MS Drug - Talking Elephant - Intelligence Debates - Memory Switch - Biopsychology

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Date: Sat, 03 Nov 2012 05:43:35 -0400
To: biopsychol...@sinauer.com,biologicalpsychology@googlegroups.com,
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From: Marc Breedlove <bree...@msu.edu>
Subject: MS Drug - Talking Elephant - Intelligence Debates - Memory
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-20151891

Multiple sclerosis: New drug 'most effective'

By James Gallagher Health and science reporter, BBC News

A new drug is the "most effective" treatment for=20
relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, say UK researchers.

During MS the body's immune system turns on its=20
own nerves causing debilitating muscle problems.

Researchers at the University of Cambridge say a=20
cancer drug, which wipes out and resets the=20
immune system, has better results than other options.

However, there is concern that a drugs company is=20
about to increase the cost of the drug as a result.

Around 100,000 people in the UK have multiple=20
sclerosis. When the condition is diagnosed most=20
will have a form of the disease know as=20
relapsing-remitting MS, in which the symptoms can=20
almost disappear for a time, before suddenly returning.
Built from scratch

The researchers tested a leukaemia drug,=20
alemtuzumab, which had shown benefits for MS in small studies.

In leukaemia, a blood cancer, it controls the=20
excess production of white blood cells. In MS=20
patients, the dose eliminates the immune cells=20
entirely, forcing a new immune system to be built=20
from scratch which should not attack the nerves.

Two trials, published in the Lancet medical=20
journal, compared the effectiveness of=20
alemtuzumab with a first-choice drug, interferon beta-1a.

BBC =A9 2012
--------------------


http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/03/health/second-illness-infects-meningitis-s=
ufferers.html?ref=3Dhealth

  Second Illness Is Infecting Those Struck by Meningitis

By DENISE GRADY

Just when they might have thought they were in=20
the clear, people recovering from meningitis in=20
an outbreak caused by a contaminated steroid drug=20
have been struck by a second illness.

The new problem, called an epidural abscess, is=20
an infection near the spine at the site where the=20
drug =AD contaminated by a fungus =AD was injected to=20
treat back or neck pain. The abscesses are a=20
localized infection, different from meningitis,=20
which affects the membranes covering the brain=20
and spinal cord. But in some cases, an untreated=20
abscess can cause meningitis. The abscesses have=20
formed even while patients were taking powerful=20
antifungal medicines, putting them back in the=20
hospital for more treatment, often with surgery.

The problem has just begun to emerge, so far=20
mostly in Michigan, which has had more people=20
sickened by the drug =AD 112 out of 404 nationwide =AD than any other state.

=93We=92re hearing about it in Michigan and other=20
locations as well,=94 said Dr. Tom M. Chiller, the=20
deputy chief of the mycotic diseases branch of=20
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.=20
=93We don=92t have a good handle on how many people are coming back.=94

He added, =93We are just learning about this and=20
trying to assess how best to manage these patients. They=92re very=
 complicated.=94

In the last few days, about a third of the 53=20
patients treated for meningitis at St. Joseph=20
Mercy Hospital in Ann Arbor, Mich., have returned=20
with abscesses, said Dr. Lakshmi K. Halasyamani, the chief medical officer.

     =A9 2012 The New York Times Company
--------------------


http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/fda-report-describing-=
deaths-sheds-light-on-high-caffeine-beverages/2012/10/29/985a22f2-1ee1-11e2-=
9746-908f727990d8_story.html

FDA report describing deaths sheds light on high-caffeine beverages

By Hannah Krakauer,

Last week, the Food and Drug Administration=20
released incident reports describing several=20
deaths that have occurred following the=20
consumption of Monster Energy drinks. Much of the=20
concern over energy-drink consumption centers on=20
the high caffeine content of such beverages.

How did these deaths come to light?

Anais Fournier, 14, of Hagerstown, Md., died=20
suddenly last December from a heart arrhythmia=20
that led to cardiac arrest. She had apparently=20
drunk two Monster Energy drinks over two days. In=20
mid-October, Fournier=92s mother, Wendy Crossland,=20
filed a lawsuit against Monster Beverage, based=20
in Corona, Calif., claiming that the company did=20
not make clear the risks that come with drinking the beverage.

As part of a Freedom of Information request by=20
Crossland, the FDA released details of the other=20
four cases, plus one nonfatal heart attack, all=20
of which are alleged to be associated with=20
drinking Monster Energy. The company maintains that its drinks are safe.

How much caffeine is in energy drinks such as Monster Energy?

Actually, not a huge amount. A 24-ounce can of=20
Monster Energy contains 240 milligrams of=20
caffeine. A typical eight-ounce cup of brewed=20
coffee contains 90 to 200 milligrams of caffeine.

     =A9 1996-2012 The Washington Post
--------------------


http://vitals.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/11/02/14888025-painkillers-not-as-addic=
tive-as-feared-study-finds?lite#__utma=3D238145375.275574427.1328145841.1351=
676740.1351933602.120&__utmb=3D238145375.2.10.135193

Painkillers not as addictive as feared, study finds

Kerry Grens

Fewer than five percent of patients prescribed=20
narcotics to treat chronic pain become addicted=20
to the drugs, according to a new analysis of past research.

