JOHN HALPERN clearly remembers what made him change his mind about psychedelic drugs. It was the early 1990s and the young medical student at a hospital in Brooklyn, New York, was getting frustrated that he could not do more to help the alcoholics and addicts in his care. He sounded off to an older psychiatrist, who mentioned that LSD and related drugs had once been considered promising treatments for addiction. "I was so fascinated that I did all this research," Halpern recalls. "I was reading all these papers from the 60s and going, whoa, wait a minute! How come nobody's talking about this?" More than a decade later, Halpern is now an associate director of substance abuse research at Harvard University's McLean Hospital and is at the forefront of a revival of research into psychedelic medicine. He recently received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to give late-stage cancer patients the psychedelic drug MDMA, also known as ecstasy. He is also laying the groundwork for testing LSD as a treatment for dreaded super-migraines known as cluster headaches. And Halpern is not alone. Clinical trials of psychedelic drugs are planned or under way at numerous centres around the world for conditions ranging from anxiety to alcoholism. It may not be long before doctors are legally prescribing hallucinogens for the first time in decades. "There are medicines here that have been overlooked, that are fundamentally valuable," says Halpern. © Copyright Reed Business Information Ltd.

Keyword: Drug Abuse
Link ID: 6963 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Long distance messengers star in many heroic tales, perhaps the most famous being the one about the runner who carried the news about the victory of the Greeks over the Persians in the fateful battle of Marathon. A team of researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science has now discovered how molecular messengers perform a crucial role in the ability of injured nerve cells to heal themselves. A nerve cell has a cell body and a long extension, called an axon, which in humans can reach up to one meter in length. Nerve cells belonging to the peripheral nervous system can regrow when their axons are damaged. But how does the damaged axon inform the cell body that it must start producing vital proteins for the healing? That's precisely where the molecular messengers, proteins called Erk-1 and Erk-2, enter the picture. When the axon is injured, these proteins bind to molecules of phosphorus. In this phosphorylated state, they can communicate to command centers in the cell, transmitting a message that activates certain genes in the cell body, which then manufactures proteins that are vital for the healing of the injured axon. The problem is that the messengers must transmit their phosphorus message over a great distance along the axon, and in the course of this arduous journey can easily lose their phosphorus en route.

Keyword: Regeneration
Link ID: 6962 - Posted: 03.03.2005

The first evidence for a possible treatment for Fragile X syndrome, one of the leading inherited causes of mental retardation, has emerged from experiments with a mutant fruit fly that exhibits characteristics of the disorder. The disorder affects one in 6000 births and also causes accompanying sleep disorders, attention deficit disorder, hyperactivity, aggression, and autistic behavior. Researchers Sean M.J. McBride from Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Thomas A. Jongens from University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and their colleagues studied a mutant strain of the fruit fly Drosophila that lacks the fly version of the same gene that is mutated in humans with Fragile X syndrome. The gene, FMRP, codes for a protein that binds specific messenger RNAs--carriers of genetic information in the cell--and enables them to function properly. The mutant flies lack the ability of normal flies to adjust courtship behavior that is dependent on learning and memory. In such conditioned courtship, a male fly learns to modify his courtship behavior--including following the female, vibrating a wing, tapping the female, and attempting to copulate--according to the response of the female. Studies of a mouse lacking the Fragile X gene had revealed that it showed increased activity of the metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) on the surface of neurons.

Keyword: Genes & Behavior; Development of the Brain
Link ID: 6961 - Posted: 03.03.2005

Clearance of beta amyloid accumulation within neurons stops memory decline in mice Researchers at UC Irvine have identified a trigger at the molecular level that marks the onset of memory decline in mice genetically engineered to develop brain lesions – in the form of plaques and tangles – associated with Alzheimer's disease. The trigger is a protein called "beta amyloid" that accumulates within neurons in the mice's brains. Although several researchers have studied the association between beta amyloid and memory, the UCI research team is the first to identify that early beta amyloid accumulation within neurons is the trigger for the onset of memory decline in Alzheimer's. "This finding has important and useful implications for the pharmaceutical industry in terms of developing drugs that can target beta amyloid as soon as it accumulates within the neurons," said Frank LaFerla, principal investigator of the research project, associate professor of neurobiology and behavior, and co-director of the UCI Institute for Brain Aging and Dementia. "Once the plaques and tangles form, it is too late." The researchers report their findings in the March 3 issue of Neuron.

