Cannabinoid receptor important in erasing aversive memories Using the model of fear conditioning in mice, researchers of the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry together with colleagues from Naples were able to show that the cannabinoid receptor is important in erasing fear behavior. The researchers report in the current issue of the journal Nature 1st August 2002 that in mouse mutants lacking the cannabinoid receptor CB1, erasure of fear behavior evoked by an aversive acoustic sound was considerably lessened compared to normal control mice. The researchers hope that these findings will lead to new approaches for the treatments of phobias, posttraumatic stress disorders, and certain forms of chronic pain. It is part of our evolutionary heritage that we are alert to potentially dangerous situations, such as confined spaces, wide open spaces, lofty heights, or situations where we are confronted by animals perceived to be repulsive or possibly dangerous for us, such as spiders or snakes. Although it is important to be aware of potential and real threats, it is equally important to react appropriately to them. In most human beings, the initial moment of alertness and the subsequent reactions are correctly balanced, and they are able to relax rather fast and to react well-planned if the expected "disaster" has not occurred.

Keyword: Emotions; Stress
Link ID: 2410 - Posted: 08.05.2002

When you gaze at a bowl of fruit, why don't some of the bananas look red, some of the apples look purple and some of the grapes look yellow? This question isn't as nonsensical as it may sound. When your brain processes the information coming from your eyes, it stores the information about an object's shape in one place and information about its color in another. So it's something of a miracle that the shapes and colors of each fruit are combined seamlessly into distinct objects when you look at them. Exactly how the brain recombines these different types of visual information after it has broken them apart is called the "binding problem" and is currently the subject of considerable controversy in the neuroscience community. But the results of a brain mapping experiment, published online by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on July 29, provide significant new support for the theory that attention is the glue that cements visual information together as people scan complex visual scenes.

Keyword: Attention; Vision
Link ID: 2409 - Posted: 08.05.2002

Study shows damaged brain finds new ways to function Toronto, ONT. -- People who have suffered a moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) can recover some of their memory function by using alternate brain networks, according to a new study in the August 2002 issue of the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry. TBI, often sustained in traffic accidents, is one of the most common causes of disability in young adults. People with TBI frequently complain of memory problems that interfere with their daily function and ability to work, yet many eventually recover memory function and return to work or school. The study, led by scientist Brian Levine of The Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, compared brain function in two groups of adults -- six patients who had suffered a moderate to severe TBI four years earlier (with several days of coma in some cases)and made a strong recovery, and 11 healthy adults who matched the TBI group in age and education.

Keyword: Regeneration
Link ID: 2408 - Posted: 08.05.2002

Anorexia nervosa mainly afflicts young women. The sufferers become obsessed with the importance of losing weight to the point where they become skeletal. A fatal outcome is all too common in this serious disorder. To decrease their weight, sufferers either restrict their eating only (restricting anorexia nervosa), or vomit what they eat. Stress and anxiety are emotions experienced intensely by sufferers with anorexia nervosa. Stress and anxiety involve the norepinephrine neurochemical system. The NET is a protein that plays a role in this system by shipping the chemical called norepinephrine back into neurons. The NET gene provides the instructions to make the NET. An on-off switch (promoter) in the NET gene determines how many NETs are made. Variation in the DNA sequence of the promoter may increase or decrease the number of NETs being produced. Since this may begin disease processes, the researchers studied the DNA sequence of the promoter. They found a big piece of DNA in normal people which had never been observed before. This DNA was found in two different sizes: one long and one short. When sufferers with the restricting type of anorexia nervosa, and their parents were tested, the parents were shown to pass on the long form significantly more often than the short form to their children. This shows that a person who inherits the long form has an increased chance of developing the restricting type of anorexia nervosa.

