Posts Tagged ‘mental health’
DNA Test that Identifies Down Syndrome in Pregnancy Can Also Detect Trisomy 18 and Trisomy 13
A newly available DNA-based prenatal blood test that can identify a pregnancy with Down syndrome can also identify two additional chromosome abnormalities: trisomy 18 (Edwards syndrome) and trisomy 13 (Patau syndrome).The test for all three defects can be offered as early [Read More]
Patients’ Brains May Adapt to ADHD Medication
New research reveals how the brain appears to adapt to compensate for the effects of long-term ADHD medication, suggesting why ADHD medication is more effective short-term than it is long-term. The study, from the Institute of Psychiatry (IoP) at King’s College London is [Read More]
Gene Regulator in Brain’s Executive Hub Tracked Across Lifespan
Mental illness suspect genes are among the most environmentally responsive. For the first time, scientists have tracked the activity, across the lifespan, of an environmentally responsive regulatory mechanism that turns genes on and off in the brain’s executive hub. [Read More]
Study: Men at Higher Risk for Mild Memory Loss than Women
Men may be at higher risk of experiencing mild cognitive impairment (MCI), or the stage of mild memory loss that occurs between normal aging and dementia, than women, according to a study published in the January 25, 2012, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of [Read More]
Study Offers Clue As to Why Alcohol is Addicting
UCSF Gallo scientists show that drinking releases brain endorphins Drinking alcohol leads to the release of endorphins in areas of the brain that produce feelings of pleasure and reward, according to a study led by researchers at the Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center [Read More]
Cognitive Decline Can Begin as Early as 45, Warn Experts
The brain’s capacity for memory, reasoning and comprehension skills (cognitive function) can start to deteriorate from age 45, finds research published in the BMJ today. Previous research suggests that cognitive decline does not begin before the age of 60, but this view [Read More]
A Gene for Depression Localized
Psychiatric disorders can be described on many levels, the most traditional of which are subjective descriptions of the experience of being depressed and the use of rating scales that quantify depressive symptoms. Over the past two decades, research has developed other [Read More]
Scripps Research Scientists Discover a Brain Cell Malfunction in Schizophrenia
The findings could point the way to new therapies. Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have discovered that DNA stays too tightly wound in certain brain cells of schizophrenic subjects. The findings suggest that drugs already in development for other diseases might [Read More]
Elderly Can Be As Fast As Young in Some Brain Tasks
Both children and the elderly have slower response times when they have to make quick decisions in some settings. But recent research suggests that much of that slower response is a conscious choice to emphasize accuracy over speed. In fact, healthy older people can be [Read More]
Helping Your Fellow Rat: Rodents Show Empathy-Driven Behavior
Rats free trapped companions, even when given choice of chocolate instead The first evidence of empathy-driven helping behavior in rodents has been observed in laboratory rats that repeatedly free companions from a restraint, according to a new study by University of [Read More]
