123 posts · 39,311 views
This blog highlights current neuroscience news published in peer-reviewed journals, with a particular emphasis on sleep/circadian rhythms. Every Thursday, I feature the front-page photomicrograph and the respective article from the current week's Journal of Neuroscience in a segment titled Neury Thursday. I also incorporate a substantial amount of media, including the highlighted article and related video. I try to write for the lay person, but if I do inevitably use jargon, I will briefly explain and provide a wikipedia reference. I'd like to think I have a sense of humor reflected through my writing style and/or post topics
Allison
123 posts
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- April 26, 2011
- 07:00 PM
- 571 views
Epigenetics of Cocaine and Alcohol Addiction
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Addiction researchers have discovered that long-term cocaine or alcohol abuse results in structural changes to histones and mitochondria. The severity of these changes are worse for cocaine addicts. ... Read more »
Zhou Z, Yuan Q, Mash DC, & Goldman D. (2011) Substance-specific and shared transcription and epigenetic changes in the human hippocampus chronically exposed to cocaine and alcohol. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 108(16), 6626-31. PMID: 21464311
- April 7, 2011
- 09:37 PM
- 533 views
Neury Thursday: Prior Drinking History Modulates Cell Signaling
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Alcohol researchers have uncovered residual ethanol-induced changes in molecular signaling cascades, which possibly, could provide pharmacologists with an abundance of novel therapeutic targets for alcohol and other drug addictions.... Read more »
Brian E. Bernier, Leslie R. Whitaker, and Hitoshi Morikawa. (2011) Previous Ethanol Experience Enhances Synaptic Plasticity of NMDA Receptors in the Ventral Tegmental Area. Journal of Neuroscience. info:/
- March 9, 2011
- 11:25 AM
- 526 views
The Dark Side of Sleep's Benefits for the Consolidation of Episodic Memories
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Drug addiction researchers have observed that total sleep deprivation in rats can reduce the re-consolidation of remembering where to obtain a cocaine reward in mice
... Read more »
Shi HS, Luo YX, Xue YX, Wu P, Zhu WL, Ding ZB, & Lu L. (2011) Effects of sleep deprivation on retrieval and reconsolidation of morphine reward memory in rats. Pharmacology, biochemistry, and behavior, 98(2), 299-303. PMID: 21255602
- March 18, 2011
- 07:00 PM
- 517 views
GABA Regulation of Alcohol Intake
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Researchers at USCF have employed RNA interference techniques to determine if the delta subunit of GABA receptors within the brain's reward circuit are partially responsible for increases in ethanol intake. Indeed, they are. ... Read more »
Nie H, Rewal M, Gill TM, Ron D, & Janak PH. (2011) From the Cover: Extrasynaptic {delta}-containing GABAA receptors in the nucleus accumbens dorsomedial shell contribute to alcohol intake. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 108(11), 4459-64. PMID: 21368141
- March 1, 2011
- 09:30 PM
- 505 views
Neury Thursday: Potassium Channel Gating of the Circadian Clock
by Allison in Dormivigilia
A group of chronobiologists have uncovered that knocking down potassium-rectifier channels has deleterious effects on circadian pacemaking and behavior. ... Read more »
Takashi Kudo,1* Dawn H. Loh,1* Dika Kuljis,1 Cara Constance,2 and Christopher S. Colwell1. (2011) Fast Delayed Rectifier Potassium Current: Critical for Input and Output of the Circadian System. Journal of Neuroscience. info:/
- March 29, 2011
- 09:45 PM
- 500 views
Neury Thursday (Tuesday): Sleep Deprivation Activation of Reward Areas
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Neuroscientists at Berkeley and Harvard have observed that acute episodes of sleep deprivation concurrent with the presentation of positive-evoking stimuli are associated with hyperactivation of mesolimbic reward areas. This observation in humans lends further credence to sleep/drug addiction interactions that have been documented on numerous occasions in animal models. It may also further convince physicians to recommend sleep/circadian rhythm therapies for the treatment of drug addiction and related psychiatric symptoms.... Read more »
Gujar N, Yoo SS, Hu P, & Walker MP. (2011) Sleep deprivation amplifies reactivity of brain reward networks, biasing the appraisal of positive emotional experiences. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 31(12), 4466-74. PMID: 21430147
- March 31, 2011
- 12:00 PM
- 489 views
Neury Thursday: Long-Term Cocaine Use Impairs Memory
by Allison in Dormivigilia
In quite possibly one of the longest, running drug abuse experiments conducted in animals, Pittsburghian researchers have observed that providing rhesus monkeys the opportunity to self-administer cocaine four times a week over nine months has degenerative, detrimental effects on associative learning. I wonder if the same fate applies to those who are taking ADHD meds, which act through identical biochemical and neurotransmitter pathways as cocaine. ... Read more »
Jessica N. Porter,, 1,2, Adam S. Olsen,, Kate Gurnsey,, Brian P. Dugan,, Hank P. Jedema,, and Charles W. Bradberry, & 1,2,3,4,5. (2011) Chronic Cocaine Self-Administration in Rhesus Monkeys: Impact on Associative Learning, Cognitive Control, and Working Memory. Journal of Neuroscience, 31(13). info:/http://www.jneurosci.org/content/31/13/4926.full.pdf html