Keyword: Anorexia & Bulimia
Link ID: 2407 - Posted: 08.05.2002

Copyright © 2002 Scripps Howard News Service By LICIA ROCA, Sacramento Bee - P.J. Anderson is a napper. Three days a week she steals away from her office to catch a 10-minute afternoon snooze. "A power nap. That's what I call it," said Anderson, owner of OP Contract in San Francisco. "The reality is, I need to regroup a bit before I can put in a 10- or 12-hour day." Four years ago, Anderson saw her employees' fatigued faces and realized she wasn't the only one needing a break. She created a "wellness room" equipped with an alarm clock, daybed and blankets. Copyright © 2001 Nando Media

Keyword: Sleep
Link ID: 2406 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Copyright © 2002 AP Online By LISA RATHKE, Associated Press ESSEX, Vt. (- It's nearly as fast as the most advanced computer, but uses a fraction of the energy. It simultaneously zaps information to thousands of points and is equipped to correct itself. It's not made of silicon and it came long before the computer chip. It is the human brain. In searching for new ways to advance computers, engineers are looking to man's gray matter for inspiration. And while comparing the two, they often wonder why a computer can't act more like a brain. Copyright © 2001 Nando Media

Keyword: Robotics
Link ID: 2405 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Scientists are hopeful they can produce a drug to reduce the addictive effects of morphine, but keeping its painkilling properties. For years, researchers have been hunting a way to block the brain response which leads to dependence on morphine, and the street drug heroin, which works in a similar way. All attempts so far have failed, even if the addiction process was diminished, the drugs caused dangerous side-effects. However, now a research group from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), in the US, believe they have found another route to block addition. In mice, their method meant that much higher doses of the drug were needed before dependence started to emerge. However, an addiction researcher from the UK has warned that much more work will be needed before the principle can be turned into a drug for humans. (C) BBC

Keyword: Drug Abuse
Link ID: 2404 - Posted: 07.30.2002

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL--University of Minnesota researchers have found that a nontoxic bile acid produced in the body prevents apoptosis, or programmed cell death, in mice with Huntington's disease. This finding, to be published July 29 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA (PNAS), may eventually lead to a treatment for Huntington's disease (HD) in humans. HD is an untreatable neurological disorder caused by selective and progressive degeneration of neural cells. In the study, led by Walter Low, Ph.D., professor of neurosurgery in the university's Medical School, a dose of tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) was administered subcutaneously once every third day for six weeks in mice with the HD gene. Researchers found TUDCA was able to cross the blood / brain barrier, something many molecules are unable to do, resulting in decreased apoptosis in the section of the brain affected by HD and improving the neurological cell function in the mice. "We're extremely encouraged by the neuroprotective function of TUDCA in Huntington's disease and will be examining its potential in future studies," said Low.

Keyword: Huntingtons
Link ID: 2403 - Posted: 07.30.2002

BALTIMORE, Md.--Traces of ordinary products, flushed and tossed away from millions of homes, gardens and garages, are likely more harmful to the sexual development and reproduction of fish in the Chesapeake Bay than scientists previously thought. The large, shallow Bay-average depth of less than 30 feet-with hundreds of tributaries, has long been considered by ecologists as a very favorable habitat for fish spawning, hatching and nurseries. However, today, at the annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Reproduction, at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel, scientists of the University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute (UMBI) reported that the list of compounds in human pollution that can disrupt fish sexual hormones-a concern of scientists for the past 20 years-has widened considerably. Compounds in many detergents, plastics, pesticides, some medicines, and even thalates ("new car smell") disrupted the sexual development of juvenile zebra fish in experiments at UMBI's Center of Marine Biotechnology (COMB) in Baltimore.

Keyword: Hormones & Behavior; Sexual Behavior
Link ID: 2402 - Posted: 07.30.2002

Orlando, FL -- Individual variation in response to medications remains a major problem within the healthcare system. In the United Kingdom, one in 15 British hospital admissions is due to adverse drug reactions; here in the United States, some 106,000 patients die and 2.2 million are injured each year by adverse reactions to prescribed drugs. A significant inter-individual variability can be found in clinical response during antipsychotic drug therapy. In the United Kingdom, up to 30 percent of patients respond inadequately to treatment for chemical imbalances in the brain. Some of the poor response can be can be attributed to poor patient compliance in taking the prescribed medication. However, alterations in genes encoding mediators of drug efficacy may be particularly important. This includes drug metabolizing enzymes, receptor targets, and transporters. These alterations may also be important for treatment-induced side effects Clozapine (trade name clozaril) is one of the newer antipsychotic medicines used to treat people with schizophrenia. Although clozapine is often more effective than other antipsychotic medicines, it is not suitable for everybody. Clozapine can cause a problem with the white blood cells of some people, and therefore patients take scheduled blood tests.