Keyword: Alzheimers
Link ID: 6960 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Dr. Peter Hurd initially thought the idea was "a pile of hooey", but he changed his mind when he saw the data. Hurd and his graduate student Allison Bailey have shown that a man's index finger length relative to ring finger length can predict how inclined that man is to be physically aggressive. Women do not show a similar effect. A psychologist at the University of Alberta, Hurd said that it has been known for more than a century that the length of the index finger relative to the ring finger differs between men and women. More recently, researchers have found a direct correlation between finger lengths and the amount of testosterone that a fetus is exposed to in the womb. The shorter the index finger relative to the ring finger, the higher the amount of prenatal testosterone, and--as Hurd and Bailey have now shown--the more likely he will be physically aggressive throughout his life. "More than anything, I think the findings reinforce and underline that a large part of our personalities and our traits are determined while we're still in the womb," said Hurd. Hurd and Bailey's research, published this March in Biological Psychology, was determined from surveys and hand measurements of 300 U of A undergraduates.

Keyword: Aggression; Hormones & Behavior
Link ID: 6959 - Posted: 03.03.2005

Parents need have no more fears about the triple vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella. A study of more than 30,000 children in Japan should put the final nail in the coffin of the claim that the MMR vaccine is responsible for the apparent rise in autism in recent years. The study shows that in the city of Yokohama the number of children with autism continued to rise after the MMR vaccine was replaced with single vaccines. "The findings are resoundingly negative," says Hideo Honda of the Yokohama Rehabilitation Center. In the UK, parents panicked and vaccination rates plummeted after gastroenterologist Andrew Wakefield claimed in a 1998 study that MMR might trigger autism, although the study was based on just 12 children and later retracted by most of its co authors. Soon the vaccine was being blamed for the apparent rise in autism, with Wakefield citing data from California, US (see graph). In some parts of the UK, the proportion of children receiving both doses of the MMR vaccine has dropped to 60%. This has led to a rise in measles outbreaks and fears of an epidemic. © Copyright Reed Business Information Ltd.

Keyword: Autism
Link ID: 6958 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Ruth Francis A recorder player has fascinated neuroscientists with her ability to taste differences in the intervals between notes. The condition in which the brain links two or more of the senses is known as synaesthesia, and some sense combinations are relatively common. But this is the first time that the ability has been found to help in performing a mental task, such as identifying a major third. Elizabeth Sulston was at school when she first noticed that she saw colours while hearing music. She realized that the same was not true of her peers, although linkage of tone and colour is a known synaesthetic combination. As she began to learn music more formally, she found that when hearing particular tone intervals she experienced a characteristic taste on her tongue. For example, a minor third tasted salty to her, whereas a minor sixth tasted like cream. She started to use the tastes to help her recognize different chords. Talking to news@nature.com, she says: "I always had the synaesthesia, but really became conscious of it at 16. Then I started to use it for the tone-interval identification. I could first check it by counting the space between the notes, and second by 'feeling' my tongue." ©2005 Nature Publishing Group

Keyword: Hearing
Link ID: 6957 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Passive smoking kills more than 11,000 a year in the UK - much higher than previously thought, a study shows. The British Medical Journal study also gives a figure for people dying from second-hand smoke in the workplace - 600 a year - for the first time. Leading doctors said the findings proved a complete ban on smoking in public places was needed. But smoking lobby group Forest said there was still little hard evidence of the effect of passive smoking. November's Public Health White Paper proposed a ban on smoking in public places with the exception of pubs which do not serve food. At the time much of the medical establishment criticised the proposals for not going far enough. But doctors have thrown their support behind Liverpool's bid to introduce a complete ban in all workplaces, which is due before the House of Lords later this month. Researchers at University of Queensland in Australia compiled the report from UK databases of causes of death, employment, structure of households and levels of active smoking and exposure to passive smoking. They found 2,700 deaths among people aged 20 to 64 could be attributed to second-hand smoke and 8,000 in 65-year-olds and over. A further 617 deaths were caused by workplace passive smoking, including 54 in the hospitality industry. Report author Konrad Jamrozik said: "It is clear that adoption of smoke free policies in all workplaces in the UK might prevent several hundred premature deaths each year." Previous studies have put the figure much lower. The British Medical Association estimated it was 1,000 a year three years ago but said the latest study was a much more comprehensive guide to the problem. (C)BBC

