Seeing the brain hear reveals surprises about how sound is processed

Seeing the brain hear reveals surprises about how sound is processed

Bandyopadhyay et al. Dichotomy of functional organization in the mouse auditory cortex. Nature Neuroscience, 2010; DOI: 10.1038/nn.2490

We discovered that the organization of the cortex does not look as pretty as it does in the textbooks, which surprised us," explains Kanold. "Things are a lot messier than expected." And we don't see evidence of the maps previously proposed using less precise techniques." But the disorder they found could indicate that the brain is far more adaptable than previously thought. "These results may rewrite our classical views of how cortical circuits are organized and what functions they serve," suggests Dr. Shihab Shamma, whose previous research has involved mapping responses in the auditory cortex using traditional microelectrodes.

Recent very moving email from Partners in Health about Haiti: "Responding to Anguish"

From

Cate Oswald
Program Manager for Psychosocial Support
and Mental Health, Haiti

"In the midst of all of the distress the earthquake brought in its initial days, the immediate response of many in the countryside was to rush to Port-au-Prince to look for family and friends—a very natural response given the circumstances. With cell phone communication down, this was the only way to verify they were ok, or in need of help.

For our patients receiving treatment for multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB) at one of two treatment centers in the Central Plateau, this was not an option. Their illness requires a two-year treatment regimen, the first of which is administered as an inpatient. For them, leaving in search of their families was out of the question. Without communication capabilities and only listening to radio reports explaining the extent of the destruction, one can only imagine how distressing these first few days were for them.

In the days since, as cell phone service improved and patients were able to reach their families, many learned of the sudden and untimely death of their family and friends. One of our patients, Benjamin, who has been battling tuberculosis off and on for 18 years, learned that he lost 10 family members. Others lost siblings, aunts, uncles, mothers, fathers, cousins, friends. In their grief, they immediately started asking themselves why were they saved from this tragedy and not others? How would they continue to live? Why did some people have to die in an instant while they have been able to receive life-saving treatment for their deadly illness? Should they abandon treatment and give up on life?

The Zanmi Lasante staff at the Monseigneur Decoste Infectious Disease Pavilion at the St. Therese Hospital in Hinche immediately recognized their patients' anguish and called on the support of Zanmi Lasante's head psychologist and Director of Psychosocial Support Services, Father Eddy Eustache, to help work with their patients.

Drawing on a technique he has used at PIH's Rwanda project working with genocide survivors, Father Eddy led us in a memorial service remembering the lives of all those we had lost in this unthinkable disaster. Patients and staff alike sang songs, read scripture, shared stories of their memories of their loved ones, and in arguably the most moving part of the service, lit candles for each of the people we had lost while reading their names out loud. To conclude, staff provided words of encouragement and advice for patients on continuing to adhere to treatment and find support in each other.

Efforts such as these are part of a more comprehensive psychosocial support plan for Zanmi Lasante staff, patients, and their families as we work together to address the psychological impact that the earthquake has had on everyone in Haiti.

Kenbe Fem,

Cate Oswald"

Misunderstanding what brain scans can tell us

PTSD in the press--a MEG study distinguishes between PTSD and normal controls....The press misinterprets the results.

NEJM study finds post-event morphine cuts combat PTSD rates in half

From Neuron Culture Blog
NEJM study finds post-event morphine cuts combat PTSD rates in half

This is a pretty big deal if it holds up in future trials. One caveat I've not had time to check out is whether the morphine was often applied as part of an more robust medical response in general, which itself might reduce later PTSD symptoms. I hope the DOD soon follows up with another, larger study, for as Ben Carey notes, the has some substantial implications if indeed it holds up.

via nytimes.com:

In the new study, researchers at the Naval Health Research Center in San Diego reviewed detailed medical records of 696 troops who had been wounded in Iraq between 2004 and 2006, determining whether and when morphine was used in treatment. Military doctors used the drug for most serious injuries -- generally in the first two hours after the injury -- but sometimes administered others, like anti-anxiety medications

The study found that 243 of the servicemen and women were given a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress within two years of their injury. When the severity of the wounds was taken into account, researchers calculated that the diagnosis was half as common in those who had received morphine as in those who had not.

Age, sex and the cause of injury did not significantly alter the findings, said Troy Lisa Holbrook, the study's lead author.

"This is just one paper, one analysis, but it's exciting because of the strength of the finding," Dr. Holbrook said. "A lot of people have been looking for a secondary preventive to interrupt the formation of traumatic memories."

...The drugs appear to blunt the emotional charge of traumatic memories in several ways. Most obviously, they kill the pain when it is most excruciating; often, they scramble the ability to recall what exactly happened. Opiates also inhibit the production of a chemical messenger called norepinephrine, which is thought to enhance fear signals in the brain.

Tai Chi, Harvard Magazine and me

I am quoted on Tai Chi research in Harvard Magazine, alongside a nifty photo.

New paradigm in Cancer: focus on the context around the cell

New paradigm. In Cancer, the "context" around the cell (the extracellular "neighborhood") matters. Targeted therapies are needed to address (and not destroy) the neighborhood and social environment in which cells live.

Not surprisingly, a woman made this discovery (goes against the old warfare model --that focused only on massive cancer cell death and kill rates).