kazam's blog, page 1 - StumbleUpon

Last login: 46 hours agoKazam: Thomas A. Anderson is a 25 year old guy from St. Elsewhere, British Columbia, Canada.; Likes 1,521 pages, 298 videos, 2 photos • 91 fans • Received 10 reviews; Member since May 05, 2006

Favorites » His Blog

Stem Cells Stop Mouse Shivers Cold, Could Thwart Rare, Neurological Disorders: S…: Jun 6, 5:08pm 3 reviews genetics, science, neuroscience
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=stem-cells-stop-mouse-shi; The scientists report today in the journal Cell Stem Cell that the finding could bring them closer to finding a treatment for incurable neurological conditions, such as Pelizaeus-Merzbacher's disease and adrenoleukodystrophy, the mysterious, debilitating disorder portrayed in the 1992 film Lorenzo's Oil.

Patients who suffer from these genetic conditions experience symptoms ranging from muscle weakness and paralysis to seizures and dementia. The problems are caused by disruptions in nerve cell (neuron), communication triggered by a lack of myelin, which, in normal nerve cells, coats and insulates their axons. (An axon is a fingerlike projection on a neuron that carries signals other nerve cells, thereby allowing impulses to and from the brain and other parts of the nervous system.

http://www.rootly.com/topics/science/physics/Relaxation_exercises_sharpens_shoot…: Jun 2, 2:13pm 1 review psychology, neuroscience
http://www.rootly.com/topics/science/physics/Relaxation_exercises_sharpens_sh...; The method is called Applied tension release (ATR) (or TASP, an acronym based on its name in Swedish) and was developed by Jan Lisspers, a professor of psychology at Mid Sweden University. Thus far it has primarily been used to reduce symptoms of stress and pain in health-care patients. A new study has investigated whether it can help improve the performance of elite-level biathletes.

Look Before You Leap: New Study Examines Self-control: Jun 2, 2:11pm 1 review psychology, neuroscience
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080530132101.htm; The good news, according to the authors, is that people who aren't inclined to consider the consequences of their actions can be aided by simple interventions, like brochures and advertising that encourage them to think about the dangers of obesity or the benefits of saving for retirement. Scare tactics, it seems, were the most effective. "The consideration of negative consequences has a bigger impact than the consideration of positive consequences," the authors write.

Medbroadcast: May 26, 2:01pm 1 review health, psychology, neuroscience
http://www.medbroadcast.com/channel_health_news_details.asp?news_id=15437&rss=67; Depression PaceMaker.

World first discovery -- genes from extinct Tasmanian tiger function in a mouse: May 20, 3:37pm 1 review evolution, genetics
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-05/plos-wfd051608.php; The results, published in the international scientific journal PLoS ONE this week, showed that the thylacine Col2a1 gene has a similar function in developing cartilage and bone development as the Col2a1 gene does in the mouse.

"This is the first time that DNA from an extinct species has been used to induce a functional response in another living organism," said Dr Andrew Pask, RD Wright Fellow at the University of Melbourne's Department of Zoology who led the research.

Is Human Growth Hormone the Key to Eternal Youth?: Scientific American: May 13, 10:54pm 1 review health, neuroscience
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=is-human-growth-hormone-t; "If you went to a gym pretty regularly, you might get that change without breaking into too much of a sweat," he says, "and you wouldn't spend $1,000 to $2,000 a month on something that appears to have minimal or no benefit and has the potential of some very serious side effects."

Liu notes that the biggest surprise was the dearth of data in this area, given the widespread popularity of GH as a supposed anti-aging therapy. In fact, he says, researchers reviewing scientific evidence found that there were only about 500 patients involved in rigorous controlled trials and that only a few more than 200 of them actually received growth hormones.

Can HGH Reverse Brain Damage in Drug Addicts?: Scientific American: May 13, 10:50pm 1 review health, neuroscience
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=can-hgh-reverse-brain-dam; The team isolated developing nerve cells from a mouse fetus in petri dishes and bathed them in morphine for a week; they added synthetic growth hormone to some of the cultures. Their findings: cells exposed only to morphine began to die off, but those also infused with HGH persisted and, in some cases, increased.

Lack Of Motivation In Schizophrenia Linked To Brain Chemical Imbalance: May 8, 10:12am 1 review neuroscience
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508075216.htm; In addition to the hallucinations that often characterize schizophrenia, patients also have major problems with apathy and lack of motivation. The dopamine hypothesis argues that unusual behaviour associated with schizophrenia can largely be explained by variations in the dopamine function of the brain. Exploring a possible link between dopamine activity and the lack of motivation could be key to developing new approaches to helping such patients cope with life.

Improving Anxiety Treatment Through The Help Of Brain Imaging: A Potential Futur…: May 8, 10:11am 1 review psychology, neuroscience
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508100721.htm; Dr. Paul Whalen, corresponding author for this article, explains, "We focused our study on a regulatory circuit in the brain involving the amygdala, an area that serves to detect the presence of threatening information, and the prefrontal cortex, an area that functions to control these threat responses when they are exaggerated or unnecessary."

The researchers found that approximately two thirds of the patients experienced relief from their anxiety symptoms after treatment, and of those who improved, some responded better than others. As hypothesized, the fMRI data predicted who would do well on the drug and who would not.

http://www.care2.com/news/member/635819564/587699: May 8, 9:10am 1 review neuroscience
http://www.care2.com/news/member/635819564/587699; VIDEO: Researchers report that college students were more alert if they massaged or tapped areas on the back of the neck, the hands and legs -- areas that acupuncturists believe can stimulate the release of endorphins

Please login or join to view older archives