Social Stress and the Inflamed Brain

Apr. 21, 2013 —

Science Daily/Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology

Depression is the leading cause of disability with more than 350 million people globally affected by this disease. In addition to debilitating consequences on mental health, depression predisposes an individual to physiological disease such as heart disease, and conversely heart disease increases the risk of depression.

According to the World Health Organization by the year 2020 heart disease and depression will be the number one and number two leading causes of disability in developed countries. While the co-occurrence of these disorders is well recognized, an understanding of the underlying mechanisms that lead to this relationship are lacking.

The identification of factors in the brain that distinguish susceptibility and resiliency to depression and heart disease comorbidity would be a major advance in predicting, preventing and treating these disorders. Dr. Wood is continuing these studies as an Assistant Professor at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine with the hope that these findings will uncover new targets to treat the mind and body.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130421153839.htm

Cutting Back On Sleep Harms Blood Vessel Function and Breathing Control

Apr. 22, 2013 —
Science Daily/American Physiological Society (APS)
With work and entertainment operating around the clock in our modern society, sleep is often a casualty. A bevy of research has shown a link between sleep deprivation and cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, and obesity. However, it's been unclear why sleep loss might lead to these effects. Several studies have tested the effects of total sleep deprivation, but this model isn't a good fit for the way most people lose sleep, with a few hours here and there. In a new study by Keith Pugh, Shahrad Taheri, and George Balanos, all of the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom, researchers test the effects of partial sleep deprivation on blood vessels and breathing control. They find that reducing sleep length over two consecutive nights leads to less healthy vascular function and impaired breathing control.

Cutting Sleep in Half The researchers have worked with eight healthy adult volunteers between the ages of 20 to 35 to date. For the first two nights of the study, the researchers had these volunteers sleep a normal night of eight hours. Then, rather than restrict their sleep completely, the researchers instead had them sleep only four hours during each of three consecutive nights.

Each of these volunteers underwent tests to see how well their blood vessels accommodate an increase in blood flow, a test of healthy blood vessel, or vascular, function. Following the first two nights of restricted sleep, the researchers found a significant reduction in vascular function compared to following the nights of normal sleep. However, after the third night of sleep restriction, vascular function returned to baseline, possibly an adaptive response to acute sleep loss, study leader Pugh explains.

In other tests, the researchers exposed subjects to moderately high levels of carbon dioxide, which normally increases the depth and rate of breathing. However, breathing control was substantially reduced after the volunteers lost sleep.

The researchers later had these volunteers sleep 10 hours a night for five nights. After completing the same tests, results showed that vascular function and breathing control had improved.

A Mechanism for Cardiovascular Harm Pugh notes that the results could suggest a mechanism behind the connection between sleep loss and cardiovascular disease. "If acute sleep loss occurs repetitively over a long period of time, then vascular health could be compromised further and eventually mediate the development of cardiovascular disease," he explains.

Similarly, the loss of breathing control that the researchers observed could play a role in the development of sleep apnea, which has also been linked with cardiovascular disease. Pugh adds that some populations who tend to report sleeping shorter periods, such as the elderly, could be at an even higher risk of these adverse health effects.

He and his colleagues plan to continue studying these effects in more subjects to strengthen their results. Eventually, Pugh says, they hope to discover a mechanism to explain why restricting sleep harms vascular function and breathing control.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130422102026.htm

Getting a Grip On Sleep

May 14, 2013 —
Science Daily/RIKEN
All mammals sleep, as do birds and some insects. However, how this basic function is regulated by the brain remains unclear. According to a new study by researchers from the RIKEN Brain Science Institute, a brain region called the lateral habenula plays a central role in the regulation of REM sleep. In an article published today in the Journal of Neuroscience, the team shows that the lateral habenula maintains and regulates REM sleep in rats through regulation of the serotonin system.

“Our results indicate that the lateral habenula is essential for maintaining theta rhythms in the hippocampus, which characterize REM sleep in the rat, and that this is done via serotonergic modulation,” concludes Dr Aizawa. “This study reveals a novel role of the lateral habenula, linking serotonin and REM sleep, which suggests that an hyperactive habenula in patients with depression may cause altered REM sleep,” add the authors.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/05/130514184514.htm

Light Therapy Improves Sleep and Promote Recovery in Patients With Mild TBI

May 31, 2013 —

Science Daily/American Academy of Sleep Medicine

A new study suggests that bright light therapy may improve sleep, cognition, emotion and brain function following mild traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Results show that six weeks of morning bright light therapy resulted in a marked decrease in subjective daytime sleepiness. This improvement was further associated with improvements in the propensity to fall asleep and nighttime sleep quality. Bright light therapy also affected depressive symptoms.

