Schizophrenia

Rh Incompatibility 

Why is it that boys are more likely to trigger an immunological rejection by the mother than girls? This was a question that came up in this week's reading assignment. It was stated that if a mother is Rh-negative and her a baby is Rh-positive, the baby's Rh-positive blood factor may trigger an immunological rejection by the mother. Thus babies born with Rh incompatibility have twice the possibility of having schizophrenia, however, it is more intense in boys than in girls-why is that?

What I learned from researching an answer to my question, is that the formation of schizophrenia could occur by interfering with the early stages of  brain development. One way it can be interfered is by Rh incompatibility. It is said that boys increase the risk of miscarriages, the linked article states that this is due to baby boys secreting proteins linked to the male Y chromosome. This can cause the mother's immune system to form antibodies to fight off the "invader". However, it mostly occurs when the mother is Rh-negative and the child Rh-positive.  In the United States Rh incompatibility has become uncommon, for it is preventable by treating the mother with RhoGAM (special immune globulins). 

So how does Rh incompatibiltiy lead to schizophrenia? Rh incompatibility causes destruction of red blood cells, which are the primary carriers of oxygen throughout the body, thus if there aren't enough blood cells, there is a deficit in oxygen. So schizophrenia could be caused by the brain not receiving enough oxygen during fetal development, thus key brain areas such as the hippocampus or the basal ganglia are not properly developed.  

Although there still needs to be more research on how Rh incompatibility can lead to schizophrenia, it is something that should be taken into consideration. Thus I believe it is important for pregnant women to take care of themselves not only emotionally, but physically as well. It is important to check if they carry the Rh factor and if they do to see if their child is compatible and if not to get treated right away to prevent further complications, such as the child developing schizophrenia. 

Mood Disorders

Not Enough Sunlight Can Be Depressing 

Living in a subtropical region, we hardly go through long winter months or even have "winter" down here. Our winters consist of sunny skies with temperature reaching as high in the one hundreds and  as low as fifty degrees Fahrenheit. So as I was reading this weeks section, I found it interesting to learn that people who live in areas that have long winter months, can suffer from seasonal affective disorder a.k.a SAD. These people suffer from depression during the winter months, but usually go away during summer and spring. This is mostly due to the seasonal variations of light.  Some symptoms include depression, anxiety, mood changes, sleep problems, lethargy, and social problems. There is also a milder form of SAD called the "Winter Blues". 
When seasons change, there is a shift in our biological clocks or circadian rhythm that can cause an increase of melatonin. Melatonin has been linked to SAD, especially since its production increases when the days are shorter and darker.  The video below goes into further detail of this disorder and its treatment, such as being exposed to bright fluorescent lights (around 10,000 watts) which is equivalent to a bright sunny day. Another treatment that can be used for those that have SAD, is to at least walk for an hour in winter sunlight since it has been found to be as effective as two and a half hours under bright artificial light. 

At first, I used to always complain how there is too much sun and that it was unbearable to live here, but after finding out about this disorder I am glad that I live in a  region that has a lot of sunlight. Although I am sure that there are still people that suffer from depression here, I wonder if SAD can affect us here during our "winter" months. 

Stress and Emotions

Violence - are we born with it or raised by it?

Turning on the TV to watch the evening news, there is hardly ever any good news to be reported. The main stories are mostly about a boyfriend who mistreated their girlfriend, a mother who was abusive towards her children, or of someone being brutally attacked. It makes one think about how these people are the way they are, what made them be so violent towards others? Were they raised in an environment where they were constantly exposed to violence, or was it something that was passed on to them through their genes? It turns out that it can be both. 

Interactions between our heredity and environment can have an influence on aggressive behavior. Studies have found that violence can be enhanced by a genetic predisposition such as, the differences in the production of monoamine oxidase A (MAO_A), along with being raised in a troubled environment. What is monoamine oxidase A? MAO_A is an enzyme that breaks down the neurotransmitters dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin, thus lowering the amounts available to the system. 

The relationship between this enzyme and childhood upbringing has been studied to see their effect on antisocial behavior. It has been reported that a low or high production of MAO_A does not differ significantly in their probability of antisocial behavior. However people who suffered serious maltreatment during childhood and had low levels of the enzyme, showed higher rates of antisocial behavior. 

Other than being able to be used a precursor for antisocial behavior, monoamine oxidases can also be targeted for treatment in people suffering from depression. The video below gives an explanation on how destroying MAO_A inhibitors can keep serotonin high in the system, with treated with antidepressant medication. Thus by inhibiting the enzyme, serotonin levels will be maintained at a fairly high level and the person's depression will be decreased. 

