News reports of research into memory May 2006
For index of all headlines, go to News & Views main page
To look at research reports sorted by subject go to Research Reports
For news about Alzheimer's research go directly to the Alzheimer's page
You can find links to the journals referred to on this site here: Journal links
May 2006
Simple Lifestyle Changes May Improve Cognitive Function
A study involving 17 people (35–69 years) with mild self-reported
memory complaints but normal baseline memory performance scores, has
found that 2 weeks on a program combining a brain healthy diet plan
(5 small meals a day; diet rich in omega-3 fats, antioxidants and
low-glycemic carbohydrates like whole grains), relaxation exercises,
cardiovascular conditioning (daily walks), and mental exercise (such
as crosswords and brain teasers) resulted in participants' brain
metabolism decreasing 5% in working memory regions (left
dorsolateral prefrontal cortex), suggesting an increased
efficiency. Compared to the control group, participants also
performed better in verbal fluency.
The study was published in the June issue of the
American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.
Full reference
http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/page.asp?RelNum=7062
Life-defining events remembered more favorably
A study has found that when people feel an event has had a large
impact on them, they downplay the negative and emphasize the
positive. For such significant events, when asked to reflect on
negative events, people reported less negative emotion and more
positive emotion compared to how they recalled feeling at the time.
Similarly, for positive events, people reported more positive
emotion and less negative emotion compared to how they recalled
feeling at the time.
The report was published in the June issue of the
Journal of Personality.
Full reference
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/bpl-omw051606.php
Why motivation helps memory
An imaging study has identified the brain region involved in
anticipating rewards — specific brain structures in the
mesolimbic
region involved in the processing of emotions — and revealed how
this reward center promotes memory formation. Cues to high-reward
scenes that were later remembered activated the reward areas of the
mesolimbic region as well as the hippocampus. Anticipatory
activation also suggests that the brain actually prepares in advance
to filter incoming information rather than simply reacting to the
world.
The report appeared in the May 4 issue of
Neuron.
Full reference
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/cp-tbm042706.php
Does IQ drop with age or does something else impact intelligence?
As people grow older, their IQ scores drop. But is it really that
they lose intelligence? A study has found that if college students
had to perform under conditions that mimic the perception deficits
many older people have, their IQ scores would also take a drop.
The study was reported in the April issue of
Psychology and Aging.
Full reference
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/cwru-did050106.php
Moderate alcohol intake associated with better mental function in older women
A study of over 7,000 older women (65-80) found that those who
drink a moderate amount of alcohol have slightly higher levels of
mental function than non-drinkers, particularly in verbal abilities.
The researcher warned that "Until we better understand the reasons
why alcohol consumption is associated with better cognitive
functioning, these results on their own are not a reason for people
who don't drink to start or for those who drink to increase their
intake."
The study is available online in
Neuroepidemiology.
Full reference
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/wfub-mai053106.php
Prenatal exposure to alcohol linked to lower I.Q.
Analysis of data from the Maternal Health Practices and Child
Development Project, an examination of prenatal substance use among
women who attended a prenatal clinic from 1983 to 1985, has found
that even light to moderate drinking – especially during the second
trimester – is associated with lower IQs in African-American
offspring at 10 years of age, but not Caucasian children. The
difference was not due to differences in the amount or pattern of
alcohol use during pregnancy or by differences in socioeconomic
status.
The study appeared in the June issue of
Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.
Full reference
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/ace-lpa051806.php
Lowering blood pressure doesn't prevent cognitive impairment, dementia
A review of three large-scale studies of patients with
hypertension who were treated with either medication or lifestyle
strategies found no convincing evidence that lowering blood pressure
prevents the development of dementia or cognitive impairment in
hypertensive patients without apparent prior cerebrovascular
disease. However, there is some evidence that midlife hypertension
but not late life hypertension is related to cognitive decline;
these studies involved patients aged 60 and older.
The review appeared in the current issue of
The Cochrane Library.
Full reference
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/cfta-lbp052306.php
Lead exposure leads to brain cell loss and damage years later
A study of 532 former employees of a chemical manufacturing plant
who had not been exposed to lead for an average of 18 years has
found that the higher their lead levels were, the more likely they
were to have smaller brain volumes and greater amounts of brain
damage. 36% had
white matter lesions. The results confirm earlier findings in
this same population that people with occupational lead exposure
experience declines in their thinking and memory skills years after
their exposure.
