Science News
Find Press Releases and Science Updates by Topic
- Emotion-Regulating Circuit Weakened in Borderline Personality Disorder
-
October 2, 2008
•
Science Update
Differences in the working tissue of the brain, called grey matter, have been linked to impaired functioning of an emotion-regulating circuit in patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). People with BPD had excess grey matter in a fear hub deep in the brain, which over-activated when they viewed scary faces. By contrast, the hub’s regulator near the front of the brain was deficient in grey matter and underactive, effectively taking the brakes off a runaway fear response, suggest researchers supported in part by NIMH. - Millisecond Brain Signals Predict Response to Fast-Acting Antidepressant
-
October 2, 2008
•
Press Release
Images of the brain’s fastest signals reveal an electromagnetic marker that predicts a patient’s response to a fast-acting antidepressant, researchers have discovered. - New Study to Evaluate Ways to Control Metabolic Side Effects of Antipsychotics
-
October 1, 2008
•
Science Update
A new NIMH-funded grant will examine ways to control the metabolic side effects associated with the use of the newer atypical antipsychotic medications in children with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. - Study Examines the Prevalence and Impact of Gastrointestinal Problems in Children with Autism
-
September 24, 2008
•
Science Update
A new study examines the characteristics of children with pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) who also have gastrointestinal problems. - New Grants Will Further Understanding of the Biology, Genetics and Treatment of Eating Disorders
-
September 23, 2008
•
Science Update
Eating disorders, which include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge-eating disorder, are complex and often life-threatening illnesses. - Newer Antipsychotics No Better Than Older Drug in Treating Child and Adolescent Schizophrenia
-
September 15, 2008
•
Press Release
Two newer atypical antipsychotic medications were no more effective than an older conventional antipsychotic in treating child and adolescent schizophrenia and may lead to more metabolic side effects. - Why “My Get Up and Go Has Got Up and Went”
-
September 15, 2008
•
Science Update
If, as the song laments, our “get up and go” fades as we get older, it may stem from aging-related changes in a brain reward circuit. Compared to young participants, older participants showed less activity in brain motivation hubs while they viewed a slot machine-like video game and received money in a NIMH brain imaging study. - Gene Variants Force Mental Trade-offs: Efficiency vs. Resiliency
-
September 15, 2008
•
Science Update
Mice genetically engineered to have an over active version of a human gene, like their human counterparts, gain in emotional mettle under stress, but at a cost of less efficient thinking, NIMH scientists have discovered. Such talents seesawed in mice engineered to have either too much or not enough the val version of the COMT gene, the most common of two that humans inherit. The new study in mice confirms and helps to explain the trade-offs seen in earlier studies in humans, which have suggested that the val version slightly biases the brain’s workings toward increased risk for schizophrenia. - New NIMH Strategic Plan Accelerates Mental Health Research
-
September 8, 2008
•
Science Update
Building on the recent rapid advances in understanding the science of brain and behavior, the new National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) strategic plan is designed to maintain momentum in research and transform the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental disorders. - Personality Disorders Prevalent, Under-Treated, in South Africa
-
September 4, 2008
•
Science Update
Almost seven percent of South African people age 20 or older have a personality disorder, an umbrella term for several personality types characterized by chronic social dysfunction, a large study funded by NIMH and others reveals. However, less than one-fifth of the people with a disorder received mental-health treatment in the year before the study.