Keyword: Drug Abuse
Link ID: 6956 - Posted: 03.02.2005

Shares in Elan and Biogen Idec plunged on Monday as the firms suspended sales of new multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri after a patient's death in the US. On the New York Stock Exchange, shares in Ireland-based Elan lost 70% while US partner Biogen Idec shed 43%. The firms took action after the death from a central nervous system disease and a suspected case of the condition. The cases cited involved the use of both Tysabri and Avonex, Biogen Idec's existing multiple sclerosis drug. The companies said they have no reports of the rare condition - progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) - in patients taking either Tysabri or Avonex alone. Tysabri was approved for use in the US last November and was widely tipped to become the world's leading multiple sclerosis treatment. "The companies will work with clinical investigators to evaluate Tysabri-treated patients and will consult with leading experts to better understand the possible risk of PML," the two firms said in a statement. "The outcome of these evaluations will be used to determine possible re-initiation of dosing in clinical trials and future commercial availability." The decision to suspend sales of the drug was welcomed by Christine Jones, chief executive of the UK MS Trust. She said: "Clearly, it is vital to protect the interests and safety of patients at all times and we are pleased that such prompt action has been taken. (C)BBC

Keyword: Multiple Sclerosis
Link ID: 6955 - Posted: 03.02.2005

(Embargoed) CHAPEL HILL -- Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill may have identified the genetic basis underlying essential tremor disease, the most common human movement disorder. The discovery comes from studies involving a strain of genetically altered mice that show the same types of tremor and similar lack of coordination as people affected by essential tremor. This animal model of the disease might prove useful for screening potential treatments, said Dr. A. Leslie Morrow, associate director of UNC's Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies and professor of psychiatry and pharmacology in UNC's School of Medicine. "We believe that these mice could explain one etiology, or origin, of essential tremor disease in humans because of the marked similarities between the mouse model and the human disease," said Morrow, who led the study team. A report of the findings will appear in the March issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation. An estimated 5 million Americans are affected by essential tremor, a neurological disease characterized by an uncontrollable shaking of the limbs, in particular the arms and head. Unlike resting tremor associated with Parkinson's disease, symptoms of essential tremor are noticeable during movement, such as lifting a cup of coffee.

Keyword: Movement Disorders
Link ID: 6954 - Posted: 03.02.2005

Posted by Carl Zimmer Earlier this month I wrote two posts about the evolution of the eye, a classic example of complexity in nature. (Parts one and two.) I'd like to write now about another case study in complexity that has fascinated me for some time now, and one that has sparked a fascinating debate that has been playing out for over fifteen years. The subject is language, and how it evolved. In 1990, Steven Pinker (now at Harvard) and Paul Bloom (now at Yale) published a paper called "Natural Selection and Natural Language." They laid out a powerful argument for language as being an adaptation produced by natural selection. In the 1980s some pretty prominent scientists, such as Stephen Jay Gould, had claimed that the opposite was the case--namely, that language was merely a side effect of other evolutionary forces, such as an increase in brain size. Pinker and Bloom argued that the features of language show that Gould must be wrong. Instead, they maintained, language shows all the classic hallmarks of an adaptation produced by natural selection. Despite the superficial diversity of languages, they all share a basic underlying structure, which had first been identified by Noam Chomsky of MIT in the 1960s. Babies have no trouble developing this structure, which you'd expect if it was an in-born capacity rather than a cultural artefact. Copyright © 2004 Corante.

Keyword: Language; Evolution
Link ID: 6953 - Posted: 06.24.2010

RICHMOND, Va. – Virginia Commonwealth University researchers have identified several genetic changes in the brains of mice caused by ethanol, which may help researchers better understand how and why people become addicted to alcohol. In the March issue of the Journal of Neuroscience, researchers reported significant differences in the gene expression patterns regulated by alcohol in two mouse strains known as B6 and D2. The two mouse strains differ in a number of behavioral responses to acute alcohol and in their predisposition to drink alcohol. Researchers isolated tissue from three different regions of the brain that are all known to play a role in responses to alcohol and other drugs of abuse. Using DNA microarrays, which measure the activity of more than 10,000 genes simultaneously, together with large databases of other biological information, researchers were able to identify several genes regulated by alcohol that may play a role in determining genetic differences in behavioral responses to alcohol. "These findings help us to better understand the molecular basis for genetic differences in behavioral response to alcohol and may eventually lead to new therapeutic approaches for alcoholism," said Michael Miles, M.D., Ph.D., a professor in pharmacology, toxicology and neurology, who also has an appointment in VCU Life Sciences' Center for the Study of Biological Complexity.

