John Travis Neuroscientists—normally a reserved group—were laughing at William M. Kelley's presentation. He wasn't upset, however. The researcher had just shown the scientists a clip from the sitcom Seinfeld to illustrate how his group investigates the brain's response to humor. With the aid of Jerry Seinfeld and his friends, as well as the animated characters of the cartoon The Simpsons , Kelley and his colleagues have found that different brain regions spark with activity when a person gets a joke versus when he or she reacts to it. "Humor is a significant part of what makes us unique as human beings," says Kelley, a neuroscientist at Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H. He presented his group's brain-imaging data last week at the Society for Neuroscience meeting in Orlando, Fla. From Science News, Vol. 162, No. 20, Nov. 16, 2002, p. 308. Copyright ©2002 Science Service. All rights reserved.

Keyword: Intelligence; Emotions
Link ID: 3024 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By RAYMOND HERNANDEZ WASHINGTON, — If the usual rigors of serving in Congress were not enough, Representative Jerrold Nadler, a Manhattan Democrat, struggled for years with the personal torment of being so overweight that he could not make it up even a single flight of stairs to the second floor of the Capitol to vote on the House floor. He used the elevator instead. "I can't tell you how many people — complete strangers — have come up to me and said, `Congressman, you're doing a great job, and I want you to continue to be my congressman, so you have to lose weight,' " he said in an interview. "Imagine how that makes you feel." Now, after decades of health-threatening obesity and futile dieting, Mr. Nadler has taken a more aggressive course: During the Congressional recess in early August, he underwent stomach-reduction surgery at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan, following in the steps of a small but rising number of overweight people, most recently (and famously) Al Roker, the weatherman for NBC's "Today" program. Copyright The New York Times Company

Keyword: Obesity
Link ID: 3023 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Rat study hints one drink a day during pregnancy may be dangerous INGRID HOLMES A new animal study hints that even a little alcohol during pregnancy may affect a baby's brain. A group of adult rats flunked a navigation test1. Their mothers had consumed quantities of alcohol while pregnant that were analogous to one drink a day for a human during the first six months. Britain's Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists advises pregnant women to limit their daily alcohol intake to one small glass of wine or beer or a measure of spirits. This is to reduce the risk of fetal alcohol syndrome - the learning and behavioural difficulties seen in children whose mothers drank heavily throughout pregnancy. The rodent research, carried out by Daniel Savage and colleagues from the University of New Mexico Medical School, suggests that there may be more subtle effects of low-level alcohol intake that become obvious only later in life, as more complex tasks are taken on. © Nature News Service / Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2002

Keyword: Drug Abuse; Development of the Brain
Link ID: 3022 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Small African rodents exemplify longevity theory. KENDALL POWELL The naked mole-rat may help scientists to understand longevity. Although it is just the size of a gerbil, it lives over six times as long: it can survive 26 years or more. Mole-rats (Heterocephalus glaber) have few predators and lots of offspring, even in old age. They are prime candidates for studying how natural selection acts on ageing, says animal behaviourist Paul Sherman of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. A creature's maximum lifespan is dictated by how well its cells and organs cope with prolonged use. "While average lifespan in humans has crept up, maximum lifespan has not changed for hundreds of years," Sherman says. "We want to know why that is." © Nature News Service / Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2002

Keyword: Sexual Behavior; Evolution
Link ID: 3021 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Dennis C. Revell "That's the worst part of this disease. There's nobody to exchange memories with." (Nancy Reagan, Sept. 25, "60 Minutes II.") Alzheimer's disease doesn't make special arrangements for anyone, even for the leader of the free world. In tragic irony, 20 years ago this week President Ronald Reagan launched a national campaign against Alzheimer's disease. In a historic White House ceremony, he drew national attention to Alzheimer's and defined it as a major health menace. He proclaimed November National Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month, warning the American people of "the emotional, financial and social consequences of Alzheimer's disease." With vision and leadership, he argued for research as "the only hope for victims and families." The brain is a miracle when it works, and a mystery when it fails. One of the most haunting, puzzling, and soon to be most costly of the brain's failures is Alzheimer's — a degenerative, progressive, and terminal brain disorder. © 2002 News World Communications, Inc.