"Our preliminary data suggests that morning bright light therapy might be helpful to reduce subjective daytime sleepiness and to improve nighttime sleep," said investigator Mareen Weber, PhD, instructor in psychiatry at McLean Hospital/Harvard Medical School in Belmont, Mass. "Importantly, the research also shows changes in brain activation during a demanding cognitive task, suggesting that bright light treatment might yield changes in brain functioning."

The research abstract was published recently in an online supplement of the journal SLEEP, and Weber will present the findings Monday, June 3, in Baltimore, Md., at SLEEP 2013, the 27th annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC.

The study group comprised 18 individuals with a documented history of at least one mild TBI and sleep disturbance that either emerged or was aggravated with the most recent injury. Data were gathered using Multiple Sleep Latency Tests (MSLT), actigraphy and sleep diaries, and all participants underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and comprehensive psychiatric and neuropsychological assessments before and after the intervention.

According to the authors, it has been estimated that at least 50 percent of individuals with TBI experience some kind of sleep disturbance at some point following their injury, and sleep has been demonstrated to be essential for brain plasticity and may be important for recovery.

"Improving sleep following mild traumatic brain injury could prove critical to maximizing recovery from the injury," said Weber. "Furthermore, bright light therapy is easy and minimally invasive, requiring no medication, and has no known serious side effects."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/05/130531105518.htm

Blood Vessels in the Eye Linked With IQ, Cognitive Function

June 3, 2013 —

Science Daily/Association for Psychological Science

https://www.sciencedaily.com/images/2013/06/130603135533_1_540x360.jpg

Eye exam. The width of blood vessels in the retina, located at the back of the eye, may indicate brain health years before the onset of dementia and other deficits.

Credit: © lightpoet / Fotolia

The width of blood vessels in the retina, located at the back of the eye, may indicate brain health years before the onset of dementia and other deficits, according to a new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

Research shows that younger people who score low on intelligence tests, such as IQ, tend to be at higher risk for poorer health and shorter lifespan, but factors like socioeconomic status and health behaviors don't fully account for the relationship.

The findings suggest that the processes linking vascular health and cognitive functioning begin much earlier than previously assumed, years before the onset of dementia and other age-related declines in brain functioning.

"Digital retinal imaging is a tool that is being used today mainly by eye doctors to study diseases of the eye," Shalev notes. "But our initial findings indicate that it may be a useful investigative tool for psychological scientists who want to study the link between intelligence and health across the lifespan."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/06/130603135533.htm

Are Smartphones Disrupting Your Sleep?

June 3, 2013 —

Science Daily/Mayo Clinic

Smartphones and tablets can make for sleep-disrupting bedfellows. One cause is believed to be the bright light-emitting diodes that allow the use of mobile devices in dimly lit rooms; the light exposure can interfere with melatonin, a hormone that helps control the natural sleep-wake cycle. But there may be a way to check your mobile device in bed and still get a good night's sleep. A Mayo Clinic study suggests dimming the smartphone or tablet brightness settings and holding the device at least 14 inches from your face while using it will reduce its potential to interfere with melatonin and impede sleep.

"There's a lot of concern about using mobile devices and that prompted me to wonder, are they always a negative factor for sleep?" Dr. Krahn says. "We found that only at the highest setting was the light over a conservative threshold that might affect melatonin levels. If it's at the mid setting or at a low setting it's bright enough to use."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/06/130603163610.htm

Getting Enough Sleep Could Help Prevent Type 2 Diabetes

June 18, 2013 —

Science Daily/Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed)

Men who lose sleep during the work week may be able to lower their risk of developing Type 2 diabetes by getting more hours of sleep, according to Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) research findings presented today at The Endocrine Society's 95th Annual Meeting in San Francisco.

"We all know we need to get adequate sleep, but that is often impossible because of work demands and busy lifestyles," said Dr. Liu. "Our study found extending the hours of sleep can improve the body's use of insulin, thereby reducing the risk of Type 2 diabetes in adult men. Reducing the incidence of this chronic illness is critical for a nation where diabetes affects nearly 26 million people and costs an estimated $174 billion annually."

"The good news is that by extending the hours they sleep, adult men -- who over a long period of time do not get enough sleep during the working week -- can still improve their insulin sensitivity," Liu said

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/06/130618131848.htm

Stress Hormone Could Trigger Mechanism for the Onset of Alzheimer's

June 19, 2013 —

Science Daily/Temple University

 A chemical hormone released in the body as a reaction to stress could be a key trigger of the mechanism for the late onset of Alzheimer's disease, according to a study by researchers at Temple University.