The finding suggests that concerns about the risk=20
of becoming addicted to prescription painkillers=20
might be "overblown," said addiction specialist=20
Dr. Michael Fleming at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of=
 Medicine.

"If you're a person that doesn't have a history=20
of addiction and doesn't have any major=20
psychiatric problems, narcotics are relatively=20
safe as long as your doctor doesn't give you too=20
much and uses the right medication," Fleming, who=20
was not involved in the new study, told Reuters Health.

Some recent research has concluded the same=20
thing, but another expert remained skeptical=20
about the new report because many of the studies=20
it included were not considered the best quality=20
research, and they varied widely in their results.
Advertise | AdChoices

"I think the jury's still out" on how worrisome=20
prescription opioid addiction is, said Joseph=20
Boscarino of the Geisinger Clinic in Danville,=20
Pennsylvania, who studies pain and addiction.

Opioid painkillers, which include oxycodone,=20
fentanyl and morphine, have only recently become=20
available for patients with chronic pain, said=20
Boscarino, who was not part of the new study.

=A9 2012 NBCNews.com
--------------------


http://www.sfgate.com/news/science/article/Elephant-in-South-Korean-zoo-imit=
ates-human-speech-4002101.php

Elephant in South Korean zoo imitates human speech

SAM KIM, Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) =AD An elephant in a South=20
Korean zoo is using his trunk to pick up not only=20
food, but also human vocabulary.

An international team of scientists confirmed=20
Friday what the Everland Zoo has been saying for=20
years: Their 5.5-ton tusker Koshik has an unusual=20
and possibly unprecedented talent.

The 22-year-old Asian elephant can reproduce five=20
Korean words by tucking his trunk inside his=20
mouth to modulate sound, the scientists said in a=20
joint paper published online in Current Biology.=20
They said he may have started imitating human speech because he was lonely.

Koshik can reproduce "annyeong" (hello), "anja"=20
(sit down), "aniya" (no), "nuwo" (lie down) and "joa" (good), the paper=
 says.

One of the researchers said there is no=20
conclusive evidence that Koshik understands the=20
sounds he makes, although the elephant does respond to words like "anja."

Everland Zoo officials in the city of Yongin said=20
Koshik also can imitate "ajik" (not yet), but the=20
researchers haven't confirmed the accomplishment.

Koshik is particularly good with vowels, with a=20
rate of similarity of 67 percent, the researchers=20
said. For consonants he scores only 21 percent.

Researchers said the clearest scientific evidence=20
that Koshik is deliberately imitating human=20
speech is that the sound frequency of his words matches that of his=
 trainers.

=A9 2012 Hearst Communications Inc.
--------------------


http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/02/science/arthur-r-jensen-who-set-off-debate=
-on-iq-dies.html?ref=3Dscience

  Arthur R. Jensen Dies at 89; Set Off Debate About I.Q.

By MARGALIT FOX

Arthur R. Jensen, an educational psychologist who=20
ignited an international firestorm with a 1969=20
article suggesting that the gap in=20
intelligence-test scores between black and white=20
students might be rooted in genetic differences=20
between the races, died on Oct. 22 at his home in=20
Kelseyville, Calif. He was 89.

His death was confirmed by the University of=20
California, Berkeley, where he was an emeritus=20
professor in the Graduate School of Education.

Professor Jensen was deeply interested in=20
differential psychology, a field whose central=20
question =AD What makes people behave and think=20
differently from one another? =AD strikes at the=20
heart of the age-old nature-nurture debate.

Because of his empirical work in the field on the=20
quantification of general intelligence (a subject=20
that had long invited a more diffuse,=20
impressionistic approach), he was regarded by=20
many colleagues as one of the most important psychologists of his day.

But a wider public remembered him almost=20
exclusively for his 1969 article =93How Much Can We=20
Boost I.Q. and Achievement?=94 Published in The=20
Harvard Educational Review, a scholarly journal,=20
the article quickly became =AD and remains even now=20
=AD one of the most controversial in psychology.

In the article, Professor Jensen posited two=20
types of learning ability. Level I, associative=20
ability, entailed the rote retention of facts.=20
Level II, conceptual ability, involved abstract=20
thinking and problem-solving. This type, he=20
argued, was roughly equivalent to general=20
intelligence, denoted in psychology by the letter =93g.=94

     =A9 2012 The New York Times Company
--------------------


http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/04/education/edlife/a-new-kind-of-tutoring-ai=
ms-to-make-students-smarter.html?ref=3Dscience&_r=3D0

  The Brain Trainers

By DAN HURLEY

IN the back room of a suburban storefront=20
previously occupied by a yoga studio, Nick=20
Vecchiarello, a 16-year-old from Glen Ridge,=20
N.J., sits at a desk across from Kathryn Duch, a=20
recent college graduate who wears a black shirt=20
emblazoned with the words =93Brain Trainer.=94 Spread=20
out on the desk are a dozen playing cards showing=20
symbols of varying colors, shapes and sizes. Nick=20
stares down, searching for three cards whose symbols match.

