What do Drunk Mice Have to do With Science?

      
      A recent study conducted at the University of Texas-Austin by Hitoshi Morikawa has shown that alcoholics are more likely to develop "subconscious reward-based conditioning". This means that alcoholics are at a greater risk of developing new cravings thanks to the alcohol's affect on their brains.
        In the study, a set of mice were put on a week long "drinking binge". They were given 2 grams of ethanol per kilogram of weight 3 times a day for seven days. This is equivalent to a person going on a drinking binge where the BAC is around the legal limit of .08. Control mice underwent the same procedure only with saline injections instead of ethanol. The mice were then placed in a box with 2 distinct compartments.The mice were allowed to roam both compartments and neither one side nor the other was favored. The mice were then given a cocaine injection on one side of the box. After 2 cocaine injections the mice were observed for side preference and then results showed that the mice who were NOT on the drinking binge increased their time on the cocaine side by 7% where the mice that DID receive the alcohol lingered on the cocaine side 14% longer than before. These tests show that alcohol does in fact increase the subconscious development of reward-based conditioning.
       Alcohol and other substances trigger the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter in the brain, which signals the brain to take note of the environment/circumstances in which they fulfill their cravings. "We can think of those neurons that release dopamine as 'teachers' that tell other brain areas, the 'students,' to learn the associations surrounding rewards such as food, sex and addictive drugs," Morikawa explains.This creates a reaction similar to Pavlov's dog. With the dog a bell was rung every time it was fed until it got to the point where it salivated when the bell rang. Addicts experience a similar effect when around locations, people, or situations that remind them of the drug or addiction.
     This research is significant because it is showing that alcoholics are at greater risk for developing new cravings/addictions because of the alcohol's effects. This information could be put to use helping alcoholics and other addicts learn to overcome their demons.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=mouse-study-suggests-why

Sleep Deprivation On a Cellular Level

   

     New research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is once again reinforcing the human body's need for proper sleep. Researchers at the university have conducted test on rats regarding brain activity in tired and sleep deprived states. In these tests rats were kept awake four hours past their bedtime using various toys and new objects to keep them occupied. Their brain function was measured using a simple test which involved finding a sugar pellet.
      The results showed that as the rats became more and more tired, their performance on the tests decreased steadily. Also during the tests the rats' brains were observed using EEG to map their brain function. This method provided evidence to support a new hypothesis that neurons in the brain shut off one by one and the individual becomes more tired.

"It's very worrisome. It means that even before we have obvious global signs of sleepiness, there are more local signs of tiredness and they have consequences on performance," says Chiara Cirelli, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison".

      This research showed that the neurons don't just shut off when the individual becomes overly tired. During sleep slow-wave activity appears in the brain as neurons in the cortex switch themselves off and go electronically silent. The research however, shows that neurons shut down over the course of the day. The neurons that are most active and do the most work throughout the day are the first ones to switch off when we get tired.
      This study gives people yet another reason to get the recommended 8 hours per night as often as possible. By the time you are tired it is already too late to stop the neuron shut down pattern.


http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2011/04/sleep-deprived-brains-turn-themselves-off/1

Andy the Armadillo: Friend or Foe?

    Armadillos might not be the cutest creature in the Animal Kingdom but they aren't too awful right? Wrong. According to a recent federal study, armadillos are responsible for one third of the leprosy cases in the united states.

    Leprosy is a disease that affects about 250 people in the United States. It causes disfiguring skin lesions, nerve damage, and progressive debilitation. it can be be cured with a drug regimen if caught early, but if not it can cause permanent nerve damage. Most patients with leprosy-like symptoms are often questioned about their travel history since leprosy is common in areas such as India, Brazil, Africa, and the Philippines.“These patients have always been a puzzle,” said Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. For those who haven't traveled overseas though, leprosy is often ruled out and therefore left untreated.