"Stress is an environmental factor that looks like it may play a very important role in the onset of Alzheimer's disease," said Domenico Praticò, professor of pharmacology and microbiology and immunology in Temple's School of Medicine, who led the study. "When the levels of corticosteroid are too high for too long, they can damage or cause the death of neuronal cells, which are very important for learning and memory."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/06/130619102605.htm

Helping SAD Sufferers Sleep Soundly

June 27, 2013 —

Science Daily/University of Pittsburgh

 Lying awake in bed plagues everyone occasionally, but for those with seasonal affective disorder, sleeplessness is routine. University of Pittsburgh researchers report in the Journal of Affective Disorders that individuals with seasonal affective disorder (SAD) -- a winter depression that leads to loss of motivation and interest in daily activities -- have misconceptions about their sleep habits similar to those of insomniacs. These findings open the door for treating seasonal affective disorder similar to the way doctors treat insomnia.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/06/130627142547.htm

Early Brain Stimulation May Help Stroke Survivors Recover Language Function

June 27, 2013 —

Science Daily/American Heart Association

Non-invasive brain stimulation may help stroke survivors recover speech and language function, according to new research in the American Heart Association journal Stroke.

"For decades, skilled speech and language therapy has been the only therapeutic option for stroke survivors with aphasia," said Alexander Thiel, M.D., study lead author and associate professor of neurology and neurosurgery at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. "We are entering exciting times where we might be able in the near future to combine speech and language therapy with non-invasive brain stimulation earlier in the recovery. This could result in earlier and more efficient aphasia recovery and also have an economic impact."

In the small study, researchers treated 24 stroke survivors with several types of aphasia at the rehabilitation hospital Rehanova and the Max-Planck-Institute for neurological research in Cologne, Germany. Thirteen received transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and 11 got sham stimulation. The TMS groups' improvements were on average three times greater than the non-TMS group, researchers said. They used German language aphasia tests, which are similar to those in the United States, to measure language performance of the patients.

"TMS had the biggest impact on improvement in anomia, the inability to name objects, which is one of the most debilitating aphasia symptoms," Thiel said.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/06/130627161434.htm

A Good Night's Sleep Increases the Cardiovascular Benefits of a Healthy Lifestyle

July 3, 2013
Science Daily/European Society of Cardiology (ESC)
A good night's sleep can increase the benefit of exercise, healthy diet, moderate alcohol consumption and non-smoking in their protection against cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to results of a large population follow-up study.(1) Results showed that the combination of the four traditional healthy lifestyle habits was associated with a 57% lower risk of cardiovascular disease (fatal and non-fatal) and a 67% lower risk of fatal events.(2) But, when "sufficient sleep" (defined as seven or more hours a night) was added to the other four lifestyle factors, the overall protective benefit was even further increased -- and resulted in a 65% lower risk of composite CVD and a 83% lower risk of fatal events.

As an explanation for the results, the investigators note that short sleep duration has been associated with a higher incidence of overweight, obesity and hypertension and with higher levels of blood pressure, total cholesterol, haemoglobin A, and triglycerides, effects which are "consistent with the hypothesis that short sleep duration is directly associated with CVD risk."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/07/130702202825.htm

Bad Night's Sleep? The Moon Could Be to Blame

July 25, 2013 —

Science Daily/Cell Press

https://www.sciencedaily.com/images/2013/07/130725125303_1_540x360.jpg

Many people complain about poor sleep around the full moon, and now a report appearing in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, on July 25 offers some of the first convincing scientific evidence to suggest that this really is true. The findings add to evidence that humans -- despite the comforts of our civilized world -- still respond to the geophysical rhythms of the moon, driven by a circalunar clock.

Credit: Current Biology, Cajochen et al.

Many people complain about poor sleep around the full moon, and now a report appearing in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, on July 25 offers some of the first convincing scientific evidence to suggest that this really is true. The findings add to evidence that humans -- despite the comforts of our civilized world -- still respond to the geophysical rhythms of the moon, driven by a circalunar clock.

The data show that around the full moon, brain activity related to deep sleep dropped by 30 percent. People also took five minutes longer to fall asleep, and they slept for twenty minutes less time overall. Study participants felt as though their sleep was poorer when the moon was full, and they showed diminished levels of melatonin, a hormone known to regulate sleep and wake cycles.

"This is the first reliable evidence that a lunar rhythm can modulate sleep structure in humans when measured under the highly controlled conditions of a circadian laboratory study protocol without time cues," the researchers say.

