Amygdala News and Research

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People suffering from anxiety perceive the world differently than others

People suffering from anxiety perceive the world in a fundamentally different way than others, according to a study reported in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on March 3. The research may help explain why certain people are more prone to anxiety.

11 Mar 2016

Scientists discover brain mechanisms that separate food consumption from cravings

Researchers investigating eating disorders often study chemical and neurological functions in the brain to discover clues to overeating. Understanding non-homeostatic eating -- or eating that is driven more by palatability, habit and food cues -- and how it works in the brain may help neuroscientists determine how to control cravings, maintain healthier weights and promote healthier lifestyles. Scientists at the University of Missouri recently discovered the chemical circuits and mechanisms in the brain that separate food consumption from cravings. Knowing more about these mechanisms could help researchers develop drugs that reduce overeating.

9 Mar 2016

Study unravels physiological signature of fear memory within prefrontalamygdala networks

Fear response to traumatic or threatening situations helps us evade or escape danger. At the same time fear response is learned in the form of association between stimulus or situation and the presence of a stressor.

23 Feb 2016

Graphic anti-smoking images can warn smokers about cigarettes' health consequences

Viewing graphic anti-smoking images on cigarette packs triggers activity in brain areas involved in emotion, decision-making and memory as observed via brain scans.

17 Feb 2016

Patients with COPD show decreased gray matter volume in certain areas of the brain

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), a condition impacting nearly 24 million Americans, is often associated with disease-specific fears and avoidance of physical activity. Little is known of the structural brain processes that occur in COPD patients. A study published in the February issue of the journal CHEST found that patients with COPD demonstrated gray matter decreases in areas of the brain that process breathlessness, fear and sensitivity to pain.

9 Feb 2016

Aggression influences new nerve cell production in the brain

A group of neurobiologists from Russia and the USA, including Dmitry Smagin, Tatyana Michurina, and Grigori Enikolopov from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, have proven experimentally that aggression has an influence on the production of new nerve cells in the brain.

8 Feb 2016

Study finds no evidence of genetic overlap between schizophrenia risk and subcortical brain volumes

Over the last decade, important contributions to our understanding of schizophrenia have come from two different types of studies. Neuroimaging studies have found that certain parts of the brain, such as the hippocampus and amygdala, are smaller in people with schizophrenia - a devastating psychiatric illness with high heritability.

3 Feb 2016

Unobtrusive patch on the forehead provides relief from PTSD

An average of 30 years had passed since the traumatic events that had left them depressed, anxious, irritable, hypervigilant, unable to sleep well and prone to nightmares.

30 Jan 2016

New brain imaging technique may help identify children at risk of developing depression

A new brain imaging study from MIT and Harvard Medical School may lead to a screen that could identify children at high risk of developing depression later in life.

22 Jan 2016

People suffering from chronic stress, anxiety may be at increased risk for depression and dementia

A scientific review paper warns that people need to find ways to reduce chronic stress and anxiety in their lives or they may be at increased risk for developing depression and even dementia.

22 Jan 2016

Compensatory neural connections stave off bipolar disorder onset

Patients at high genetic risk of bipolar disorder may be able to avert onset of the condition due to natural adaptive neuroplasticity that allows the brain to compensate for underlying network dysfunction associated with the condition, researchers report.

19 Jan 2016

Growing up in poverty could alter children's brain connectivity, increase risk of depression

Many negative consequences are linked to growing up poor, and researchers at Washington University St. Louis have identified one more: altered brain connectivity.

18 Jan 2016

Simple, computer-training task can alter the brain's wiring to regulate emotional reactions

A simple, computer-training task can change the brain's wiring to regulate emotional reactions, according to a recent study published in NeuroImage by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) researchers.

6 Jan 2016

UA developing brain-scanning technology that could improve diagnosis of many disorders

Researchers at the University of Arizona are developing a noninvasive brain-scanning technology that could produce images far superior to those obtained with the most commonly used systems -- electroencephalography and functional magnetic resonance imaging.

17 Dec 2015

Clinical depression during early childhood can change the brain's anatomy

The brains of children who suffer clinical depression as preschoolers develop abnormally, compared with the brains of preschoolers unaffected by the disorder, according to new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

17 Dec 2015

Brain regions cause PTSD patients to generalize non-threatening events

Regions of the brain function differently among people with post-traumatic stress disorder, causing them to generalize non-threatening events as if they were the original trauma, according to new research from Duke Medicine and the Durham VA Medical Center.

16 Dec 2015

New study reveals link between tinnitus severity and emotion processing in the brain

Tinnitus, otherwise known as ringing in the ears, affects nearly one-third of adults over age 65. The condition can develop as part of age-related hearing loss or from a traumatic injury. In either case, the resulting persistent noise causes varying amounts of disruption to everyday life.

15 Dec 2015

Study emphasizes vital role of sleep in maintaining good emotional balance in our life

Cranky or grumpy after a long night? Your brain's ability to regulate emotions is probably compromised by fatigue. This is bad news for 30 percent of American adults who get less than six hours of sleep per night, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

9 Dec 2015

Two genetic variants interact to alter the brain responses to high-calorie foods

For the first time, researchers have identified two genetic variants that interact to alter the brain responses to high-calorie foods, a tie that could aid in the development of targeted treatments for obesity and overweight. Researchers at Imperial College London led by Tony Goldstone, MD, PhD, of Consultant Endocrinologist, found that two gene variants - FTO and DRD2 - influenced activity in the brain reward system when looking at pictures of high-calorie foods.

6 Nov 2015

Researchers identify potential brain-based biomarker for depressive symptoms

Approximately half of individuals who experience a traumatic brain injury (TBI) experience depression within a year.