Jan 30, 2024 12:01 AM
Psychology research: Women more sensitive to cocaine
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1032754
PRESS RELEASE: Previous studies focused on cocaine use have found that women are more likely than men to develop an addiction, try cocaine at a younger age, use larger amounts of the drug, and suffer from overdose.
Now, a new study from researchers at The University of Texas at Arlington in the journal Pharmacology Biochemistry and Behavior finally validates what scientists have long suspected: The female sex hormone estradiol (a synthetic version of the naturally occurring estrogen) is responsible for why women are more susceptible to cocaine addiction than men.
“For the first time, we have shown that estradiol enhances the cocaine-conditioned reward,” said Linda Perrotti, professor and chair of the Department of Psychology at UTA and senior author of the study. “Our research fills a significant gap in the knowledge of drug addiction, and it provides a crucial link to understanding how fluctuating hormone levels can cause females to be more sensitive to the rewarding effects of cocaine.”
Co-authors include UTA student researchers Ross J. Armant, Blake N. Brady, Houda H. Chamseddine, Adam C. Hoch and Saubabh Kokane, and research technicians Brandon D. Butler, Clinton S. Coelho and Josimar Hernandez Antonio.
Using a well-established research technique called conditioned-place preference, researchers found higher levels of sensitivity among females that fluctuated depending on where they were in their reproductive cycles.
“In particular, we have now demonstrated that females have a higher sensitivity to the acute rewarding effects of cocaine in relation to where they were in their cycle,” Perrotti said. “This research gives us a new understanding of how the brain reacts to cocaine, providing invaluable information on cocaine use and dependence in humans.”
How a walk in nature restores attention
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1032752
INTRO: New research from University of Utah psychology researchers is helping prove what American authors John Muir and Henry David Thoreau tried to teach more than 150 years ago: Time spent in nature is good for the heart and soul.
Amy McDonnell and David Strayer are showing it is good for your brain, too. Their latest research, conducted at the university’s Red Butte Garden, uses electroencephalography (EEG), which records electrical activity in the brain with small discs attached to the scalp, to measure participants’ attentional capacity.
“A walk in nature enhances certain executive control processes in the brain above and beyond the benefits associated with exercise,” concludes the study that appeared Tuesday in Scientific Reports, among the world’s most cited scientific journals. The paper contributes to growing body of scientific literature on the how natural settings contribute to a person’s physical and mental health. The university itself has recently established a new research group, Nature and Human Health Utah, that explores these issues and propose solutions for bridging the human-nature divide.
Many researchers suspect a primal need for nature is baked into humans’ DNA, and diminishing access to nature is putting our health at risk.
“There's an idea called biophilia that basically says that our evolution over hundreds of thousands of years has got us to have more of a connection or a love of natural living things,” said Strayer, a professor of psychology. “And our modern urban environment has become this dense urban jungle with cell phones and cars and computers and traffic, just the opposite of that kind of restorative environment.” (MORE - details)
You can see Strayer explore these ideas in his 2017 TEDx talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vRMRBxvtZA
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1032754
PRESS RELEASE: Previous studies focused on cocaine use have found that women are more likely than men to develop an addiction, try cocaine at a younger age, use larger amounts of the drug, and suffer from overdose.
Now, a new study from researchers at The University of Texas at Arlington in the journal Pharmacology Biochemistry and Behavior finally validates what scientists have long suspected: The female sex hormone estradiol (a synthetic version of the naturally occurring estrogen) is responsible for why women are more susceptible to cocaine addiction than men.
“For the first time, we have shown that estradiol enhances the cocaine-conditioned reward,” said Linda Perrotti, professor and chair of the Department of Psychology at UTA and senior author of the study. “Our research fills a significant gap in the knowledge of drug addiction, and it provides a crucial link to understanding how fluctuating hormone levels can cause females to be more sensitive to the rewarding effects of cocaine.”
Co-authors include UTA student researchers Ross J. Armant, Blake N. Brady, Houda H. Chamseddine, Adam C. Hoch and Saubabh Kokane, and research technicians Brandon D. Butler, Clinton S. Coelho and Josimar Hernandez Antonio.
Using a well-established research technique called conditioned-place preference, researchers found higher levels of sensitivity among females that fluctuated depending on where they were in their reproductive cycles.
“In particular, we have now demonstrated that females have a higher sensitivity to the acute rewarding effects of cocaine in relation to where they were in their cycle,” Perrotti said. “This research gives us a new understanding of how the brain reacts to cocaine, providing invaluable information on cocaine use and dependence in humans.”
How a walk in nature restores attention
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1032752
INTRO: New research from University of Utah psychology researchers is helping prove what American authors John Muir and Henry David Thoreau tried to teach more than 150 years ago: Time spent in nature is good for the heart and soul.
Amy McDonnell and David Strayer are showing it is good for your brain, too. Their latest research, conducted at the university’s Red Butte Garden, uses electroencephalography (EEG), which records electrical activity in the brain with small discs attached to the scalp, to measure participants’ attentional capacity.
“A walk in nature enhances certain executive control processes in the brain above and beyond the benefits associated with exercise,” concludes the study that appeared Tuesday in Scientific Reports, among the world’s most cited scientific journals. The paper contributes to growing body of scientific literature on the how natural settings contribute to a person’s physical and mental health. The university itself has recently established a new research group, Nature and Human Health Utah, that explores these issues and propose solutions for bridging the human-nature divide.
Many researchers suspect a primal need for nature is baked into humans’ DNA, and diminishing access to nature is putting our health at risk.
“There's an idea called biophilia that basically says that our evolution over hundreds of thousands of years has got us to have more of a connection or a love of natural living things,” said Strayer, a professor of psychology. “And our modern urban environment has become this dense urban jungle with cell phones and cars and computers and traffic, just the opposite of that kind of restorative environment.” (MORE - details)
You can see Strayer explore these ideas in his 2017 TEDx talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vRMRBxvtZA