=93Do you see it?=94 Ms. Duch asks encouragingly.

=93Oh, man,=94 mutters Nick, his eyes shifting among=20
the cards, looking for patterns.

Across the room, Nathan Veloric, 23, studies a=20
list of numbers, looking for any two in a row=20
that add up to nine. With tight-lipped=20
determination, he scrawls a circle around one=20
pair as his trainer holds a stopwatch to time=20
him. Halfway through the 50 seconds allotted to=20
complete the exercise, a ruckus comes from the center of the room.

=93Nathan=92s here!=94 shouts Vanessa Maia, another=20
trainer. Approaching him with a teasing grin, she=20
claps her hands like an annoying little sister.=20
=93Distraction!=94 she shouts. =93Distraction!=94

There is purpose behind the silliness. Ms. Maia=20
is challenging the trainees to stay focused on=20
their tasks in the face of whatever distractions=20
may be out there, whether Twitter feeds, the=20
latest Tumblr posting or old-fashioned classroom commotion.

On this Wednesday evening at the Upper Montclair,=20
N.J., outlet of LearningRx, a chain of 83 =93brain=20
training=94 franchises across the United States,=20
the goal is to improve cognitive skills.=20
LearningRx is one of a growing number of such=20
commercial services =AD some online, others offered=20
by psychologists. Unlike traditional tutoring=20
services that seek to help students master a=20
subject, brain training purports to enhance=20
comprehension and the ability to analyze and=20
mentally manipulate concepts, images, sounds and=20
instructions. In a word, it seeks to make students smarter.

     =A9 2012 The New York Times Company
--------------------


http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/talking-back/2012/11/02/a-new-type-of-on=
-switch-for-memory/

  Remember It Well: A New Type of On-Switch for Memory

By Gary Stix

Nicotine enhances the ability to focus and=20
remember. The alkaloid acts in a similar manner=20
to the brain=92s own signaling molecule,=20
acetylcholine. It interacts with eponymous=20
receptors on the surface of nerve cells to regulate signaling in the brain.

The role of the nicotinic-acetylcholine receptors=20
throughout the central nervous system is so=20
wide-ranging that new discoveries about the=20
molecule continue apace.  A recent study=20
published in Nature Neuroscience found that one=20
type of nicotinic receptor acts as a key element=20
in a cell that appears to perform a critical function in regulating memory.

A team of researchers=ADled by one group from=20
Uppsala University in Sweden and another from Rio=20
Grande do Norte in Brazil=ADfound that a type of=20
nicotinic receptor on a cell called oriens=20
lacunosum-moleculare (OLM-alpha 2) seems to be=20
involved in turning on a critical circuit in the=20
hippocampus, a brain structure involved with=20
memory formation. =93This cell has a significant=20
influence on the incoming information to the=20
hippocampus,=94 says Klas Kullander from Uppsala University.

When this circuit is switched on, visual,=20
auditory or other inputs to the hippocampus are=20
targeted for additional processing of the=20
incoming information, perhaps a means of flagging=20
its importance so that it can be directed to the=20
cerebral cortex for long-term storage of memory.=20
The on-state of this circuit =93prioritizes more=20
intense local processing of the information,=94=20
Kullander says. =93It lets the hippocampus dwell on the information longer.=
=94

=A9 2012 Scientific American
--------------------


http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/346121/description/Monkeys_keep_t=
he_beat_without_outside_help

Monkeys keep the beat without outside help

By Laura Sanders

Devoid of any external time cues, monkeys can=20
still tell time. Animals learned to move their=20
eyeballs once every second, a completely internal=20
timing feat made possible by the rhythmic=20
behavior of small groups of nerve cells,=20
researchers propose online October 30 in PLOS Biology.

Time is often measured with clues from the=20
environment, says study coauthor Geoffrey Ghose=20
of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. A=20
quick glance at a clock indicates that your=20
meeting will start soon, and a look outside at a=20
low sun tells you that it=92s time to leave work.=20
But some time-telling abilities rely on purely=20
internal processes =AD just a feeling that minutes,=20
hours or days have ticked by, Ghose says.

Ghose and Blaine Schneider, also of the=20
University of Minnesota, studied this internal=20
sensation of time by creating a situation in=20
which two monkeys had to generate their own=20
pattern without any outside help. The animals=20
were trained to switch their gaze rhythmically=20
between a red dot and a blue dot on a computer=20
screen once every second, a job that looks like=20
=93they=92re watching an extremely boring tennis match,=94 Ghose says.

  After a while, the monkeys got good, on average=20
just tens of milliseconds off their tempo.=20
Meanwhile, the researchers used electrodes to=20
eavesdrop on the behavior of neurons in a part of=20
the brain called the lateral intraparietal area.=20
Earlier monkey studies found that neurons there=20
build up activity with time, firing messages more=20
and more frequently as the milliseconds tick by.

=A9 Society for Science & the Public 2000 - 2012
--------------------
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