Keyword: Schizophrenia
Link ID: 2401 - Posted: 07.30.2002

Copyright © 2002 AP Online By LAURAN NEERGAARD, AP Medical Writer WASHINGTON - West Nile virus is sickening people far earlier this summer than usual, and is spreading so quickly - it's hit 33 states, as far west as South Dakota - that health officials believe it will reach California this year or next. Nobody knows how bad the mosquito-borne illness will get - although a rapidly growing outbreak among 32 people in Louisiana began a month earlier than West Nile has ever struck in this country, a big worry. But it's clear the virus first detected in New York City a mere three years ago has become a permanent summertime threat in most states. Yet it's fairly easy to prevent: Spray on DEET-containing mosquito repellent when you go outdoors, and don't let puddles collect in flower pots, wading pools or other spots where mosquitoes can breed. One specialist equates the safety steps to the routine of buckling a seat belt before driving. Copyright © 2001 Nando Media

Keyword: Miscellaneous
Link ID: 2400 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By ERIC NAGOURNEY Are some people just born more anxious than others? It is not that simple, but a new study suggests that inheriting a shorter version of a single gene appears to predispose people to fear. The study, reported in a recent issue of Science, looked at how people with different versions of the gene responded to pictures of people who appeared scared. Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company

Keyword: Emotions
Link ID: 2399 - Posted: 07.30.2002

By ERIC NAGOURNEY Two new studies report that from an early age, the brains and heads of autistic children develop differently from those of other children. But researchers said it was unclear what, if anything, might be learned from the findings. In separate studies appearing in the current issue of Neurology, Dr. Stephen R. Dager and Dr. Elizabeth H. Aylward, both of the University of Washington School of Medicine, found that brain growth in autistic children was more rapid in early years. Among the 3- and 4-year-old autistic children they examined, Dr. Dager and his colleagues found cerebral volumes that were on average 10 percent larger than they were in children with typical brain development. Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company

Keyword: Autism; Development of the Brain
Link ID: 2398 - Posted: 07.30.2002

By SUSAN FREINKEL Like millions of Americans, Caroline Polk, a freelance editor in Washington, was left deeply unnerved by the Sept. 11 attacks. She could not sleep and felt tense and nervous all the time. Unable to calm herself, she decided to go for counseling, paying out of her own pocket. After four months, her anxiety had subsided, and she quit. Ms. Polk did not give the therapy another thought until a few months later, when she decided to switch her health insurance. She applied for an individual plan through a Maryland company, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield. When the application asked about recent medical treatments, she duly noted the counseling, as well as some visits to the doctor for minor back pain. Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company

Keyword: Depression; Schizophrenia
Link ID: 2397 - Posted: 07.30.2002

PAUL RECER AP Science Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - A bile acid the body produces in small amounts is able in laboratory studies to slow the progress of Huntington's disease, a fatal, inherited brain disorder that destroys the mind and has affected about 30,000 Americans. "We found in mouse studies that this compound protects the animals' neurons (brain cells) from the effects of the Huntington's disease gene," said C. Dirk Keene, first author of a study appearing this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Keene, a researcher at the University of Minnesota, said many more laboratory studies are needed before the drug could be considered for testing in humans, but he said the research is important because it offers the hint of a future treatment for a lethal disorder that now has no treatment.

Keyword: Huntingtons
Link ID: 2396 - Posted: 07.30.2002

A new technology that allows physicians and researchers to make detailed, three-dimensional maps of nerve pathways in the brain, heart muscle fibers, and other soft tissues has been licensed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The new imaging technology, called Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging (DT-MRI) was invented by researchers now at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). DT-MRI may allow physicians and researchers to better understand and diagnose a wide range of medical conditions such as stroke, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease), multiple sclerosis (MS), autism, attention deficit disorder (ADD), and schizophrenia. NIH has signed an agreement with GE Medical Systems, licensing them to produce and market the product. “NIH’s mission is to support research that improves the health of the public,” said Duane Alexander, M.D., Director of NICHD. “The recent licensing of DT-MRI ensures that the technology produced as a result of NIH research is further developed and marketed to medical institutions where patients can benefit from its use.”