Keyword: Alzheimers; Learning & Memory
Link ID: 3020 - Posted: 06.24.2010

You have to love scientists. Diligently they toil away at their abstruse projects, oblivious to such important issues as war and peace and terrorism and who's going to win the Kyushu Basho. We pay them next to nothing, ignore their pointy-headed little reports and cheer them on only when they score the occasional Nobel Prize for work that nobody understands, thus making the whole country look more intelligent. But once in a while they come up with a winner, something we can not only grasp right away but can even imagine putting to good use in our own lives. Such was the finding by a group of German researchers, presented last week at a Florida neuroscience conference, that people who suffer chronic pain actually feel worse -- and complain more, too -- when their spouses comfort them than they do when they're ignored. Distract or neglect the sufferer, and he (or maybe even she) will literally feel less pain. Mollycoddle him, and he'll writhe all the more. "I am fascinated by this," responded one California scientist, described in news reports as an expert in "the neurobiology of pain." Well, we should think so. It doesn't take a pain neurobiologist to see that this announcement is fascinating on a number of levels. The Japan Times (C) All rights reserved

Keyword: Parkinsons
Link ID: 3019 - Posted: 11.16.2002

A review of Ellen Ruppel Shell's The Hungry Gene. Buy the book By Stephanie Mencimer Two years ago, a young organ transplant doctor told me a harrowing story. Recently he had stood by and watched helplessly as a 15-year-old African-American girl died from an enlarged heart. A transplant might have saved her, but high blood pressure, diabetes, and a body mass of more than 400 pounds made surgery impossible. The memory haunted him as he continued to treat more and more children experiencing the deadly effects of chronic obesity. Mostly poor black kids, they marched through his office suffering from high cholesterol, high blood pressure, enlarged hearts, and adult-onset diabetes that promised to fill their future with kidney failure, amputations, blindness, and early heart attacks and strokes. Despite the staggering numbers of kids like this who were showing up in District doctors' offices, little was being done about it. The public schools had long since sacrificed physical education to budget cuts; understaffed cafeterias served students Domino's pizza to be washed down with 20-ounce bottles of Powerade from school vending machines. The American Diabetes Association, headquartered in nearby Alexandria, Va., did not have a single program in the District for adults, much less children. Even as the casualties mounted, no one was sounding the alarm about all these fat kids. Eventually, though, I discovered that one group of people had taken a keen interest in the local obesity epidemic: drug company researchers. D.C. had so many fat kids, most of whom also had fat parents, that it was a veritable gold mine for gene-hunters looking for new drugs to treat Type 2 diabetes and obesity. Copyright © 2002 The Washington Monthly

Keyword: Obesity; Genes & Behavior
Link ID: 3018 - Posted: 06.24.2010

* Previous research has shown that alcoholics have altered and/or injured serotonin systems. * The specifics of serotonin abnormalities in alcoholics remain unclear. * A new study uses a depression and anxiety medication called citalopram to investigate if the serotonin transporter is altered in alcoholics. * The serotonin transporter was not found to be responsible for serotonin abnormalities. The brain's serotonin neurotransmitter system has been associated with a variety of psychiatric disorders, including depression, anxiety, anti-social personality disorder, and alcohol dependence. Although research has shown that alcoholics appear to have an altered and/or injured serotonin system, the specifics of those alterations remain unclear.

Keyword: Drug Abuse; Depression
Link ID: 3017 - Posted: 11.15.2002

As published in Genes & Development, a team of research scientists has identified a gene, called takeout, that may help provide a genetic basis for the old adage "the way to a man's heart is through his stomach" – at least in flies. Dr. William Mattox and Brigitte Dauwalder at MD Anderson Cancer Center (Texas) have discovered that the Drosophila takeout gene, previously noted for its role in promoting starvation tolerance, is also necessary for normal male courtship behavior. Many of the sex-specific features that distinguish males and females of any species are genetically predetermined. Using the Drosophila fruit fly as a model organism, Dr. Mattox and Dauwalder are interested in elucidating the genetic components of sexually dimorphic morphology, physiology, and even, to some extent, behavior. Over the years, many of the major steps in the Drosophila sex determination pathway have been identified, including the activation of sex-specific forms of the master gene regulators Doublesex (DSX) and Fruitless (FRU). The male and female forms of DSX and FRU regulate the expression of a host of largely undefined target genes, which, in turn, direct the development of sexually dimorphic traits.

