Selected sentences form this article
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=B4D6D9D1-AF33-8BF7-9E1D6320FC621B14&chanID=sa003 ,
with EPT comments enclosed in []-brackets.
"The neural activity and physical behavior of mice recovering from several
stressful [Specific/synapticHibernation Imploring/Inducing} encounters may
illustrate alternative ways that mammals respond to traumatic events.
Researchers at the University of Texas (U.T.) Southwestern Medical Center at
Dallas noticed that mice used two primary methods to cope with defeat after
being repeatedly pummeled by larger, more aggressive foes: Some of the
weaker members withdrew, avoiding all types of social interaction for more
than a month, whereas others rolled with the punches, so to speak, quickly
bouncing back to their normal behavior.
"Vulnerability is caused by an increase in the frequency of dopamine
impulses; a side-effect of that is an increase in the levels of BDNF," says
study co-author Vaishnav Krishnan, a graduate student in Nestler's lab.
"Resilient mice overcome this change by counteradapting their gene
expression [the suite of genes that act on the nucleus accumbens that are
either turned on or off] to clamp down the levels of activity in the ventral
tegmental area."
According to the researchers, as they plunged into despair, mice that
experienced the increase in BDNF levels showed symptoms similar to those of
human depression: they interacted less with other mice, lost weight and were
not interested in sugar or sexual activity, both of which they naturally
find rewarding.
[We humans are uniquely evolved to handle SHI-type predicaments, come
CURSES, AEVASIVEly - ~= by rerouting action potentials fired off from
potentially distress-motivating CURSES-type memories into ambiadvantageous
(hopeful, profitable/procreation promoting, addictive) beliefs/attitudes,
preoccupations, and lifestyles.]
"The increase in BDNF may have an adaptive role normally, allowing an animal
to learn that a situation is bad and [to] avoid it in the future," Nestler
says. "Under conditions of extreme social stress, susceptible animals may be
'overlearning' this principle and generalizing it to other situations."
The group suffering from depression had BDNF levels that were as much as 40
percent higher than their counterparts.
"If we can understand how to promote resilience to [chronic] stress,"
Krishnan says, "we can find new ways of treating depression.. Off the top of
my head, a drug that would decrease the amount of BDNF that's released in
response to [dopamine] activity would be a good antidepressant." He
cautions, however, that such therapy would have to be localized, so that it
did not interfere with the protein's role in learning in other brain
regions.
[How about also trying harder to implement policies that promote ALQholism
in people?!]