   The third of cases in the United States are concentrated around the Louisiana and Texas area where the hunting, skinning, and eating of the armadillo is common, so because of this recent discovery people are now being warned to limit contact with armadillos and consumption of armadillo meat.

   The interesting thing about leprosy and armadillos though is that the disease seems to have the ability to be passed from armadillo to human and human to armadillo. This is known because leprosy was not present in the new world before Christopher Columbus came and armadillos are only indigenous to the New World. Leprosy is one of a number of diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans including the flu, HIV/AIDS, and SARS.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/28/health/28leprosy.html?ref=science

More Tornadoes?!

      

For those from the Southeast, Midwest, and Great Plains, tornado warnings are not out of the ordinary. However for a lifelong Northern girl, these warnings are not so common, they are rare, and the idea that these occurances might be increasing is definitely cause for alarm for everyone.

         Statistics show that the average amount of tornadoes in april has increased since 74 in the 1950's to over 160 in the 2000's. So far in April 2011 there have been over 250 tornadoes recorded and the month is not even over yet.  If the number of tornadoes has more than doubled in 50 years then we should expect this number to triples and quadruple in future years right? False. The cause of this increase is not some Mayan calender or global warming. “It’s unusual but it does happen,” said Howard Bluestein, a meteorology professor at the University of Oklahoma who specializes in tornado research. “This isn’t a sign that the world is about to end.” It is simply due to the fact that humans have gotten better at predicting and accounting for tornadoes.

        It is likely that much of the older tornado data on record is false. Because of limited technologies and primitive tornado observation techniques, only the largest and most destructive tornadoes were recorded simply because they were the only ones observed. Small tornadoes that barely touched ground were most likely overlooked if they were even noticed at all.

       So thankfully the number of tornadoes is not increasing. This doesn't mean that warnings and watches should not be taken seriously though. Always be cautious and follow instructions where tornadoes are concerned. Just because the numbers aren't increasing doesn't mean they aren't still dangerous!

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/26/us/26tornadoes.html?_r=1&ref=earth

Lessons Learned From Hibernation

 

Did you know that the average black bear hibernates for 5-7 months out of the year? Did you also know that while they are sleeping these bears are helping scientists learn more about the potential rehabilitative uses for the effects of hibernation? Its true. Scientists are monitoring black bears in Fairbanks, Alaska to assess their breathing rates, movement, heart rates, and oxygen & carbon dioxide intake during hibernation.

This research is being conducted by Oivind Toien at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks. Toien is hoping to study black bears habits so as to possibly implement them in the treatment of human tissues after trauma or after long periods of inactivity due to injury recovery. Because of its potential healing benefits, the U.S. Military is partly funding the research to improve injury recovery in veterans.

For this study 5 black bears were relocated to artificial habitats near Fairbanks for observation. Researchers observed several interesting characteristics during the bears' hibernation. For example, bears maintain a relatively high body temperature during hibernation, but their metabolism is decreased by 75%. Also, the bears heart rate dropped significantly from 55 beats per minute in the summer to about 9 during hibernation. The bears' breathing rate also dropped substantially too to about 1 breath per minute.

Scientist Gerhard Heldmaier int he Department of Animal Physiology at the University of Phillips University-Marburg in Germany, attributed the extreme drop in metabolic rates to decreased ATP which is responsible for energy transfer within cells.

By studying the genetic pathways that allow bears to slow their metabolism during long periods of no activity, researchers may be able to apply the same logic to trauma and bed bound patients to decrease muscle atropy. If like, a bear in hibernation, the human body can be tricked into slowing its activities during long periods of rest, it would help to decrease the wear and tear caused on the body by such long periods of rest.

In the future this same technology could be used to treat osteoporosis and other diseases by putting patients into states of suspended or reduced animation until advanced medical care is available. In a sense, putting patients into hibernation until they can be treated effectively and successfully.