Keyword: Sexual Behavior; Genes & Behavior
Link ID: 3016 - Posted: 06.24.2010

* Many patients diagnosed with depression have abnormalities in brain electrical activity. * Research has found that teen-age girls with a personal history of depression, not current depression, have enhanced alpha (slow wave) brain electrical activity. * Teen-age girls with a family history of alcoholism have enhanced beta (fast wave) activity. * The effects of a family history of alcoholism occurred in the left frontal brain; the effects of a personal history of depression occurred in the right frontal brain. Numerous studies have documented abnormalities in brain electrical activity in patients diagnosed with depression. A study in the November issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research examines teen-age girls with a history of depression, rather than active depression, to see if they exhibit a subtle abnormality in brain function. The study also investigates if the presence of depression or alcoholism among family members exaggerates the abnormality in brain function.

Keyword: Depression; Drug Abuse
Link ID: 3015 - Posted: 11.15.2002

BY ERIN DONAR Staff Reporter Music may play a larger part in the field of neuroscience than it has previously been thought, and a series of lectures at the Yale School of Music aims to bring in experts in the field. The second speaker in a series called "Music and the Brain," Robert J. Zattore from McGill University gave a lecture Wednesday night on the results of his experiments on the relationship between music and the brain. Zattore's findings and opinions have been well received in his field. Copyright © 2002 Yale Daily News Publishing Company, Inc.

Keyword: Hearing
Link ID: 3014 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By SHAWN FLOYD , In the days before Vagus Nerve Stimulator implants, Daniel Knorp's day-to-day life was totally unpredictable. "I was in and out of the hospital a lot, mostly in," said Daniel, a 17-year-old epilepsy patient. "Sometimes it took months before they could find the right kind of medicine for me that would work and that wouldn't get me so dopey. "Sometimes the medication adjustments and sick effects were as bad as the seizures." Copyright © 1995 - 2002 PowerOne Media, Inc.

Keyword: Epilepsy
Link ID: 3013 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Immunization used in halted human trial may weaken blood vessels. JOHN WHITFIELD Immunizing mice against a condition akin to Alzheimer's disease makes their brains prone to bleeding, researchers have found1. This hints at why cerebral inflammation halted an experimental human vaccine trial early this year. The link between mouse and human symptoms is still unknown. But both probably stem from the effects of immunization on damaged blood vessels, says the study's leader, Mathias Jucker of the University of Basel, Switzerland. "These findings are pretty bad for the vaccine," comments neuroscientist Christian Haass of Ludwig Maximilians University, Munich, Germany. "The bleeding is terrible - it could be deadly." © Nature News Service / Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2002

Keyword: Alzheimers
Link ID: 3012 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Topic Editor: John F. Alksne, M.D Table of Contents 1. The role of cell therapy for stroke. Douglas Kondziolka, Lawrence Wechsler, Elizabeth Tyler-Kabara, and Cristian Achim 2. Role of cell therapy in Parkinson disease. Olle Lindvall and Peter Hagell 3. Status of fetal tissue transplantation for the treatment of advanced Parkinson disease. Paul E. Greene and Stanley Fahn 4. Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor-supplemented hibernation of fetal ventral mesencephalic neurons for transplantation in Parkinson disease: long-term storage. Adam O. Hebb, Kari Hebb, Arun C. Ramachandran, and Ivar Mendez 5. Growth factor gene therapy for Alzheimer disease. Mark H. Tuszynski, Hoi Sang U, John Alksne, Roy A. Bakay, Mary Margaret Pay, David Merrill, and Leon J. Thal Copyright© 1998-2002; American Association of Neurological Surgeons

Keyword: Regeneration; Stem Cells
Link ID: 3011 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Exclusive from New Scientist Print Edition Anaesthetics given to newborn babies could damage their brains, say neurologists. Their concern stems from animal studies which have shown that the drugs kill large numbers of neurons in the brains of two-week-old rats - the equivalent developmental stage to a newborn child. The implications for infant surgery are unclear. Many babies need operations to save their lives, but a delay of just a few weeks could offset the dangers of anaesthetics, the researchers say, and surgeons should be aware of the risks. The damage appears to be worst when coupled with brain surgery, says Kerry Thompson of the VA Medical Center and the University of California at Los Angeles. However, anaesthetic alone still causes significant problems. © Copyright Reed Business Information Ltd.

