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Cold Turkey for a Sweet Tooth? New Orleans--People who consider sweets addictive will sympathize with rats fed sugary meals. The rats suffered withdrawal symptoms when researchers blocked a part of the brain that responds to drugs such as morphine or heroin, suggesting that sugar is acting on the brain in much the same way. People with eating disorders might have similar symptoms of addiction, the researchers say. The brain's opioid system registers the intense pleasure that comes from taking morphine, but it also responds more mildly to the body's own opioids. These substances are released, for instance, when you eat delicious foods. ..... --LAURA HELMUTH Copyright © 2000 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Keyword: Drug Abuse
Link ID: 92 - Posted: 10.20.2001
A picture worth a thousand notes JESSA NETTING Some blind people may soon be able to hear a landscape or listen to a painting, using a computer system that translates complex visual images into musical tones. The researchers that developed the program envision a time when blind people will navigate through a city by ‘seeing' the landmarks with their ears. The team at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology in the UK is currently developing a hand-held device that a person could walk around with. Unfortunately, such a device will not help those that are blind from birth, as they do not develop mental imagery for depth perception. 1.Cronly-Dillon, J. & Persaud, K. C. Blind subjects analyze visual images encoded in sound. Journal of Physiology 523P, 68 (2000). 2.Cronly-Dillon, J., Persaud, K.C. & Blore, R. Blind subjects construct conscious mental images of visual scenes encoded in musical form. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 267, 2231-2238 (2000). Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2000 - NATURE NEWS SERVICE Nature © Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2000 Reg. No. 785998 England.
Keyword: Hearing
Link ID: 91 - Posted: 06.24.2010
By LINDA CARROLL
In a quiet, dark room at the University of Pennsylvania, Edward Coleman, 30,
lies back and watches a videotape of addicts like him smoking crack while a PET
scanner records each neurochemical nuance of his brain.
Normally, the images would spark an irresistible craving for the drug. His
heart would start to race; his ears would begin to buzz; and a spot deep inside
his brain would flash brightly on the scan. But today it is different. Before
starting the videotape, Dr. Anna Rose Childress gave Mr. Coleman a medication
that may someday help him, and others, combat the craving that lures so many
back to their addictions.
Copyright 2000 The New York Times Company
Keyword: Drug Abuse
Link ID: 90 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Findings presented at annual Society for Neuroscience meeting
NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 6, 2000 – Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School
of Medicine have uncovered the mechanism by which the brain prepares itself to
solve a problem. Their research was presented today at the 30th Annual Meeting
of the Society for Neuroscience.
The Pitt researchers, led by Cameron Carter, M.D., associate professor of
psychiatry, conducted a series of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
studies showing that the part of the brain called the dorsolateral prefrontal
cortex (DLPFC) becomes active when a person is preparing for a task. The more
it activates, the better that person performs a given task. Yet, absent
anticipation that a task needs to be performed, the DLPFC does not activate at
all. According to Dr. Carter, the data suggest that DLPFC activation is
associated with representing and maintaining the attentional demands of a task.
(c) 2000 UPMC Health System
Keyword: Attention
Link ID: 89 - Posted: 06.24.2010
Similar sounds help the tongue-tied DAVID ADAM What is the name of the proud race of half-men, half-horses from Greek mythology? How about the writing material favoured by the ancient Egyptians? If the words ‘seldom' and ‘nocturnal' help you remember that the first is ‘centaurs' and the clues ‘pagoda' and ‘amorous' trigger ‘papyrus' for the second then, according to new research, the words were ‘on the tip of your tongue. Actually, for this simple test to match accurately the new results announced by researchers at this week's American Psychological Association meeting in Washington DC, the clue words should be read aloud to you. And hearing them even before the question is posed should also help. 1.James, L. E. & Burke, D. M. Tip of the tongue, phonological priming and aging. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition 26, 1378-1391 (2000). Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2000 - NATURE NEWS SERVICE Nature © Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2000 Reg. No. 785998 England.
Keyword: Language
Link ID: 88 - Posted: 06.24.2010
Lamprey cyborg sees the light and responds Sid Perkins The $6-million eel it ain't. But researchers who have taken the unprecedented step of connecting a brain, in this case a sea lamprey's brain, to a small mobile robot say they've got a roving fishbot that may someday lead to better prosthetic devices for humans. In the meantime, the two-wheeled robot that scoots about the lab bench in response to light may help scientists better understand how an animal's nervous system and a machine can communicate with each other. From Science News, Vol. 158, No. 20, Nov. 11, 2000, p. 309. Copyright © 2000 Science Service. All rights reserved.
Keyword: Regeneration
Link ID: 87 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Electric shocks can cause motor neurone disease 09:30 19 July 01 Emma Young Lightning strikes and other electric shocks could cause more cases of motor neurone disease than doctors suspect, says a French team. They identified six patients who had suffered electric shocks and gone on to develop a progressive deterioration of nerves controlling movement. In each of the patients, the nerve deterioration started in the part of the body where the electric charge entered or exited.
