Neuroscience posts
- February 21, 2013
- 11:55 AM
- 79 views
Prozac Withdrawal Symptoms – “Withdrawing From SSRI Antidepressants Kill People”?
by Steven Talmadge in Life Mental Health
Prozac withdrawal symptoms, and withdrawal from any antidepressant of the same class – selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) – by far the most prescribed group of pharmaceuticals for the treatment of depression today, are unpleasant. A name – SSRI Discontinuation (or withdrawal) Syndrome – has been designated by physicians to describe the symptoms experienced by those [...]The post Prozac Withdrawal Symptoms – “Withdrawing From SSRI Antidepressants Kill Peopl........ Read more »
Goeldner C, Lutz PE, Darcq E, Halter T, Clesse D, Ouagazzal AM, & Kieffer BL. (2011) Impaired emotional-like behavior and serotonergic function during protracted abstinence from chronic morphine. Biological psychiatry, 69(3), 236-44. PMID: 20947067
- February 21, 2013
- 12:41 AM
- 94 views
Resisting cocaine: when the tablet is not wiped clean.
by Shelly Fan in Neurorexia
Long post warning! This post covers some basics of epigenetics. For those that just want the gist, here’s the TLDR: Male rats that shoot up cocaine for 60days sire male (but not female) pups that are more resistant to cocaine addiction. This trait is probably passed through chemical changes to sperm DNA. I argue why [...]... Read more »
Vassoler, F., White, S., Schmidt, H., Sadri-Vakili, G., & Pierce, R. (2012) Epigenetic inheritance of a cocaine-resistance phenotype. Nature Neuroscience, 16(1), 42-47. DOI: 10.1038/nn.3280
- February 20, 2013
- 01:14 PM
- 178 views
Did that Rock Just Ink on Me? (A Guest Post)
by Miss Behavior in The Scorpion and the Frog
By Sam Brunner and Ian Straus Cephalopods, like octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish, are well known for their ability to alter the color and patterns on their bodies for better camouflage, mimicry, and even communication. By developing a unique set of camouflage tools, cephalopods excel at not being seen or being seen but not detected as a cephalopod. There are videos all over the internet showcasing how squid can terrify divers with their flashing red displays, or how some octopuses avoid their p........ Read more »
Froesch, D. (1973) Projection of chromatophore nerves on the body surface of Octopus vulgaris. Marine Biology, 19(2), 153-155. DOI: 10.1007/BF00353586
Messenger JB. (2001) Cephalopod chromatophores: neurobiology and natural history. Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society, 76(4), 473-528. PMID: 11762491
- February 20, 2013
- 12:11 PM
- 79 views
Long-Term Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Lessens with New Real-Time Prescription Software Tracker
by Steven Talmadge in Life Mental Health
Because of a new computer prescription tracking system, addicts who abuse sedatives like Xanax have found it harder to acquire their drug of choice, often leading to short-term benzodiazepine withdrawal, yet better control of the addiction. Xanax belongs to a class of medicines called ‘benzodiazepines’, which physicians often prescribe for anxiety caused by stressful life [...]The post Long-Term Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Lessens with New Real-Time Prescription Software Tracker appeared first........ Read more »
LOPEZ, A., & REBOLLO, J. (1990) Benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome after a benzodiazepine antagonist. Critical Care Medicine, 18(12), 1480. DOI: 10.1097/00003246-199012000-00032
- February 19, 2013
- 04:00 PM
- 93 views
The sense of the body in individuals with spinal cord injury
by Neuromancy in Neuromancy
How does spinal cord injury affect your sense of self?
Does the absence of sensory and motor feedback from the limbs as a result of spinal cord injury (SCI) affects the body scheme. As well as measuring disruption of the body scheme and a sense of body ownership using the rubber hand illusion (RHI), Lenggenhager et al. also looked at whether SCI produces a sense of disembodiment and depersonalisation using the Cambridge Depersonalisation Scale (CDS), as the authors suggest there is increasing........ Read more »
Lenggenhager B, Pazzaglia M, Scivoletto G, Molinari M, & Aglioti SM. (2012) The sense of the body in individuals with spinal cord injury. PloS one, 7(11). PMID: 23209824
- February 19, 2013
- 12:21 PM
- 104 views
Prozac and Weight Loss: Prescription Drugs Added to Supplements and Weight Loss Regimes to Help You Ditch Those Extra Pounds May Pose Danger
by Steven Talmadge in Life Mental Health
By now, many have abandoned their New Year’s resolutions. If you’re like most, “weight loss” may have topped your list. Some enlist medications to shed pounds, and many wonder about Prozac and weight loss. We’ve witnessed Punxsutawney Phil escape seeing his shadow, and we’ve wined and dined on Valentine’s Day. Six weeks into the New Year, [...]The post Prozac and Weight Loss: Prescription Drugs Added to Supplements and Weight Loss Regimes to Help You Ditch Those Extra Pounds May........ Read more »
Dunn JD, Gryniewicz-Ruzicka CM, Mans DJ, Mecker-Pogue LC, Kauffman JF, Westenberger BJ, & Buhse LF. (2012) Qualitative screening for adulterants in weight-loss supplements by ion mobility spectrometry. Journal of pharmaceutical and biomedical analysis, 18-26. PMID: 22902504
- February 18, 2013
- 09:33 PM
- 204 views
Memoquin – a novel multi-target therapeutic opportunity for Alzheimer’s disease
by Usman Paracha in SayPeople
Memoquin is a quinone-bearing polyamine compound that has been found to be effective against Alzheimer’s disease (AD) – a degenerative disorder affecting the brain and causing dementia especially in later life – due to its muti-target approach. Not only, it acts as an anti-AD compound but it can also work as anti-amyloid and anti-oxidant.