Keyword: Drug Abuse
Link ID: 6952 - Posted: 06.24.2010

New Haven, Conn.--A family of proteins that help build the cytoskeleton, or the bones of the cell, also play an important role in learning and memory, according to a study published this month in The Journal of Neuroscience. Marina Picciotto, associate professor of psychiatry, pharmacology and neurobiology at Yale School of Medicine, and the senior author of the study, studied mice missing one of these proteins--ā-adducin--and found the cytoskeleton developed normally. However, the mice were impaired during fear conditioning and memory exercises. "We were hoping to find a mechanism that cells use to make short term changes in nerve cell communication permanent, but we were surprised that losing ā-adducin made such a big change in both the nerve cell communication and in behavioral measures of memory," Picciotto said. The focus of the study is long-term potentiation, which is a form of neuronal plasticity and may form the biological basis for some kinds of memory. Long-term potentiation refers to the fact that if two neurons in the hippocampus are active at the same time, the connection between them can be strengthened. This change, or potentiation, can last for hours to days. This may serve to lay a foundation for more permanent changes, such as the construction of new connections, or synapses, between the neurons.

Keyword: Learning & Memory
Link ID: 6951 - Posted: 03.02.2005

Roxanne Khamsi When snakes evolved venom, they co-opted proteins from all over their bodies, says an analysis of 24 different toxins. Surprisingly, very tiny tweaks were enough to transform harmless proteins into deadly poison, and this may help drug designers to create proteins with precise biological effects. Venomous snakes developed glands for the storage and dispersal of their saliva about 60-70 million years ago. Since then, various species have built up an arsenal of toxins to attack their victims. Different venoms attack different types of cell in the body, for example muscle cells or blood cells. This dramatic specificity has led scientists to speculate that the venoms originate from proteins produced in different organs throughout the body, which already interact with these cell types. But champions of this theory lacked hard evidence from more than a few toxins. Despite the incredible changes in bioactivity that occur, the proteins' basic shapes don't change notably. ©2005 Nature Publishing Group

Keyword: Neurotoxins
Link ID: 6950 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Depression Study Fuels Debate On Whether to Treat With Drugs By Marc Siegel A study last month in The Lancet, a major British medical journal, uncovered 93 cases of seizures in infants whose mothers had been taking selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants, most commonly Paxil (paroxetine). The article suggests that a baby whose mother is using SSRIs may suffer withdrawal symptoms including seizures when the child is born and abruptly stops getting the drug through the mother's bloodstream. But the study -- based on a survey of reports of adverse drug reactions -- contains no definitive evidence of this effect. There has been no clinical trial comparing infants whose moms did and didn't take Paxil during pregnancy. (Paxil is available to pregnant women by prescription, though manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline says on its Web site that some complications, including seizures, have been reported in babies whose mothers had used the drug during pregnancy.) However inconclusive, the Lancet report has provoked a new alarm about the effects of these antidepressant medications, whose safety in older children and whose impact on suicide has been widely questioned recently. It also has refocused attention on a crucial issue: Which is worse, the side effects of an imperfect but effective drug, or the serious condition it is intended to treat? © Copyright 1996-2005 The Washington Post Company

Keyword: Depression; Development of the Brain
Link ID: 6949 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Three key drugs to treat memory loss associated with Alzheimer's disease could be withdrawn after an assessment by the NHS treatment advisory body. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence has put forward the draft guidance after assessing the clinical and cost effectiveness of the drugs. A final decision on using donepezil, rivastigmine and galantamine in England and Wales will be made in July. Patients already taking the drugs would not have them withdrawn, Nice said. The guidance does not mean the drugs do not work or are harmful, just that the cost to the NHS does not warrant the benefits gained from patients taking them. The drugs, which campaigners estimate cost £2.50 per day per patient, improve memory and can make daily living tasks easier. Campaigners and medical experts condemned the move, which reverses previous Nice guidance in 2001 that said the drugs should be used as standard. Alzheimer's Society chief executive Neil Hunt said: "We are stunned at the proposal that vulnerable people with Alzheimer's disease should not receive treatments that have been proven to work. "If these initial recommendations are finally approved, thousands of people with dementia will be denied the only drug treatment available to them. "This seems just another example of the NHS failing to take dementia seriously as a medical condition. "Despite the fact that these drugs are proven to work, Nice believes that they aren't good value for money. We know they are." And Professor Simon Lovestone, of the Alzheimer's Research Trust, said it was "appalling" to deny the treatment to patients. "While the drugs do not help everyone, many carers and families have told us they have been a huge help." Professor Susan Benbow, of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said while they did not cure the disease the drugs brought "substantial benefits". (C)BBC