Keyword: Miscellaneous
Link ID: 86 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Implant makes sight good as new 14:05 29 June 01 Duncan Graham-Rowe A lens implant that can change focus like a natural lens promises to make cataract patients' eyesight almost as good as it was when they were young. The device, which is being developed by Jin-Hui Shen, an ophthalmologist at Vanderbilt University's School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee, contains six overlapping lenses. As the muscles in the eye relax, the overlap increases, allowing patients to focus on closer objects.
Keyword: Vision
Link ID: 85 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Too much alcohol dulls your senses, but a study in Japan shows that moderate drinkers have a higher IQ than teetotallers. Researchers at the National Institute for Longevity Sciences in Aichi Prefecture, 250 kilometres west of Tokyo, tested the IQs of 2000 people between the ages of 40 and 79. They found that, on average, men who drank moderately-defined as less than 540 millilitres of sake or wine a day-had an IQ that was 3.3 points higher than men who did not drink at all. Women drinkers scored 2.5 points higher than female teetotallers.
Keyword: Drug Abuse
Link ID: 84 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Scientists studying the origins of aggression have highlighted areas in the brains of mouse mothers that may generate fierce attacks on males who pose a potential threat to their pups. The findings will be presented by Johns Hopkins University postdoctoral researcher Stephen Gammie at this week's annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience in New Orleans. Gammie says the results are an important step towards pinning down the origins of this type of aggressive behavior in the mouse brain, an accomplishment that could help scientists better probe aggression's origins in humans. To prevent strange male mice from harming their offspring, female mice with pups normally attack any such mouse who comes into their area. A few mouse moms, however, fail to show this response. Gammie divided mice into groups based on this distinction, compared the two groups for presence of compounds related to brain activity, and was able to identify four brain areas that were active in the aggressive moms but not in the non-aggressives.
Keyword: Aggression
Link ID: 83 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Brain to Blame for Musicians' Cramp New Orleans--Practice makes perfect--but for some musicians, too much practice cramps their hands so badly that they can no longer play their instrument. The condition, called focal dystonia, can afflict typists or anyone else who makes repetitive, forceful, precise movements. Most treatments focus on fingers, hands, and arms. But a study presented here today at the Society for Neuroscience's annual meeting shows that the brain may be to blame. Retraining the brain can allow musicians to play again. Over the past decade, neuroscientists have begun to believe that the adult brain is malleable. For instance, in the parts of the brain that register sensations, every finger has its own designated spot; but if you tape an index and middle finger together for a few weeks, these spots converge, and one brain region will start communicating with both fingers. If, after this rewiring, you touch someone on the middle finger when they're not looking, they might claim you touched the index finger. ..... --LAURA HELMUTH Copyright © 2000 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Keyword: Miscellaneous
Link ID: 82 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Noh subtlety for the British HENRY GEE The full-face masks worn by actors in a traditional Japanese Noh drama are rigid and lifeless. They appear to come to life and change expression when worn by a skilled player. But the emotional subtleties of Noh acting are lost on British viewers, researchers suggest in Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B1. Most of the time British and Japanese test subjects alike judged a photograph of a forward-tilted antique Noh mask ‘happy (yorokabi) and a backward-tilted one ‘sad (kanashimi), say Michael J. Lyons of Advanced Telecommunications Research International in Kyoto, Japan, and his colleagues in Japan and Britain. 1.Lyons, M. J. et al. The Noh mask effect: vertical viewpoint dependence of facial expression perception. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B 267, 2239-2245 (2000). Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2000 - NATURE NEWS SERVICE Nature © Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2000 Reg. No. 785998 England.
Keyword: Emotions
Link ID: 81 - Posted: 06.24.2010
Animal magnetism JESSA NETTING After much tagging and tracking, an international team of researchers from Italy, Sweden, and Wales have concluded that green sea turtles don't have to use magnetic cues to find their way around. Setting off from the tiny Atlantic island of Ascension for the Brazilian mainland, turtles tagged with six coin-sized magnets to disrupt magnetic fields fared just as well as controls in reaching their destination. The navigational mechanisms used by these turtles, report the researchers in The Journal of Experimental Biology1, "remain enigmatic". .... 1.Papi, F., Luschi, P., Akesson, S., Capogrossi, S. & Hays, G. C. Open-sea migration of magnetically disturbed sea turtles. The Journal of Experimental Biology 203, 3435-3443 (2000). Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2000 - NATURE NEWS SERVICE Nature © Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2000 Reg. No. 785998 England.