Mechanism of action:
Memoquin works as an acetylcholinesterase and β-secretase-1 inhibitor. It is found to be 10 times more potent........ Read more »
Capurro, V., Busquet, P., Lopes, J., Bertorelli, R., Tarozzo, G., Bolognesi, M., Piomelli, D., Reggiani, A., & Cavalli, A. (2013) Pharmacological Characterization of Memoquin, a Multi-Target Compound for the Treatment of Alzheimer's Disease. PLoS ONE, 8(2). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0056870
- February 18, 2013
- 10:17 AM
- 68 views
Is Alcohol Addictive? : Television and Celebrity Culture Skewing “Reality”
by Steven Talmadge in Life Mental Health
The question, “Is alcohol addictive??” is not taken very seriously in our society: drinking is part of our culture, and it is assumed by not only young people, but adults of all ages, that since alcohol is legal it is not as addictive or harmful to the body as illegal drugs are. This could not [...]The post Is Alcohol Addictive? : Television and Celebrity Culture Skewing “Reality” appeared first on Life Mental Health.
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Carpenter, K., & Hasin, D. (1998) Reasons for drinking alcohol: Relationships with DSM-IV alcohol diagnoses and alcohol consumption in a community sample. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 12(3), 168-184. DOI: 10.1037/0893-164X.12.3.168
- February 17, 2013
- 12:31 AM
- 282 views
Fainting at the sight of blood
by Jordan Gaines in Gaines, on Brains
Do you get woozy when you see blood? It seems like an oddly dramatic physiological response for just seeing a little red liquid, right? As it turns out, fainting at the sight of blood may be a primitive reflex buried deep in our brain.... Read more »
Zervou EK, Ziciadis K, Karabini F, Xanthi E, Chrisostomou E, & Tzolou A. (2005) Vasovagal reactions in blood donors during or immediately after blood donation. Transfusion medicine (Oxford, England), 15(5), 389-94. PMID: 16202053
- February 17, 2013
- 12:02 AM
- 189 views
Rats felt a form of light in laboratory test – Will we be able to see that form of light?
by Usman Paracha in SayPeople
Scientists have made the rats to sense (or you can say “touch”) the light that they can’t even see i.e. infrared light.
This research has been published online in the journal Nature Communications.
In this research, scientists fitted the infrared detector wired to electrodes in the part of the brain, i.e. cortical region, of the rats that usually processes the sense of touch from the skin. The rats were then placed in a chamber fitted with three infrared light sources, lo........ Read more »
Thomson, E., Carra, R., & Nicolelis, M. (2013) Perceiving invisible light through a somatosensory cortical prosthesis. Nature Communications, 1482. DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2497
- February 16, 2013
- 01:36 PM
- 252 views
UTMB, UH Team Up To Study Brain Chemistry
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
An interdisciplinary team of researchers from the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston and the University of Houston (UH) has found a new way to influence the vital serotonin signaling system — possibly leading to more effective medications with fewer side effects.... Read more »
Lisa Merkl. (2013) UTMB, UH Team Up To Study Brain Chemistry. The University of Houston. info:/
- February 16, 2013
- 07:30 AM
- 253 views
Implantation site crucial for allogeneic stem cell survival
by beredim in Stem Cells Freak
In a study that came out today, a research team from the Johns Hopkins University and the Mossakowski Medical Research Centre in Warsaw has discovered that allogeneic neural stem cell transplants have a better chance to properly engraft if injected into the brain striatum instead of the forceps minor (FM) region. Specifically, all striatum grafts managed to graft and survive,unlike the FM ones that were all rejected.Full Story... Read more »
Janowski, M., Engels, C., Gorelik, M., Lyczek, A., Bernard, S., Bulte, J., & Walczak, P. (2012) Survival of Neural Progenitors Allografted into the CNS of Immunocompetent Recipients is Highly Dependent on Transplantation Site. Cell Transplantation. DOI: 10.3727/096368912X661328
- February 14, 2013
- 10:38 AM
- 222 views
It's not you, it's my birth control
by TheCellularScale in The Cellular Scale
So, Valentine's Day, what better time to question the foundations of your relationship?It's my brain that loves you (source)Well, part of your relationship may be based on your Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) compatibility. The MHC is a cluster of genes that define which antigens get expressed on white blood cells. It is thought to control the ability of the body to recognize pathogens as 'other.' It is also thought that the more varied the genes in your MHC are, the more resist........ Read more »
Roberts SC, Gosling LM, Carter V, & Petrie M. (2008) MHC-correlated odour preferences in humans and the use of oral contraceptives. Proceedings. Biological sciences / The Royal Society, 275(1652), 2715-22. PMID: 18700206
- February 14, 2013
- 10:02 AM
- 132 views
Facebook Addiction Statistics: A New Era of Addiction
by Steven Talmadge in Life Mental Health
Facebook addiction statistics? Is this for real? How could someone be addicted to technology? This was my first reaction, about five years ago, when I first read about the proposed addition of “Internet addiction” to the new edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, due to be released later this year. However, [...]The post Facebook Addiction Statistics: A New Era of Addiction appeared first on Life Mental Health.
