As the field of genetics advances it is likely that treatment with antidepressants will be tailored to your personal genes. A study published by the National Institute of Mental Health in the American Journal of Psychiatry states that certain genetic markers directly corresponded to an increased risk... Read more →

Women deal with so many stressors in life and that is not to say men do not. It is just that women seem to take on more as wives, mothers and daughters. This is an addition to career stress which adds to an already full life. Stress is a normal response that we feel when we are overwhelmed and overworked.... Read more →

According to new research published in Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology, patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease can see a rapid acceleration of symptoms as a result of a small silent stroke. The study on 150 patients at the Catholic University of Korea demonstrated that patients showing... Read more →

Depression sucks, and we have probably all heard that it can be combated with proper diet and adding in missing nutrients. But who are we are fooling? Often, a clinically depressed person would prefer chocolate cake and potato chips for dinner rather than the salmon and salad that would help their condition.... Read more →

Welcome to the thirty-third edition of Encephalon. We at Brain Blogger are honored to host this neuroscience blogging carnival. We received many quality posts that we have included below. Enjoy your readings; you will certainly learn a great deal! Read more →  Read More →

Just when I was complaining that the hypothetical stress-cancer link is still controversial, a new study takes a new approach to look at this question. Researchers at the University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Yahatanishi-ku, Kitakyushu, Japan, looked at a variety of psychosocial stressors... Read more →

The human genome is on everyone’s mind with recent advances by Craig Venter’s team. Let’s look at how reducing mental and other stress may be especially important for a genetic group of which you just might be a member. Research into cancer has shown that oxidative stress affects DNA,... Read more →

We needed a truthful account of how cigarettes have become the highest selling addictive drug in the history of the human race, lawfully. Alan Brandt, Harvard Professor of History of Medicine and Science, and author of the recently published “The Cigarette Century - The Rise, Fall, and Deadly... Read more →

The reason why chronic pain is chronic appears to be linked to its persistent memory in the prefrontal cortex. A new study by Dr. Vania Apkarian, professor of physiology and anesthesiology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, shows that treatment with a drug called D-cycloserine,... Read more →

The genetic basis for Alzheimer’s disease has been a focus of research in recent years, and the gene most studied so far has been the ApoE gene, which codes for apoprotein E, a blood protein concerned with the transport of lipids in blood. Specifically, ApoE is thought to be associated with the... Read more →

A new study presented by the World Health Organization points to the international community’s efforts to curb interpersonal violence and its mental and physical consequences. This past week nearly 200 experts on violence prevention assembled in Scotland for “Milestones 2007,” a gathering... Read more →