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extinction

This is a drawing of people hunting an elephant

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·March 1, 2021·5 min read

The Human Brain Grew as a Result of the Extinction of Large Animals

Study reveals the extinction of larger animals led to an increase in the volume of the human brain, and ultimately the development of language in early humans.

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Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles Psychology

·April 26, 2019·3 min read

How cortisol affects exposure therapy for anxiety disorders

Cortisol administration after exposure has no beneficial effects for patients suffering from phobias or anxiety disorders. Arachnophobics who received cortisol following exposure were more likely to relapse when they encountered spiders in a different context.

This shows the location of the hippocampus

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 1, 2019·4 min read

How the brain fights off fears that return to haunt us

Newly identified 'extinction neurons' in the hippocampus suppress fearful memories when activated, and allow the memories to return when deactivated. The findings may provide new treatment avenues for PTSD, phobias, and anxiety.

Featured Psychology

·January 8, 2019·5 min read

Playing Tetris May Alleviate PTSD Flashbacks

According to a new study, playing the popular video game Tetris may help people with PTSD to alleviate recurring visual memories of their traumatic experiences. Researchers report after playing Tetris, PTSD patients reported a decrease in the number of flashbacks related to the trauma they experienced.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·December 10, 2018·4 min read

Your Brain on Imagination: It’s a Lot Like Reality

A new neuroimaging study reveals imagination may help people with fear or anxiety disorders overcome them. The study reports imagining a threat can alter the way it is represented in the brain.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·June 27, 2018·4 min read

Dopamine’s Role in Unlearning Fearful Association

Researchers report dopamine neurons may play a role in fear extinction. The study suggests targeting dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area could be of therapeutic benefit to reduce the impact of learned fear in PTSD and anxiety disorders.

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·September 18, 2017·4 min read

Learning and Unlearning Fear: The Two Faces of Noradrenaline

RIKEN researchers report neurons in the locus coeruleus play a key role in emotional and flexible learning.

This image shows a person in a VR environment.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·September 14, 2017·4 min read

Magnetic Fields to Alleviate Anxiety

Using a combination of transcranial magnetic stimulation and virtual reality, researchers have helped to reduce anxiety in people with panic disorders.

Image shows the location of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex in the brain.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·September 11, 2017·6 min read

Cocaine Users’ Brains Unable to Extinguish Drug Associations

A new study reveals chronic cocaine users have a global impairment of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles Psychology

·September 27, 2016·6 min read

Pinpointing a Brain Circuit That Keeps Fear at Bay

Researchers have discovered a method to prolong the benefits of extinction and identified a new way to improve exposure therapy in people suffering from phobias and PTSD.