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Griffiths MD. (2012) Facebook addiction: concerns, criticism, and recommendations--a response to Andreassen and colleagues. Psychological reports, 110(2), 518-20. PMID: 22662405
- February 13, 2013
- 04:05 PM
- 191 views
MIND the maternal autoantibodies in autism
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
It's been a few weeks since I posted on research coming out of the MIND Institute. Regular readers will probably already know that I'm quite interesting in the various investigations on autism from UC Davis, and in particular how they are very usefully starting to think about subgroups and endophenotypes when it comes to autism as per the quite significant heterogeneity (and comorbidity) present across the spectrum.By your command @ Wikipedia Today's offering is focused on the paper b........ Read more »
Nordahl, C., Braunschweig, D., Iosif, A., Lee, A., Rogers, S., Ashwood, P., Amaral, D., & Van de Water, J. (2013) Maternal autoantibodies are associated with abnormal brain enlargement in a subgroup of children with autism spectrum disorder. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2013.01.084
- February 13, 2013
- 02:45 PM
- 193 views
Terminator Vision: I Can Haz It?
by Neural Outlaw in Neural Interface
You've all seen The Terminator film and it's sequels and, admit it, you loved them. Not just because of the creepily futurealistic storyline but because of the stunts, the camerawork, the casting, and the sheer action of it all. And, of course, the special effects. As an example of the best sci-fi films out there, the Terminator films franchise has grossed nearly $1.5 billion worldwide.Some of the iconic scenes in the movies related directly to the Terminator itself, that ice-cold star........ Read more »
Thomson, E., Carra, R., & Nicolelis, M. (2013) Perceiving invisible light through a somatosensory cortical prosthesis. Nature Communications, 1482. DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2497
- February 13, 2013
- 02:38 PM
- 209 views
Terminator Vision: I Can Haz It?
by Neural Outlaw in Neural Interface
You've all seen The Terminator film and it's sequels and, admit it, you loved them. Not just because of the creepily futurealistic storyline but because of the stunts, the camerawork, the casting, and the sheer action of it all. And, of course, the special effects. As an example of the best sci-fi films out there, the Terminator films franchise has grossed nearly $1.5 billion worldwide.Some of the iconic scenes in the movies related directly to the Terminator itself, that ice-cold stare as a mi........ Read more »
Thomson, E., Carra, R., & Nicolelis, M. (2013) Perceiving invisible light through a somatosensory cortical prosthesis. Nature Communications, 1482. DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2497
- February 13, 2013
- 11:17 AM
- 197 views
Decision making region remains active even during distraction or unconsciousness
by Usman Paracha in SayPeople
Researchers have utilized the brain imaging techniques and found that the brain region responsible for the decision making remains active even when the conscious brain is distracted.
This research is published online in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience.
In creativity techniques, it is usually suggested that a break or a little sleep would help to reach the better solutions. Now researchers have showed that the brain unconsciously do the decision making processes ........ Read more »
Creswell, J., Bursley, J., & Satpute, A. (2013) Neural Reactivation Links Unconscious Thought to Decision Making Performance. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience. DOI: 10.1093/scan/nst004
- February 13, 2013
- 10:52 AM
- 89 views
Prozac and Breastfeeding: Baby Wonder or Blunder Drug?
by Steven Talmadge in Life Mental Health
Prozac made its debut as the first selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) anti-depressant in the late 1980s. As effective as older TCAs, medicines like Prozac spouted a big extra benefit: fewer side effects that often had caused those taking TCAs to stop popping those happy pills. Unlike older anti-depressants in the tricyclic class of medicines [...]The post Prozac and Breastfeeding: Baby Wonder or Blunder Drug? appeared first on Life Mental Health.
... Read more »
Berle JO, & Spigset O. (2011) Antidepressant Use During Breastfeeding. Current women's health reviews, 7(1), 28-34. PMID: 22299006
- February 13, 2013
- 03:30 AM
- 110 views
Looking at the thalamic reticular nucleus
by Janet Kwasniak in Thoughts on thoughts
A commenter to this blog a couple of months back, Boris, got me thinking and looking at the detail of thalamus activity. Particularly the inhibitory signals seemed to be a bit of a mystery.
In the next few postings, I am going to look at a couple of papers that shed light on this aspect of [...]... Read more »
Min, B. (2010) A thalamic reticular networking model of consciousness. Theoretical Biology and Medical Modelling, 7(1), 10. DOI: 10.1186/1742-4682-7-10
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