Sleep

Parents Beware: It's not just a nightmare! 

If you hear a child cry out at night, do you rush out to see what is wrong or leave them be until they get it out of their system?  What if this happened every night? For some parents whose children suffer from night terrors, this is what they go through. At first it might seem that the child is just acting out to gain the parents attention, but it might be that the child is suffering from a night terror. However, how do you determine whether the child is having a night terror or your usual nightmare? One of the main differences between night terrors and a nightmare is that when children wake up they will not remember having a night terror and with nightmares they usually remember the dream that they had. Parents are advised to not ask their child about their night terrors or even mention that they had one. Other suggestions on how to deal with night terrors, as well how to identify them in a child are discussed in the video below. 

I disagreed with a suggestion that the video gave on how parents should react with children who suffer from night terrors. Even though I don't have any children, I don't think I would be able to leave the child by themselves while they went through their episode. I think that I would wake them up before they suffered from the night terror, that way they would sleep better and so would I. It turns out that adults can also suffer from night terrors, especially if they are going through an emotional time that is causing them stress or if they consume alcohol. I myself have not had a night terror, but even if I did I would not remember it either way. 

Sexual Orientation

Twins - Not so identical after all

Whenever we see identical twin babies, we usually stop and say "how cute...", especially if they are dressed alike - then they are just outright adorable! Sometimes it is even difficult to tell whom is whom when they have the same facial expressions,  or if they do everything the same and speak alike that they appear to be just one sole person. We wouldn't for example be able to tell between Jack and Mack, unless they told us themselves.  Although, it turns out that some twins are not so identical in everything. What if Mack turns out to be a homosexual, and Jack a heterosexual. Then we would be able to tell whom is whom.  It turns out that monozygotic twins are more likely to have different sexual preferences compared to dizygotic twins. Meaning that one twin might be a heterosexual, while the other might become a homosexual. However that is not to say this is true for all twins, they can both be heterosexual or homosexual for that matter. In the following video, it explains how homosexuality in a twin can be derived during their development in the womb. A hypothesis in the video explains how some scientists believe that a twin can become a homosexual due to not receiving enough testosterone in the brain. That they do receive adequate testosterone to develop physically as a male, but there is not enough testosterone to orient them in being attracted to females. This video segment follows twin males and thus they're explanations are mostly related to males. 

However, I believe that a person has a choice in being either a heterosexual, homosexual or both if they want. I agree that it is interesting to investigate if there is a biological explanation to choosing a sexual orientation, but I just hope that it doesn't lead to people wanting to prevent that from happening or trying to find a "cure" for people who are under this "condition". Which is why this is a controversial topic in which many people will either disagree or agree with one another.  

Pain, Olfaction, Pheromones, & Synaesthesia

A Cure for Heart Break

How many of us have gone through a bad relationship and have had our heart broken? We think to ourselves that we will never be able to forget that person - that the pain is too great. Or perhaps you were betrayed by someone that you had trusted your entire life (a close friend, a sibling, a parent) only to have them break the chain of trust you had with them. These and many others can cause us to feel a pain  so great that some might say that we can "feel it in our bones". It turns out that pain is not only felt emotionally, but physically as well. Who would have thought that causing someone "heart break", can perhaps cause them to actually have their heart break. An article that I found on BBC News website provides more information on how emotional pain can also be perceived as physical pain. The following video is a new's report that talks about a research conducted by the University of Michigan and how their findings support this topic. 

However, if emotional pain can become physical, then can it be treated as such? It turns out that taking acetaminophen (Tylenol), can actually reduce the pain that you are feeling. A study done at the University of Florida showed that taking this medication does actually reduce the amount of pain that one feels. I chose these videos because I believe that they provide a good insight on this topic, with scientific research to support their claims. 

A question that was brought to mind when watching this video is that if a person begins to take medication to relieve the pain they are feeling, would they not become addicted in taking the medication? Would they become attached to the drug so as to prevent themselves from feeling any emotional pain? Or would it be better to feel pain, than not feel anything at all?

