receptors, or molecules, on immune cells in their blood. The findings were reported in the June issue of the Journal of Neuroimmunology.

Keyword: Drug Abuse; Neuroimmunology
Link ID: 2541 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Role of environment, genes to be probed by 3 teams, overseen from Sunnyvale David Perlman, Chronicle Science Editor Twenty years after Dr. William J. Langston first linked the devastating symptoms of Parkinson's disease to a toxic exposure, federal health officials are creating a consortium of researchers to investigate the role of the environment and genes in a disorder that normally strikes only the elderly. Scientists from three major teams of researchers plan to conduct independent investigations into the influences of the environment and genetics on the disorder. Dr. Kenneth Olden, director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, a part of the National Institutes of Health, announced Monday that his agency is financing the consortium with a $20 million grant. ©2002 San Francisco Chronicle.

Keyword: Parkinsons
Link ID: 2540 - Posted: 06.24.2010