- March 8, 2011
- 08:00 PM
- 487 views
Increased Episodic Memory Performance with Sleep
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Fellow friends of mine have published about the importance of napping for improved episodic memory performance and have identified brain areas of activation during these processes and associated relationships with specific sleep architecture. Overall, their paradigm challenges previous hypotheses of the underlying sleep processes facilitating the consolidation of memories... Read more »
Mander BA, Santhanam S, Saletin JM, & Walker MP. (2011) Wake deterioration and sleep restoration of human learning. Current biology : CB, 21(5). PMID: 21377092
- March 22, 2011
- 05:00 PM
- 482 views
Sleep Deprivation and Neuromodulation
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Researchers have identified a more specified, reciprocal relationship between the occurrence of sleep deprivation and the activation of the neuroinflammatory response. ... Read more »
Wisor JP, Schmidt MA, & Clegern WC. (2011) Evidence for neuroinflammatory and microglial changes in the cerebral response to sleep loss. Sleep, 34(3), 261-72. PMID: 21358843
- June 2, 2011
- 09:11 PM
- 455 views
Neury Thursday: Slow Wave Sleep Modulation of Olfactory Activity
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Japanese neuroscientists have unmasked inconnections between sleep and olfactory systems in that slow wave sleep is concurrent with spike wave activity in the olfactory cortex and bulb. ... Read more »
Hiroyuki Manabe,1,2* Ikue Kusumoto-Yoshida,1,2* Mizuho Ota,1,2 and Kensaku Mori1,2. (2011) Olfactory Cortex Generates Synchronized Top-Down Inputs to the Olfactory Bulb during Slow-Wave Sleep. Journal of Neuroscience. info:/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.6578-10.2011
- June 23, 2011
- 04:22 PM
- 455 views
Neury Thursday: Depressive Like Behavior and Circadian Rhythms
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Austrian neuroscientists have characterized behavioral and physiological phenotypes associated with housing under constant darkness, lending credence to the role of the circadian timing system in the etiology of psychiatric illness... Read more »
Francisco J. Monje,1 Maureen Cabatic,1 Isabella Divisch,1 Eun-Jung Kim,1,3 Kurt R. Herkner,3 Bernd R. Binder,2†, & and Daniela D. Pollak1. (2011) Constant Darkness Induces IL-6-Dependent Depression-Like Behavior through the NF-B Signaling Pathway. Journal of Neuroscience, 31(25), 9075-9083. info:/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1537-11.2011
- June 6, 2011
- 04:54 PM
- 434 views
Were Dinosaurs Nocturnal, Diurnal, or Both?
by Allison in Dormivigilia
A recent report in Science compared eye morphologies to compare the vision type (scotopic vs. photopic vs. mesopic) and ecology (herbivore vs. predator vs. flyer) of Mesozoic archosaurs (the most notorious being the Velociraptor), suggesting intimate evolutionary links between physiological/anatomical make-ups and behavior as far back as the Mesozoic era. ... Read more »
Schmitz L, & Motani R. (2011) Nocturnality in dinosaurs inferred from scleral ring and orbit morphology. Science (New York, N.Y.), 332(6030), 705-8. PMID: 21493820
- March 17, 2011
- 03:00 PM
- 417 views
Neury Thursday: Cocaine Withdrawal Impairs LTD
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Neuroscientists have further elucidated the molecular and cellular underlyings of cocaine addiction, which will help us develop more appropriate treatment strategies. ... Read more »
Chiung-Chun Huang,1 Che-Ming Yeh,2 Mei-Ying Wu,1 Alice Y. W. Chang,3 Julie Y. H. Chan,4 Samuel H. H. Chan,3, & and Kuei-Sen Hsu1,2. (2011) Cocaine Withdrawal Impairs Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor-Dependent Long-Term Depression in the Nucleus Accumbens. Journal of Neuroscience. info:/
- January 28, 2010
- 11:00 AM
- 406 views
Financial Risks and Reward Centers
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Stanfordian scientists have attributed age-related financial risks with differential accumbal activity. Honestly, this begs a philosophical conversation of how we can control financial risks of the elderly without jeopardizing their basic human rights.... Read more »
Samanez-Larkin, G., Kuhnen, C., Yoo, D., & Knutson, B. (2010) Variability in Nucleus Accumbens Activity Mediates Age-Related Suboptimal Financial Risk Taking. Journal of Neuroscience, 30(4), 1426-1434. DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4902-09.2010
- March 20, 2010
- 10:19 AM
- 405 views
Neury Thursday: Additive Teratogenic Effects of Alcohol and Metamphetamines in Utero and Neurodegeneration
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Researchers at UCLA have identified extensive neurodegeneration, particularly in the limbic and striatal areas, of infants whose mothers had used/abused alcohol and/or metamphetamines during pregnancy. The magnitude of reduced cortical volume was additive in that it was greatest for abuse of both alcohol and metamphetamines, which is common in drug abusers. ... Read more »
Sowell ER, Leow AD, Bookheimer SY, Smith LM, O'Connor MJ, Kan E, Rosso C, Houston S, Dinov ID, & Thompson PM. (2010) Differentiating Prenatal Exposure to Methamphetamine and Alcohol versus Alcohol and Not Methamphetamine using Tensor-Based Brain Morphometry and Discriminant Analysis. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 30(11), 3876-85. PMID: 20237258
- January 30, 2010
- 11:00 AM
- 400 views
Which [Flying] Animal Can Drink You Under the Table?