Learning, Memory, & Amnesia

Ginkgo biloba

Ginkgo biloba? A herb that improves memory?! At long last, something that will help me remember during exams! I got so excited when I first read about it in this week's reading module, but soon the excitement turned to disappointment as I began to read towards the end of the section. It turned out that Ginkgo biloba  doesn't have any effects on improving memory. However I was still intrigued about this herb, so I decided to do a bit of research and found  some very interesting facts about it. It turns out that Ginkgo biloba has been used throughout the years in traditional Chinese herbal medicine to treat blood disorders and enhance memory. It is also believed to have antioxidant properties, which help in eliminating free radicals (cause damage to cells, DNA, or cell death --> can lead to cancer). Another use for Ginkgo biloba (the main one), is to improve blood flow to the brain. Thus it is mainly used (in Europe) to treat those that suffer from dementia. There have been studies to suggest that this supplemental herb can also benefit those that suffer from Alzheimer's disease. However, a study was performed in 2008 on people that had Alzheimer's; they were divided into two groups where one received ginkgo and the other a placebo. The study concluded that those that took ginkgo showed the same effects as those that took a placebo, thus there was no difference in mental function or a decrease in Alzheimer's. More information on Ginkgo biloba, can be found through the link.

Some people however, still believe that it does improve memory, no matter what the study proved about it's effects (or lack of). The following video is a news report that talks about the findings of the study, and how an elderly lady believes that ginkgo improved her memory. Her claim is that when she was taking Ginkgo biloba her memory was fine, but when she stopped taking it her memory began to fade.

Brain Lateralization

A Splitted-brain

Today in one of my classes I noticed something about the person sitting next to me. She was left-handed. I hadn't noticed that about her, until we accidentally bumped our elbows while writing.  It reminded me of when I was young and would try to write with my left hand. I had a friend who was left-handed and I had thought it was really cool that she was able to and I was jealous that I couldn't. I would try to write with my left hand but it was really difficult and what I could write wasn't legible, so I had to stick to writing with my right hand. I found it really interesting to read that split-brained people are able to use their left and write hands simultaneously (such as when drawing circles at different speeds). It appears that split-brained people have the ability to perform two different things at once and those that do not have a split-brain cannot-unless they have clear targets to direct their movements. People who have a split-brain are either born without a corpus callosum or they had it cut due to having severe epilepsy.

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders, with about 1% to 2% of all people having epilepsy. Thus when lateralization of the two hemisphere was performed in the 1940s to prevent epilepsy, people suffering from this condition took advantage of this treatment. They did it without a care of some of the side effects that might occur such as having a split-brain and what it would entail (such as information going from one hemisphere could not cross to the other because of the damage to the corpus callosum). Current treatments for epilepsy that are being studied offer a different alternative than to cutting the corpus callosum. Now, scientists are targeting the genes involved in epilepsy and are trying to pinpoint which ones are active in different forms of the disorder, thus leading to better-targeted and more effective treatments. There is also a possibility of a new generation of pacemaker-type devices that may soon be able to cut seizures short or even prevent them from occurring, but it is still under clinical trial. Another treatment is to fight the inflammation that causes epilepsy by using anti-inflammatory therapy, steroids, or a molecule  called VX-765 that is being studied. These treatments however are still being researched and further clinical trials are still needed before they are used on the general population. 

Brain anatomy, development, and plasticity

Developing brain
An expecting mother is said to be very protective and caring for her unborn child. We see it in animals such as tigers, bears, dogs, and cats - they take care of themselves during pregnancy so that their children stay safe.  Why is it then that humans who are supposed to be above the hierarchy in the animal kingdom, do not take care of themselves when pregnant. What am I talking about  you may ask, I'm talking about expectant mothers who smoke, drink alcohol, and take addictive drugs. I'm not saying that all expecting mothers are reckless and inconsiderate of  their unborn child, but there are some who would much rather endanger their unborn child just to experience the pleasure they'll receive from committing these acts.  I am aware that once someone gets addicted to drugs or alcohol, they may have a hard time quitting. However, if a woman knows she is pregnant shouldn't she at least make an attempt of quitting, at least until her child is born. By doing so, they will lessen the risk of the child being born with impaired brain development. This can lead to fetal alcohol syndrome (mothers that drink heavily during pregnancy), attention-deficit disorder, behavioral deficits, etc. Mothers will not only hurt their children, but themselves as well. As the years go by they will have to watch their children suffer from their mistakes and will have to live with the guilt knowing that they could have prevented what their child is going through. Doctors recommend women to refrain from consuming alcohol if they think they are  pregnant or are trying to get pregnant. It is especially important to not drink alcohol during the beginning of pregnancy, because this is the time when the brain of the fetus is beginning early development and any impairments can lead to permanent effects.  