Keyword: Alzheimers
Link ID: 6948 - Posted: 03.01.2005

By NICHOLAS BAKALAR Why soccer would be a risk for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a mystery. But a new study has found that Italian professional soccer players get the disease at a rate nearly six times as great as the general population. The study, led by Dr. Adriano Chiņ, a professor in the department of neuroscience at the University of Turin, was inspired by the work of an Italian prosecutor, Raffaele Guariniello, who was investigating soccer players' use of illegal drugs. As part of his inquiry, he ordered a report on the causes of death among 24,000 men who played professional or semiprofessional soccer in Italy from 1960 to 1996. His finding - that Italian players died of A.L.S. at a rate almost 12 times as great as normal - puzzled researchers, who decided to undertake a much more rigorous study. A.L.S., often called Lou Gehrig's disease, is an incurable and invariably fatal degenerative disease of the nervous system. Although there have been many suggestions about the possible risks for the illness, including participation in sports, no clear-cut evidence has been found for any risk factors except age and sex. (A.L.S. tends to strike around age 60, and a vast majority of patients are men.) Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company

Keyword: ALS-Lou Gehrig's Disease
Link ID: 6947 - Posted: 03.01.2005

By Molly Bentley For nearly a decade, Cornell University researcher Christopher Clark has been eavesdropping on the ocean, hoping to decipher the enigmatic songs of whales. Using old US Navy hydrophones once employed to track submarines, he has collected thousands of acoustical tracks of singing blue, fin, humpback and minke whales. His bioacoustics lab is now able to pinpoint the location of individual singers, and determine the length of their song. As a result, he's had to redraw the map of whale acoustics. "The range is enormous," explained Dr Clark. "They have voices that span an entire ocean." Drawing on newly declassified acoustic data from the Sound Surveillance System (SOSUS), and using new tools that can crunch high volumes of them, Dr Clark has determined that whales' songs travel over thousands of kilometres and also that increasing noise pollution in the oceans impedes the animals' ability to communicate. It is not certain whether whales thousands of kilometres apart communicate directly with each other, or what their messages contain. But the results support a 30-year theory that, before the advent of modern shipping, the animals' booming voices would have resounded from one ocean basin to another. With sound that is loud and low, in other words, "beautifully designed" for long distance travel, the singing of a whale in the waters off Puerto Rico could carry 2,600km to the shores of Newfoundland, says Dr Clark. When scientists create a digital map of the sound as it propagates in the water, it "illuminates the entire ocean", he adds. The pan-oceanic range is fitting for massive 30-190-tonne creatures that rely on reflected sound, rather than light, to navigate. (C)BBC

Keyword: Hearing
Link ID: 6946 - Posted: 03.01.2005

By DIANE ACKERMAN On a sparkling hot Florida day, I walked from an elevator into a small dark lobby and strode out the open door at speed. Except that the door wasn't open. It was an unmarked sheet of clean clear glass that clobbered me on the forehead two inches above my right eye. I didn't pass out, see double, grow confused or feel nauseated. I did feel shaken, though, drove straight home, iced the area and rested. For several days, I felt subdued, with low-level headaches. The world shone brighter than usual, which I attributed to the howling Florida sun. I tired easily and wasn't up to higher thought. My mind didn't feel it could do stairs. It took three days before I admitted that I had a concussion. I went to the hospital for a CT scan, which showed no bleeding in the brain, thank heavens, and afterward I asked if I might have a look at the digital images of my brain and skull. How strange it was using my mobile, pink, three-dimensional brain to see itself frozen in time, starkly black and white, out of its box, on a two-dimensional screen that humans designed to provide the illusion of depth. I knew that terrain intimately, but with more detail and hubbub. Where were the canyons of the mind? Where were all the curly haired selves? I scouted the images. At first glance, I was glad to find no spongy patches (some of Alzheimer's footprints) and no obvious shrinkage. Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company

Keyword: Brain Injury/Concussion
Link ID: 6945 - Posted: 03.01.2005

By CARL ZIMMER A team of Dutch scientists is trying to solve the mystery of personality. Why are some individuals shy while others are bold, for example? What roles do genes and environment play in shaping personalities? And most mysterious of all, how did they evolve? The scientists are carrying out an ambitious series of experiments to answer these questions. They are studying thousands of individuals, observing how they interact with others, comparing their personalities to their descendants' and analyzing their DNA. It may come as a surprise that their subjects have feathers. The scientists, based at the Netherlands Institute of Ecology, are investigating personalities of wild birds. Until recently, most experts in personality would have considered such a study as nothing but foolish anthropomorphism. "It's been looked at with suspicion and contempt," said Dr. Samuel Gosling, a psychologist at the University of Texas. But scientists have found that in many species, individual animals behave in consistently different ways. They argue that these differences meet the scientific definition of personality. Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company

Keyword: Miscellaneous
Link ID: 6944 - Posted: 03.01.2005