An experimental compound appears to improve metabolic abnormalities associated with obesity, according to a preliminary study led by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. A report of the study, which was conducted with obese mice, appears online today in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. “This is a promising early step toward a treatment for some of the serious health...

In humans, throwing a ball, typing on a keyboard, or engaging in most other physical activities involves the coordination of numerous discrete movements that are organized as action sequences. Scientists at the National Institutes of Health and the Gulbenkian Institute in Portugal have identified brain activity in mice that can signal the initiation and termination of newly learned action sequences...

We are profoundly saddened at the passing of Dr. Mary Jeanne Kreek last week, at age 84.

Table 11. Percentage distributions of blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level among alcohol-involved drivers 1, according to sex and age, United States, 1998 and 2004. Sex, year, and age BAC level 2 0.01–.04 0.05–.07 0.08–.09 0.10–.14 0.15–.19 0.20–.24 0.25–.29 0.30+ Both Sexes 2004 Under 21 10.6 10.6 9.5 26.9 21.4 13.8 5.2 1.9 21–24 7.7 7.9 6.8 24.1 24.7 17.3 8.1...

Table 12. Driver’s alcohol involvement 1 in fatal traffic crashes, according to sex and age, United States, 1998 and 2004. Sex and age Drivers 1998 2004 Total Alcohol-involved Total Alcohol-involved Number Percent Number Percent Both sexes Under 16 361 56 15.4 345 48 14.0 16–20 7,767 1,721 22.2 7,755 1,772 22.8 21–24 5,613 2,100 37.4 6,413 2,507 39.1 25–29 6,211...

Scientists have identified new genes and pathways that influence an individual’s typical pattern of brain electrical activity, a trait that may serve as a useful surrogate marker for more genetically complex traits and diseases. One of the genes, for example, was found to be associated with alcoholism. A report of the findings by researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol...

BILL LANDS Volunteer (Born: July 22, 1930, Chillicothe, Missouri) was Professor of Biochemistry in Medical Schools at the University of Michigan (1955-1980) and the University of Illinois (1980-1991) where he studied the metabolism of fats, phospholipids, and prostaglandins. He authored as Lands, WE (and recently as Lands, B) over 300 papers and the book, Fish, Omega-3 and Human Health, 2nd...

Preliminary NIH study shows increased levels of beta-amyloid Losing just one night of sleep led to an immediate increase in beta-amyloid, a protein in the brain associated with Alzheimer’s disease, according to a small, new study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. In Alzheimer’s disease, beta-amyloid proteins clump together to form amyloid plaques, a hallmark of the disease...

A new drug developed by scientists at the National Institutes of Health limits the progression of liver fibrosis in mice, a hopeful advance against a condition for which there is no current treatment and that often leads to serious liver disease in people with chronic alcoholism and other common diseases. "This study represents an important step towards an effective treatment...

Media Advisory: Society for Neuroscience satellite meeting explores notable research in addiction ranging from data science to early life adversity impact on substance use disorders to opioid receptor function and pain What: The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), both part of the National Institutes of Health, will host a...

Researchers have long known that dopamine, a brain chemical that plays important roles in the control of normal movement, and in pleasure, reward and motivation, also plays a central role in substance abuse and addiction. In a new study conducted in animals, scientists found that a specific dopamine receptor, called D2, on dopamine-containing neurons controls an organism’s activity level and...

A study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health gives insight into changes in the reward circuitry of the brain that may provide resistance against cocaine addiction. Scientists found that strengthening signaling along a neural pathway that runs through the nucleus accumbens – a region of the brain involved in motivation, pleasure, and addiction – can reduce cocaine-seeking behavior...

NIH scientists identify possible treatment target for type 2 diabetes Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have clarified in rodent and test tube experiments the role that inflammation plays in type 2 diabetes, and revealed a possible molecular target for treating the disease. The researchers say some natural messenger chemicals in the body are involved in an inflammatory chain...

Mouse study advances knowledge of habitual behavior pathophysiology Daily activities involve frequent transitions between habitual behaviors, such as driving home, and goal-directed behaviors, such as driving to a new destination on unfamiliar roads. An inability to shift between habitual and non-habitual behaviors has been implicated in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), addiction, and other disorders characterized by impaired decision-making. In a new...

Dysregulated cellular response to estrogen and progesterone suspected. National Institutes of Health (NIH) researchers have discovered molecular mechanisms that may underlie a woman’s susceptibility to disabling irritability, sadness, and anxiety in the days leading up to her menstrual period. Such premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) affects 2 to 5 percent of women of reproductive age, whereas less severe premenstrual syndrome (PMS)...

Scientists have been developing astounding new tools for exploring neural circuits that underlie brain function throughout the first five years of the National Institutes of Health’s Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies ® (BRAIN) Initiative. Now, the NIH has announced its continued support for these projects by funding over 180 new BRAIN Initiative awards, bringing the total 2019 budget for...

ICCFASD Public Meeting April 23, 2021 Special Panel FASD Prevention and Services During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Focus on Women and Individuals Living with FASD Invited Speakers Katherine M. Keyes, PhD, is Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. Katherine’s research focuses on psychiatric and substance use epidemiology across the life course, including early and...

Girls who suffered childhood sexual abuse are more likely to develop alcoholism later in life if they possess a particular variant of a gene involved in the body’s response to stress, according to a new study led by researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The new finding...

Middle schoolers face peer pressure in many different ways, whether it’s to have the latest smartphone or app, wear trendy clothes, or go somewhere to hang out with friends. Your middle schooler will feel peer pressure when they are being pushed toward making certain choices—good or bad— by their friends or classmates. What’s so difficult about avoiding peer pressure? Simply...

O álcool interfere nas vias de comunicação do cérebro e pode afetar a forma como o cérebro funciona. O álcool torna mais difícil para as áreas cerebrais que controlam o equilíbrio, a memória, a fala e o julgamento fazerem seu trabalho, resultando em maior probabilidade de danos e outros resultados negativos. O consumo intenso de longo prazo causa alterações nos...