For right now though, the focus is on improving recovery in veterans and trauma patients and in general decreasing the muscle atrophy that is such a common effect of both.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=hibernating-black-bears-suggest-new-2011-02-17&sc=emailfriend

Milk: The New Sepsis Vaccine

 
Scientists at the University of Maryland, School of Medicine are collaborating with researchers at Bali Biosciences Inc. to determine the health benefits of milk laced with sepsis vaccine.

Professor Alan Cross at the University of Maryland recently conducted a clinical trial for to gauge the effects of "colostrum" on the digestive system. The process begins with inoculating cows with the sepsis vaccine. The cows then produce a colostrum which is rich with antibodies for sepsis and other diseases. Colostrum is the first milk produced by a cow after giving birth. It is important in establishing a state of good health for the baby calf. Researchers then collected the colostrum with sepsis anti-bodies from cows, and tested its ability to decrease negative effects of malnutrition.

When a person is suffering from malnutrition, often the interior intestinal walls will break down causing bacteria to move from the digestive system to the blood stream which can then cause sepsis and a weakened immune system. Colostrum works by binding to the sepsis toxins and leaving the body by means of feces.

This research is important because if it is established that colostrum is a successful way of restoring health after malnutrition, not only will sepsis be more treatable but so will other malnutrition related conditions. Because the colostrum comes from a natural and , for all intents and purposes, renewable resource, it will be much cheaper to produce than traditional vaccines, therefore making available to the people and countries most affected by malnutrition. This treatment could potentially save thousands of lives in many countries. It may not a complete solution to the problem but it is definitely a step in the right direction and if it makes even a few hundred lives better, then it is well worth the work done to research and manufacture it.

The potential benefits of this treatment have been recognized by physicians and researchers at institutions across the country including University of Maryland School of Medicine, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and Arizona State University School of Life Sciences.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=milk-of-life-dairy-cows-i

Migration...Increasing or Decreasing Disease Spread?

           

           The article titled “Migrating animals might decrease the spread of bird flu and other infectious diseases”, claims that, contrary to what one might expect, the migration of birds and other animals actually decreases the spread of disease across countries and continents.

            This phenomenon is explained using simple logic. Birds that are sick lack the strength and energy to make long journeys, therefore if they cannot migrate, they cannot spread disease. Because the birds cannot migrate, the diseases are often contained to a certain geographic area making it easier for humans to isolate and control. Birds that connot fly are left behind, decreasing the chance that a community wide epidemic could occur. The sick ones are left behind while the healthy ones fly on. It is basic survival of the fittest.

            While this is not true for all species, it has been proven that while some migrating birds carry a high level of viral content, others are actually able to avoid the most virulent pathogens. This theory doesn’t just apply to birds either. For example, studies have shown that reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) are able to avoid flies such as the warble fly (Hypoderma tarandi) by moving around to different pastures each summer. In other words, a rolling stone gathers no moss, or in this case, diseases.

            Not surprisingly environmental conditions do have an effect on animal migration and therefore disease spread. For example, habitat fragmentation and decreased land, animals are forced into high density environments for food and shelter. This high density environment is a breeding ground for disease. This theory shows that even though animal migration routes and patterns vary greatly, human activity actually has a visible and serious effect on disease spread. By breaking up habitats with new construction and building freeways though forests, humans are compromising their helath.  Humans play a larger role in the spread of disease by than they realize by compromising animal habitats and populations. It seems like stopping TB patients from getting on international flights isn’t the only problem health officials need to worry about. This is a topic that needs to be dealt with by not only international health officials, but my environmental expert as well, because clearly the two go hand in hand.

            This is important because by being environmentally irresponsible, we are not only affecting the planet and its local resource but we are also opening ourselves up to increased threat of contagious disease. This effects every single person on this planet, because if these theories aren’t taken seriously and appropriate action isn’t taken, then humans as well as animals will be affected. By researching these patterns and dynamics in disease growth, in correlation with animal migration, scientists will be better able to research, control, and hopefully prevent harmful and contagious pathogens that could cause serious damage to humans and animals alike.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=migrating-animals-might-decrease-th-2011-01-21