Keyword: Development of the Brain; Pain & Touch
Link ID: 3010 - Posted: 06.24.2010

The brain disorder Parkinson's disease, well-known for its ability to hinder movement, also harms thinking, learning and other cognitive abilities. New developments uncover the specific brain areas that control different aspects of cognition and contribute to some of the mental processing problems. The findings may influence current treatment choices and lead to new forms of therapy for this debilitating disorder that affects more than a million Americans. The afflicted celebrity appears on TV. With body trembling, his appearance is stiff, uncoordinated and wobbly. Any gesture or action seems stuck in slow motion. The havoc of Parkinson's disease (PD) doesn't stop there. Copyright © 2002 Society for Neuroscience

Keyword: Parkinsons
Link ID: 3009 - Posted: 06.24.2010

A group of scientists have provoked controversy by suggesting that the medical world is wrong about what causes multiple sclerosis. It has long been thought MS is the result of immune system cells attacking and destroying the myelin protein which sheaths nerves, and helps them transmit signals. However, New Scientist magazine reports that this view has been challenged by three neurologists. They argue that MS is caused when support cells called astrocytes malfunction - perhaps as a result of genetic and environmental triggers. Peter Behan and Abhijit Chaudhuri, at the University of Glasgow, and Bart Roep, of the Leiden University Medical Centre, say the autoimmune theory of MS is based on inaccurate conclusions drawn from animal experiments carried out in some cases in the 19th century. Researchers discovered that if they injected nerve or brain tissue into an animal, its immune system would attack the nervous system. (C) BBC

Keyword: Multiple Sclerosis
Link ID: 3008 - Posted: 11.14.2002

Experience any feeling you want in the comfort of your own home By Eric Haseltine During the Halloween season, audiences collectively fork out millions of dollars to see horror movies in theaters. Apparently, feeling scared, sad, or shocked is well worth the $9 ($5 for matinees in most areas) price of admission. But according to the James-Lange theory of emotion (named after two pioneering psychologists), we don't need to go to the movies to have our emotions stimulated; all we need to do is behave as though we were having those feelings, and the feelings will follow. In other words, our brains have got it all backwards: We are scared because we are running away, happy because we are laughing, and angry because our blood pressure is elevated and we are snarling. Let's see if there's anything to this tail-wagging-the-dog theory. © Copyright 2002 The Walt Disney Company.

Keyword: Emotions
Link ID: 3007 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Special on skin gets beneath the surface Peter Hartlaub, Chronicle Staff Writer If National Geographic chose to focus its latest PBS special on the heart, liver or kidney, it could have been a pretty clinical hour of television. But skin, the body's largest organ, causes an emotional reaction as well. "Skin," premiering at 8 p.m. Wednesday as part of the "National Geographic Specials" series on KQED (Channel 9), tackles both the clinical and emotional aspects of skin, profiling everyone from an artist who recruits nude models to a noted San Francisco anthropologist. The special could just as easily have been called "Taboo." As "Skin" explains when the program introduces Nina Jablonski, there has been very little written about skin, because few in the science community are eager to touch the subject. ©2002 San Francisco Chronicle.

Keyword: Pain & Touch
Link ID: 3006 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By ANNE EISENBERG KEEPING your balance while standing upright can be tricky, particularly for older people. That is because standing steady is partly a result of slight adjustments to posture that are ordered by the brain in response to sensory information from the feet. But as people age, they become less sensitive to touch and send fewer signals. Now a Boston University scientist and his colleagues have found a way to use random signals to increase the sensory data coming from the feet. Copyright The New York Times Company

Keyword: Pain & Touch; Movement Disorders
Link ID: 3005 - Posted: 11.14.2002