The video above gives an animated explanation on how a fetus develops during normal conditions. The video below depicts an ultrasound of a baby who has fetal alcohol syndrome and explains the effects that the baby suffers from it. 

Synapses

Nucleus accumbens--our brain's pleasure center

Who knew that our brain has a pleasure center? The nucleus accumbens is the structure in our brain where dopamine or norepinephrine is released. Whenever you think of something pleasant and start thinking about it and start wanting it, you have just activated your nucleus accumbens. However, it also depends on how much you want it to activate large areas of the nucleus accumbens. For example, if someone "likes" chocolate only a small area of the nucleus accumbens activates, but if that person "wants" chocolate and has a need for it, then a large area activates. Thus you get a sense of pleasure and happiness when you think of something you want because that thought releases dopamine in the nucleus accumbens. Now it's good to know that our brain can make us happy through this structure, but it can also be our downfall. People who take addictive drugs activate the nucleus accumbens, thus they are at an all-consuming drive to obtain the drug even though it no longer provides them with the pleasure they need. Thus the nucleus accumbens makes them want the drug more because it increases the release of dopamine. Once the person is addicted, the uptake of the drug will interfere with the brain's normal functioning since the brain will have to be competing with the now sensitive nucleus accumbens. An article called The addicted brain discusses how our brain gets addicted to drugs and the significance it has to finding treatment or prevention. This is one step to helping those that suffer from addiction, and all because of the pleasure we receive from our nucleus accumbens. 

Nerve Cells and Nerve Impulses

Blood-Brain Barrier

In my human physiology class, we were also going over the blood-brain barrier. A friend of mine was having trouble understanding its function, so I made an analogy for him. I told him to imagine the brain as being the most popular club imaginable and everyone wanted to access to it. However like every club, there is always someone at the door that acts as a bouncer and passes judgement to those who seek entry. There are VIP's (oxygen, carbon dioxide, and molecules that dissolve in the fats of the membrane) that are able to easily gain entry into the club (brain) without any resistance from the bouncer (blood-brain barrier). Like always, there are those that want to get in (viruses, bacteria, and harmful chemicals) but the bouncer doesn't let them. Then come those that bribe the bouncer with money to allow their friends to come inside, which I think describes the purpose of active transport since it uses energy to pump chemicals from the blood into the brain. Thus the brain has "bouncers" beside one another that surround the brain, making sure that no one that is supposed to go in stays out. The analogy made my friend laugh, but at least I got the main points across. 

Although the blood-brain barrier prevents harmful chemicals from entering the brain, some drugs like heroin are able to easily pass through the barrier. How is it that this drug which can damage the brain is able to enter, but useful medications such as drugs that are used for chemotherapy cannot enter? This is one of the disadvantages of the blood-brain barrier that scientists are investigating-to find ways for medications to gain access to the brain through the blood-brain barrier. One article, describes how antibodies can be used to prevent Alzheimer's disease from forming by "tricking" the blood-brain barrier to let the antibody through. 

The video above shows a method being researched at Columbia University to open the blood-brain barrier and allow drugs to enter. Another finding states how adenosine could be used to make an entry into the blood-brain barrier. These findings are the stepping stones to preventing brain diseases such as Alzheimer and  brain cancers from progressing. Hopefully in the future scientists will be able to find a way to prevent these diseases from forming altogether.  

Introduction to Physiological Psychology

How intelligent are we?

The section on brain size and intelligence in the book was the most interesting to me, especially when it began to compare humans with other species. As humans, we tend to see ourselves as the most advanced organism on earth. Thus when I read that humans don't have the largest brain or highest brain-to-body ratio making us not as intelligent as we thought we were, I was surprised. I began to question whether we were even intelligent enough to be superior to other organisms. I later realized that it does not matter whether a species has a larger brain or a high brain-to-body ratio, since they are all different. I do not think that intelligence should be measured by how big our brains are, rather on our actions and behaviors. A person can have the biggest brain on earth, yet does not know how to calculate a simple algorithm problem. In human standards that person would be classified as being unintelligent, even if their brain was bigger than other species. Even though some humans are not as intelligent as others, we still think of ourselves as above other species. The video that I have posted portrays a man being interviewed on a similar topic. I chose this video because I agree with what he had to say about their being a poor correlation between brains and cognitive function.  He agrees that a bigger brain does not mean bigger intelligence and supports his statement by comparing humans with great apes. He also begins to question other aspects (other than the brain) that make humans better than other species.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb541Wwi3Dw