The study was published in the May 23 issue of
Neurology.
Full reference
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/aaon-lel051806.php
ADHD linked to genetic and environmental interactions
A study of 172 children who were enrolled in a community-based
study of low levels of lead exposure has found evidence that
increasing lead exposure is linked to impairment on a number of
executive functions (impaired in those with ADHD), but that certain
genetic and biological factors seemed to predispose an individual to
the negative effects of lead exposure. For instance, only children
with certain variations of the DRD4 gene seemed vulnerable to lead's
adverse effects on attentional flexibility. Boys were more
vulnerable to this effect than girls.
The study was presented on May 1, at the annual Pediatric Academic
Societies meeting in San Francisco.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/cchm-sla042606.php
Drug improves information processing in adults with ADHD
Mixed amphetamine salts extended release (MAS XR) substantially
improved the speed and accuracy in information processing of young
adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Excitingly, the improvement persisted after the 3 weeks of treatment
had been stopped for 3 weeks.
The study was presented at the annual American Psychiatric
Association Meeting in Toronto, Canada.
Full reference
2
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/pn-mas_1052406.php
New imaging technique finds no damage to adolescent brains of moderate cannabis users
A preliminary study using a new imaging technique to compare the
brain tissue of young people who had used cannabis moderately as
teenagers and young people who had not, has failed to find any
indication that damage to the developing adolescent brain occurred.
The study was published on May 9 in the open access journal
Harm Reduction Journal.
Full reference
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/05/060510092242.htm
Drug for overactive bladder can cause memory deterioration
A comparison of two prescription medications used to treat
overactive bladder (OAB) showed that treatment with Enablex®
(darifenacin) did not result in impaired memory function in healthy
adults age 60 and older, while Ditropan XL®(i) (oxybutynin
extended-release or ER) caused significant memory deterioration,
although the individuals receiving it failed to notice the change in
their memory function.
The findings were presented on May 23 during the 2006 Annual Meeting
of the American Urological Association (AUA).
Full reference
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/k-nds052306.php
Planning is goal-, not action-, oriented
Studies in which monkeys were asked to perform a complex task
involving several discrete steps have revealed that the brain's
"executive" center, in the lateral
prefrontal
cortex, plans behaviors not by specifying movements required for
given actions, but rather the events that will result from those
actions.
The study was reported in the May 18 issue of
Neuron.
Full reference
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/cp-tbe051106.php
Master planners in brain may coordinate other areas' roles in cognitive tasks
Scans of 183 subjects have identified 3 brain areas most
consistently active during a variety of cognitive tasks — the dorsal
anterior cingulate and the left and right frontal
operculum.
It’s suggested that these regions coordinate the activities of
specialized regions. In a rather lovely analogy, researchers
suggested that if the brain in action can be compared to a symphony,
with specialized sections required to pitch in at the right time to
produce the desired melody, then the regions highlighted by the new
study may be likened to conductors. Until now, the function of the
opercula has been a mystery; the findings also suggest a rethinking
of the role of the cingulate.
The study was published in the June 1 issue of
Neuron.
Full reference
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/05/060531165250.htm
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/wuso-mpi053006.php
New view of hippocampus’s role in memory
Amnesiacs have overturned the established view of the
hippocampus, and of the difference between long-and short-term
memories. It appears the hippocampus is just as important for
retrieving certain types of short-term memories as it is for
long-term memories. The critical thing is not the age of the memory,
but the requirement to form connections between pieces of
information to create a coherent episode. The researchers suggest
that, for the brain, the distinction between 'long-term' memory and
'short-term' memory are less relevant than that between ‘feature’
memory and ‘conjunction’ memory — the ability to remember specific
things versus how they are related. The hippocampus may be thought
of as the brain's switchboard, piecing individual bits of
information together in context.
The findings were published in the April issue of the
Journal of Neuroscience.
Full reference
http://origin.www.upenn.edu/pennnews/article.htm?id=963
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/uop-aso053106.php
How brain cells communicate
A new finding has added to our understanding of how brain cells
communicate. A protein called syndapin, previously thought to have
no major role in nerve communication, has proven to be the molecule
that works with a key protein called dynamin to allow the
transmission of messages between nerve cells. The finding has
implications for the treatment of many neurological disorders.
The report was published in the June issue of
Nature Neuroscience.
Full reference
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/05/060526090336.htm
Now available as a downloadable ebook!