Keyword: Animal Communication
Link ID: 80 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Gene Study May Help Schizophrenics Brain-signal system appears to be abnormal Carl T. Hall, Chronicle Science Writer Tuesday, November 7, 2000 New Orleans -- The hidden genetic roots of mental illness, including even complex disorders with varied symptoms, are starting to show themselves in cutting-edge experiments using tools derived from study of the human genome. In one of the first applications of high-powered ``gene chip'' technology to an important psychiatric syndrome, scientists are reporting today the discovery of genes that may prove key to understanding schizophrenia. E-mail Carl T. Hall at carlhall@sfchronicle.com. (c) 2000 San Francisco Chronicle Page A4
Keyword: Schizophrenia
Link ID: 79 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Promising Way to Repair Brain Less controversial, more plentiful source of stem cells reported Carl T. Hall, Chronicle Science Writer Monday, November 6, 2000 Primitive brain cells taken from cadavers have the stunning ability to regenerate into healthy, living neurons, scientists reported yesterday. The findings, reported at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, may point to a plentiful new source of neuronal stem cells, as the primitive cells are called, that avoids the ethical controversies and practical limits of using cells derived from fetal tissue. Researchers also reported promising early results yesterday using stem cells to treat even some of the most difficult brain conditions, including head trauma, spinal cord injuries and stroke, which can often cause damage considered beyond the reach of modern medicine. (c) 2000 San Francisco Chronicle Page A1
Keyword: Stem Cells
Link ID: 77 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Pesticide Found to Produce Parkinson's Symptoms in Rats By SANDRA BLAKESLEE NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 4 - An organic pesticide widely used on home-grown fruits and vegetables and for killing unwanted fish in the nation's lakes and rivers produces all the classic symptoms of Parkinson's disease in rats that receive steady amounts of the chemical in their bloodstreams, scientists said today. While it is much too soon to say that the pesticide, rotenone, causes or contributes to Parkinson's disease in humans, the scientists said the finding was the best evidence thus far that chemicals in the environment may be factors in this devastating disease. Copyright 2000 The New York Times Company
Keyword: Parkinsons
Link ID: 76 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Water on the brain VALERIE DEPRAETERE Salty sea water improves the long-term memory of crabs. Hector Maldonado and his colleagues at the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina have found that exposure to high salinity for six consecutive days helps the crab Chasmagnathus granultus - which usually lives on the shore of only slightly salty water - to learn1. Maldonado's group stressed the crabs by passing a screen over their heads, transiently masking the sunlight. A crab's reflex is to flee. But after repeatedly experiencing such eclipses without ensuing danger, a crab learns to ignore them. Crabs dunked in salty water need fewer exposures to the screen test to memorize the absence of danger, say the researchers. ..... 1.Delorenzi, A. High environmental salinity induces memory enhancement and increased levels of brain angiotensin-like peptides in the crab Chasmagnathus granulatus. The Journal of Experimental Biology 203, 3369–3379 (2000). .© Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2000 - NATURE NEWS SERVICE Nature © Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2000 Reg. No. 785998 England.
Keyword: Learning & Memory
Link ID: 75 - Posted: 06.24.2010
New model for neurodegenerative disease VALERIE DEPRAETERE Researchers have used the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster to identify the key proteins involved in the untreatable hereditary neurodegenerative disease, spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1), which affects a couple of people in every 100,000. SCA1, a condition from the same family as Huntington's disease, is caused by mutations in the gene (called ataxin-1) that encodes the protein ataxin-1. Sufferers develop problems with their gait, speech and eyesight in middle age and become progressively more disabled from then on. Juan Botas, Huda Y. Zoghbi and their colleagues at the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, have made a new fruitfly model of SCA1 that paves the way for the development of new therapeutic strategies1. ..... 1.Fernandez-Funez, P. et al. A genetic screen in Drosophila identifies novel suppressors and enhancers of polyglutamine-induced neurodegeneration. Nature 408, 101–106 (2000). Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2000 - NATURE NEWS SERVICE Nature © Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2000 Reg. No. 785998 England.
Keyword: Huntingtons
Link ID: 74 - Posted: 06.24.2010
Killing Cells To Kill Pain Have a headache? Take an aspirin. Fortunately, many medications can control a variety of aches and pains. Unfortunately, even the strongest drugs can't touch some types of persistent pain. Now new animal studies indicate that special strategies, which target the groups of nerve cells that convey problem pain sensations, can stop the stubborn pain while leaving normal sensations intact. The studies are helping scientists better understand how the pain system works and may lead to improved treatments for resistant human pain. You bump into the iron left in the middle of the hallway. It's on. Signals sprint from nerve cell to nerve cell along special pathways that alert the brain. Yoooouch! You feel pain. In this scenario the sensation is normal and helpful. It warns that a problem exists. Copyright © 2000 Society for Neuroscience. All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without permission of the Society for Neuroscience.
Keyword: Pain & Touch
Link ID: 73 - Posted: 10.20.2001
Cramped conditions could create infertility JESSA NETTING When people live cheek by jowl, moods sour and tempers flare. Mice react to cramped quarters in a similar way. But new research has uncovered a more sinister side effect of overpopulation on these masters of high-speed reproduction. Female mice reacting to the stress of chronic overcrowding develop perplexing lesions on their ovaries, report researchers from Binghamton University in New York. Stress can disrupt or even halt ovulation in humans, but the state of the ovaries in these mice was a complete surprise. 1.Chapman, J. C., Christian, J. J., Pawlikowski, M., Yasukawa, N. & Michael, S. Female house mice develop a unique ovarian lesion in colonies that are at maximum population density. Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine 225, 80-89 (2000).. Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2000 - NATURE NEWS SERVICE Nature © Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2000 Reg. No. 785998 England.
Keyword: Stress
Link ID: 72 - Posted: 10.20.2001