Keyword: Brain imaging
Link ID: 2395 - Posted: 06.24.2010

WASHINGTON - Even if we are not aware of them, negative thoughts about aging that we pick up from society may be cutting years off our lives, according to Becca Levy, Ph.D., the lead researcher of a study conducted at Yale University's Department of Epidemiology and Public Health. The study found that older people with more positive self-perceptions of aging, measured up to 23 years earlier, lived 7.5 years longer than those with less positive self-perceptions of aging. The findings appear in the August issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, published by the American Psychological Association (APA). The 7.5 year higher longevity for those with the more positive attitudes toward aging remained even after other factors were taken into account, including age, gender, socioeconomic status, loneliness and overall health. "The effect of more positive self-perceptions of aging on survival is greater than the physiological measures of low systolic blood pressure and cholesterol, each of which is associated with a longer lifespan of four years or less," said the study authors. "It is also greater than the independent contributions of lower body mass index, no history of smoking, and a tendency to exercise, each of these factors has been found to contribute between one and three years of added life." Using information from 660 participants aged 50 and older from a small town in Ohio who were part of the Ohio Longitudinal Study of Aging and Retirement (OLSAR), Dr. Levy and her co-authors, Martin D. Slade, MPH and Stanislav V. Kasl, Ph.D., of Yale University and Suzanne Kunkel, Ph.D., of Miami University of Ohio, compared mortality rates to responses made 23 years earlier by the participants (338 men and 322 women). The responses included agreeing or disagreeing with such statements as "As you get older, you are less useful." © PsycNET 2002 American Psychological Association

Keyword: Development of the Brain
Link ID: 2394 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By ANN PATCHETT I am quite sure I am not the only one who has noticed this, but those low, snug jeans that Britney Spears wears with such authority do not flatter anyone else. Still, that is the style of the day, and there is nothing to do but watch the parade of hips and stomachs and wait for them to pass. Whatever is awful in fashion will eventually go away (fashion writers are heralding high-waisted pants for fall), and then, just as reliably, it will return. Now we must ask whether it is time to bid farewell to Prempro, a drug we had thought was part of the permanent pharmaceutical landscape but may instead have been only passing through. With its attendant risks suddenly brought to light (higher rates of breast cancer, strokes, blood clots) there is not only fear but also a sense of betrayal. This combination of estrogen and progestin had been tested, approved, recommended. We had been convinced that we needed it, and in that belief we came to need it. Now we are left to battle out the hot flashes and mood swings, to find different ways of preventing osteoporosis, to worry about heart attacks. In short, we are back where we started. What we want is for medicine to be a science. We want competent, well-informed doctors to give us consistent answers based on exhaustive research. We want them to be right. But medicine is a peculiar combination of science and fashion, half penicillin, half shoulder pads. It takes what is known at the moment, combines the knowledge with what the consuming public wants and comes up with a product. One doctor endorses the product, and while you can always go for a second opinion, it's hard to stop at just two, especially when the opinions turn out to be in direct conflict with one another. Read the papers. One doctor says to discontinue Prempro immediately. Another says more studies are needed and what we're facing is a massive overreaction. In the end it will be up to you, who never went to medical school, to make the decision your life may depend on, and while there might not be one definitive right answer, you can bet on the fact there are plenty of wrong ones. Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company

Keyword: Hormones & Behavior
Link ID: 2393 - Posted: 07.29.2002

Bone marrow could save eyesight. KENDALL POWELL Bone marrow stem cells might one day deliver drugs to the eye, halting age- and diabetes-related blindness. The cells can treat a genetic condition that causes mouse retinas to degenerate1. When the stem cells - that usually make blood vessels - were injected into the fluid-filled space of the eye they became part of developing blood vessels in the retina. Faulty capillary formation is central to both the leading causes of adult blindness in the US: diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration. © Nature News Service / Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2002

Keyword: Stem Cells; Vision
Link ID: 2392 - Posted: 06.24.2010

In a Study of the Brain, Special Nerves Registered the Emotional Context of a Pleasurable Touch By Shankar Vedantam Washington Post Staff Writer Neuroscientists have discovered what romantics have always known: The touch of a lover's hand is special. Scientists announced a study today that shows humans have a special set of nerves for feeling pleasure at a mother's caress or a lover's embrace. These nerves are sensitive to the soft touch of fingers gliding over a forearm or a parent's soothing hand, but not to rough touches, jabs or pinches. Scientists speculate that the nerves might be designed to guide humans toward tenderness and nurturing -- a theory bolstered by the fact that the nerves are wired to the same brain areas activated by romantic love and sexual arousal. © 2002 The Washington Post Company

Keyword: Pain & Touch
Link ID: 2391 - Posted: 06.24.2010