"In nearly every measure we had, hamsters exposed to blue light were the worst off, followed by those exposed to white light," he said. "While total darkness was best, red light was not nearly as bad as the other wavelengths we studied."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/07/130725125303.htm

What color is your night light? It may affect your mood

August 6, 2013

Science Daily/Ohio State University

When it comes to some of the health hazards of light at night, a new study in hamsters suggests that the color of the light can make a big difference.

In a study involving hamsters, researchers found that blue light had the worst effects on mood-related measures, followed closely by white light.

But hamsters exposed to red light at night had significantly less evidence of depressive-like symptoms and changes in the brain linked to depression, compared to those that experienced blue or white light. The only hamsters that fared better than those exposed to red light were those that had total darkness at night.

The findings may have important implications for humans, particularly those whose work on night shifts makes them susceptible to mood disorders, said Randy Nelson, co-author of the study and professor of neuroscience and psychology at The Ohio State University.

"Our findings suggest that if we could use red light when appropriate for night-shift workers, it may not have some of the negative effects on their health that white light does," Nelson said.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130806203150.htm

Light drinking linked to lower risk of depression

August 29, 2013

Science Daily/BioMed Central Limited

Drinking wine in moderation may be associated with a lower risk of developing depression, according to new research.  The reported findings suggest that the moderate amounts of alcohol consumed may have similar protective effects on depression to those that have been observed for coronary heart disease. The lowest rates of depression were seen in the group of individuals who drank two to seven small glasses of wine per week.

The main alcoholic beverage drunk by the study participants was wine. When analysed, it was shown that those who drank moderate amounts of wine each week were less likely to suffer from depression. The lowest rates of depression were seen in the group of individuals who drank two to seven small glasses of wine per week. These results remained significant even when the group adjusted them for lifestyle and social factors, such as smoking, diet and marital status.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130829214354.htm

Even mild stress can make it difficult to control your emotions

August 26, 2013
Science Daily/New York University
Even mild stress can thwart therapeutic measures to control emotions, a team of neuroscientists has found. Their findings point to the limits of clinical techniques while also shedding new light on the barriers that must be overcome in addressing afflictions such as fear or anxiety.

"The use of cognitive techniques to control fear has previously been shown to rely on regions of the prefrontal cortex that are known to be functionally impaired by mild stress," Phelps observed. "These findings are consistent with the suggestion that the effect of mild stress on the prefrontal cortex may result in a diminished ability to use previously learned techniques to control fear."

"Our results suggest that even mild stress, such as that encountered in daily life, may impair the ability to use cognitive techniques known to control fear and anxiety," added Candace Raio, a doctoral student in NYU's Department of Psychology and the study's lead author. "However, with practice or after longer intervals of cognitive training, these strategies may become more habitual and less sensitive to the effects of stress."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130826180520.htm

Winter depression not as common as many think

August 27, 2013

Science Daily/Oregon State University

New research suggests that getting depressed when it's cold and dreary outside may not be as common as is often believed.

"We found a very small effect during the winter months, but it was much more modest than would be expected if seasonal depression were as common as many people think it is," said Columbia University researcher Jeff Shaman, a study co-author and a former OSU faculty member. "We were surprised. With a sample of nearly 800 people and very precise measures of the weather, we expected to see a larger effect."

Kerr believes the public may have overestimated the power of the winter blues for a few reasons. These may include awareness of SAD, the high prevalence of depression in general, and a legitimate dislike of winter weather.

"We may not have as much fun, we can feel cooped up and we may be less active in the winter," Kerr said. "But that's not the same as long-lasting sadness, hopelessness, and problems with appetite and sleep -- real signs of a clinical depression."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130827135034.htm

Sleeping in on weekends doesn’t fix all deficits caused by workweek sleep loss

October 9, 2013
Science Daily/American Physiological Society (APS)
A new study assesses the effects of extended “weekend” recovery sleep following “one workweek” of mild sleep restriction on sleepiness/alertness, inflammation and stress hormones.

Not surprisingly, the researchers found that after 5 days of restricted sleep, the subjects were significantly sleepier on both objective and subjective tests compared to baseline levels. Their interleukin-6 levels increased sharply during restricted sleep, though their cortisol levels remained the same. Their performance on the attention test deteriorated. After 2 days of recovery sleep, both objective and subjective tests showed that the volunteers were less sleepy. Their interleukin-6 levels reduced, and their cortisol levels decreased significantly compared to baseline, possibly suggesting that the volunteers were sleep deprived before the study started. Notably, their performance on the attention test didn't improve after recovery sleep.

