Exposing the brain A new frontier for neurobiologists, this highly complex structure never ceases to amaze. And the exploration of the brain inspires researchers to find new strategies to fight mental illness and neurological diseases. New mechanism of action of fluoxetine Using a novel technique that makes use of the properties of a fluorescent protein in jellyfish, researchers have identified the mechanism allowing some antidepressants such as fluoxetine to act on the activity of the TREK1 potassium channels. They showed that Shedding light on the subtle by binding to a molecular domain in these ion channels (embedded in mechanisms of depression the cell membrane of neurons), fluoxetine causes them to close. This finding could pave the way for the development of antidepressants To get a clearer picture of the impact of psychology and that are both more specific and more effective. the environment on the genetic component of depressive disorders, researchers used functional MRI to measure Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences January 2011 the brain activity of 45 patients who were given a series of cognitive tests. The scientists were able to demonstrate that this activity is modulated not only by genetic factors but also by the psychological attitude and personal history of each subject. The work suggests that, depending on the patient’s genes, psychotherapies may have different effects on brain activity. Human Brain Mapping January 2011 During long-term storage of olfactory information, new synapses (in green) Humans and monkeys share develop on the neurons (in blue) of the orbitofrontal cortex. the same vision of the world Labeling our memories makes them The ability to generalize and abstract properties from the visual easier to remember world is yet another feature that humans and monkeys have in common. To verify this, cognitive scientists gave two rhesus How do we retain our long-term memories? The hippocampus is monkeys and eleven humans less than a second to decide whether where memories are initially formed, but their permanent storage or not the pictures they were shown included an animal. The results takes place in specific areas of the cerebral cortex. Results obtained revealed that both humans and monkeys were able to identify an in rats by a team of neurobiologists show that storage goes hand in animal in whatever context it was presented. Their choice drew hand with gradual change in the architecture of the neural network, on cognitive processes that first appeared in a common ancestor and that early neuron labeling of cortical networks is crucial for the of both species. formation of long-term memory. This work could open the way to new therapeutic strategies aimed at overcoming the cognitive impairment Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences April 2011 observed in neurodegenerative and psychiatric diseases. Science February 2011 11 2011 A year at CNRS
ra2011
To see the actual publication please follow the link above