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Syrian hamsters are not the only animals that can "drink you under the table." Frugivorous fruit bats have a high tolerance for alcohol in that marked alcohol consumption does not impair flying and/or echolocation. This high alcohol tolerance, of course, is attributed to fermented fruits being a diet staple.... Read more »
Dara N. Orbach, Nina Veselka, Yvonne Dzal, Louis Lazure, M. Brock Fenton. (2010) Drinking and Flying: Does Alcohol Consumption Affect the Flight and Echolocation Performance of Phyllostomid Bats? . PLOS One, 5(2). info:/10.1371/journal.pone.0008993
- December 22, 2010
- 08:10 PM
- 400 views
Circadian Genes and Metabolic Pathologies
by Allison in Dormivigilia
With my research projects dwindling in number, I’ve found some more time now to read the tens of Science journals lying around the lab. In a recent issue of Science, Joe Takahashi, an infamous chronobiologist known for inventing one of the first clock gene mutant mouse lines, and Joseph Bass discussed current research tying circadian [...]... Read more »
Bass J, & Takahashi JS. (2010) Circadian integration of metabolism and energetics. Science (New York, N.Y.), 330(6009), 1349-54. PMID: 21127246
- July 6, 2011
- 10:00 PM
- 394 views
Sleep in Science
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Midwestern researchers used a Drosophila model of study to investigate the positive benefits of sleep and the deleterious effects of sleep deprivation on biological enrichment at the behavioral and neurobiological level, providing further evidence of its need (value). ... Read more »
Donlea JM, Thimgan MS, Suzuki Y, Gottschalk L, & Shaw PJ. (2011) Inducing sleep by remote control facilitates memory consolidation in Drosophila. Science (New York, N.Y.), 332(6037), 1571-6. PMID: 21700877
Bushey D, Tononi G, & Cirelli C. (2011) Sleep and synaptic homeostasis: structural evidence in Drosophila. Science (New York, N.Y.), 332(6037), 1576-81. PMID: 21700878
- October 8, 2010
- 09:00 PM
- 385 views
Neury Thursday: Ontogeny of Slow Wave Sleep
by Allison in Dormivigilia
A familiar group of researchers have discovered ontogenic differences in slow wave activity and cortical localization of such activity. Such plasticity nicely complements the substantial growth and wiring of the cortex early during development, and expresses why sleep is important and critical during this time of development... Read more »
Salome´ Kurth,1 Maya Ringli,1 Anja Geiger,1,2 Monique LeBourgeois,3,4 Oskar G. Jenni,1,2 and Reto Huber1,2. (2010) Mapping of Cortical Activity in the First Two Decades of Life: A High-Density Sleep Electroencephalogram Study. Journal of Neuroscience. info:/
- February 5, 2010
- 11:30 AM
- 384 views
Empirical Evidence that Men Love Badonkadonks
by Allison in Dormivigilia
Using fMRI, researchers have found that men are most attracted to women with a waist-to-hip ratio of 0.7. Using neuroimaging as a methodology to study human attraction, in my opinion, is a fantastic to establish a new branch of human ual behavior research. ... Read more »
Steven M. Platek, Devendra Singh. (2010) Optimal Waist-to-Hip Ratios in Women Activate Neural Reward Centers in Men. PLOS One, 5(2). info:/
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