Though many indicators of health and well being improved after recovery sleep, these findings suggest that extra sleep may not fix all the deficits caused by lost sleep during the workweek.

"Two nights of extended recovery sleep may not be sufficient to overcome behavioral alertness deficits resulting from mild sleep restriction," the authors write. "This may have important implications for people with safety-critical professions, such as health-care workers, as well as transportation system employees (drivers, pilots, etc.)."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131009125740.htm

Depression twice as likely in migraine sufferers

October 17, 2013
Science Daily/University of Toronto
The prevalence of depression among those with migraine is approximately twice as high as for those without the disease (men: 8.4% vs. 3.4%; women 12.4% vs. 5.7%), according to a new study

The study also investigated the relationship between migraine and suicidal ideation. For both men and women, those with migraines were much more likely to have "ever seriously considered suicide or taking (their) own life" than were those without migraines (men: 15.6% versus 7.9%; women: 17.6% versus 9.1%). Migraineurs under age 30 had four times the odds of lifetime suicidal ideation in comparison to migraineurs aged 65 and over. Other factors associated with suicidal ideation among those with migraines included unmarried status, lower household income and greater activity limitations.

Co-author and former graduate student Meghan Schrumm commented "We are not sure why younger migraineurs have such a high likelihood of depression and suicidal ideation. It may be that younger people with migraines have not yet managed to find adequate treatment or develop coping mechanisms to minimize pain and the impact of this chronic illness on the rest of their lives. The much lower prevalence of depression and suicidal ideation among older migraineurs suggests a promising area for future research."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131017114231.htm

Shorter sleep duration, poorer sleep quality linked to Alzheimer’s disease

October 21, 2013

Science Daily/Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

New study finds that shorter sleep duration and poorer sleep quality are associated with a greater Amyloid burden, a biomarker for Alzheimer's disease

"Our study found that among older adults, reports of shorter sleep duration and poorer sleep quality were associated with higher levels of β-Amyloid measured by PET scans of the brain," said Adam Spira, PhD, lead author of the study and an assistant professor with the Bloomberg School's Department of Mental Health. "These results could have significant public health implications as Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia, and approximately half of older adults have insomnia symptoms."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131021162546.htm

Study with totally blind people shows how light helps activate the brain

October 28, 2013
Science Daily/Université de Montréal
Light enhances brain activity during a cognitive task even in some people who are totally blind, according to a new study. The findings contribute to scientists’ understanding of everyone’s brains, as they also revealed how quickly light impacts on cognition. “We were stunned to discoverthat the brain still respond significantly to light in these rare three completely blind patientsdespite having absolutely no conscious vision at all,” said one of the authors

"Light doesn't just allow us to see, it tells the brain whether it's night or day which in-turn ensures that our physiology, metabolism and behavior are synchronized with environmental time." "For diurnal species like ours, light stimulates day-like brain activity, improving alertness and mood, and enhancing performance on many cognitive tasks," explained senior co-author Julie Carrier. The results indicate that their brains can still "see," or detect, light via a novel photoreceptor in the ganglion cell layer of the retina, different from the rods and cones we use to see.

Scientists believe, however, that these specialized photoreceptors in the retina also contribute to visual function in the brain even when cells in the retina responsible for normal image formation have lost their ability to receive or process light. A previous study in a single blind patient suggested that this was possible but the research team wanted to confirm this result in different patients. To test this hypothesis, the three participants were asked to say whether a blue light was on or off, even though they could not see the light. "We found that the participants did indeed have a non-conscious awareness of the light -- they were able to determine correctly when the light was on greater than chance without being able to see it," explained first author Gilles Vandewalle.

The next steps involved looking closely at what happened to brain activation when light was flashed at their eyes at the same time as their attentiveness to a sound was monitored. "The objective of this second test was to determine whether the light affected the brain patterns associated with attentiveness -- and it did," said first author Olivier Collignon.

Finally, the participants underwent a functional MRI brain scan as they performed a simple sound matching task while lights were flashed in their eyes. "The fMRI further showed that during an auditory working memory task, less than a minute of blue light activated brain regions important to perform the task. These regions are involved in alertness and cognition regulation as well being as key areas of the default mode network," Vandewalle explained. Researchers believe that the default network is linked to keeping a minimal amount of resources available for monitoring the environment when we are not actively doing something. "If our understanding of the default network is correct, our results raise the intriguing possibility that light is key to maintaining sustained attention" agreed Lockley and Carrier. "This theory may explain why the brain's performance is improved when light is present during tasks."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131028090408.htm