August 2009 Archives

Public Radio International's "Studio 360" looks at Los Angeles Dr. Barry Panter's "Creativity and Madness" seminars, which discusses some of history's greatest minds in music and the arts -- and how their own experiences with mental illness may have been a factor in their creative genius.

Interviewed for the segment is Psychologist and Author Kay Redfield Jamison, who suffers from bipolar disorder and published a book on the subject in 1993 called "Touched by Fire," as well as an autobiography titled, "An Unquiet Mind." Jamison was also honored at NARSAD's 2007 Los Angeles gala event for her contributions to raising awareness of mental illness.   

For more information about artistic expression as a healing therapy, visit our organizational partner, NARSAD Artworks. Through Artworks, many gifted artists who suffer from psychiatric disorders are allowed an open forum to express themselves, while raising their self-esteem and income.

 

California Institute of Technology (Caltech) researchers have uncovered the area of the brain responsible for our perception of personal space. The findings will be reported in the August 30 issue of the journal Neuroscience.

Led by 2005 Distinguished Investigator Ralph Adolphs, Ph.D., Bren Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience and professor of biology, the findings examine the relationship between the amygdala of the brain, known to be regulate negative emotions and fear, and an undiscovered link to real-life social interaction.

According to Daniel P. Kennedy, a postdoctoral scholar and co-author of the study: ""We are really interested in looking at personal space in people with autism, especially given findings of amygdala dysfunction in autism. We know that some people with autism do have problems with personal space and have to be taught what it is and why it's important."

 

This survey by British advocacy group Time to Change says more than 50 percent of respondents told to imagine themselves as potential employers would reject job applicants if they had a history of depression. Bankers, lawyers and doctors should have no history of mental illness, respondents said. Interestingly, they were more lenient on potential members of British Parliament (MPs), saying they would be less concerned about a history of depression among their politicians. But, by law in the U.K., a history of mental illness disqualifies potential parliamentary candidates. In February this year, Time to Change contemplated whether Winston Churchill's depression would have ruled him out as capable of leading Britain, had it been widely acknowledged at the time.

Shamir Benji at our media partner EmpowHer writes about a new drug to treat schizophrenia and biploar disorder.

Are children born to older fathers at greater risk for developing bipolar disorder? This story examines some risks facing older parents.

Oscar winner Kate Winslet will narrate a documentary on autism by Icelandic director Fridrik Thor Fridriksson.

And we'll finish up today's News of Note with this story about a boy and his family facing a court battle to allow his dog to go to school with him. Kaleb Drew has autism, and his family finds that his dog, Chewey, a Labrador retriever, helps him get through school - but school officials are worried the dog will scare other children or cause allergy problems.

The first artificial brain could be a mere 10 years away, say scientists at Switzerland's Blue Brain Project.

Using an IBM Blue Gene machine with more 10,000 processors, the team at the Lausanne Polytechnical School have been able to digitally construct the neocortical column of the brain, thought to be responsible for sensory perception, conscious thought, language and reasoning.

Reverse-engineering the mammalian brain using data from lab findings, researchers will be better equipped to find solutions for brain injuries and illnesses that affect approximately two billion people worldwide, said Director Henry Markham.

 

Stanford researchers recently reported that childrens' brains have the same architecture as humans, however certain portions responsible for processing complex information become weaker and other portions become stronger as they develop into adulthood.

This study is the first to compare brain signals of adolescents to those of adult brains. Findings have been published in the journal PLoS-Biology.

Led by NARSAD researcher, Vinod Menon, Ph.D., an associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and of neuroscience, the findings could provide a better understanding of neurodevelopmental disorders that include autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and schizophrenia.

In the film "The Soloist," out now on DVD, a homeless man with schizophrenia unwittingly attracts the attention of Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez, drawn to his impassioned playing of Beethoven on a two-stringed violin.

 

Lopez (Robert Downey, Jr.) tracks the life of Nathaniel Ayers (Jamie Foxx) back to the Juilliard school, and from his childhood a picture emerges of a gifted cello prodigy whose life once held tremendous promise.

 

The movie is based on real-life events. Lopez opened the eyes of millions to the realities of chronic mental illness and homelessness by writing about Ayers, first in his columns in 2005 and later a book, "The Soloist," which inspired the movie.

 

NARSAD honored Lopez at its 2006 gala in Southern California for helping change public perception of people with mental illness. In becoming familiar with Ayers and the problems of mental illness, Lopez said he came to see "a family of people who are struggling with mental illness or dealing with loved ones who are ill, and then so many others who have dedicated their lives to research and finding a way to help."

 

Last year, NARSAD saluted DreamWorks and Paramount for bringing Lopez's story of his and Ayers' friendship to the big screen and an even larger audience.

 

"These two men came from completely different worlds and circumstances and found a common bond," said producer Gary Foster, who developed the idea for the film after reading one of Lopez's columns. "I loved that Steve crossed the line of professionalism and decided this man and his issues would become an important life relationship."

 

Learn more about "The Soloist," now out on DVD, and how you can help mentally ill homeless people in your community at www.takepart.com/thesoloist.

 

 

Japanese drugmaker Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co Ltd. has announced that its Lurasidone, developed for the treatment of schizophrenia has met its clinical trial goals and that the company will submit an application seeking FDA approval for the drug early next year. 

In a late-stage clinical trial, findings showed that the drug, when administered in two different doses, performed significantly better than the placebo:

"Both doses of the drug proved to be statistically significantly better than placebo in the primary goal of the study, which was 30 percent or better improvement in the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, the company said.

Fifty-three percent of patients who received 40 mg of lurasidone and 47 percent of those on the 120 mg dose achieved the primary goal compared with 38 percent on placebo.

Both doses of lurasidone were also significantly more effective than placebo on a secondary measure used to test antipsychotic drugs called the Clinical Global Impressions Severity scale, the company said."

McGill University researchers have discovered new information about the mechanism that helps to set up the communications network of connections in the brain.

 

Led by NARSAD researcher Edward Ruthazer, Ph. D., a recipient of the 2004 and 2007 Young Investigator awards, the team's findings will be reported in the journal Neuron.  According to the University, the findings, "may bring hope to adults suffering from brain injuries and offer the possibility of early diagnosis, treatments and therapies for schizophrenia, autism or other developmental disorders where abnormal neurological wiring is thought to occur early in life."

 

 

A New York Times story reported on how several private companies are collecting patient data and genetic information for clinical trials in hope that it may assist their recruitment and analysis efforts. 

However some critics argue that the process may be flawed:

"The Web offers great potential to reach large numbers of patients quickly, but self-reported data creates considerable research dilemmas, said Dr. James Potash, an associate professor of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

Dr. Potash cited two studies that examined the quality of information reported online by depressed patients. Patients reported their diagnosis online; doctors then interviewed them to confirm it. In one study, only two-thirds of the online responses were validated; in the other study, it was three-fourths."

 

 

In her column, Newsweek's Sharon Begley defines neuroplasticity as "the ability of the adult brain to change in function and structure," and discusses its application in the treatment of stroke, depression, dyslexia, and other diseases or injuries of the brain.

New findings reported in the American Journal of Psychiatry show that neuroplasticity-based auditory training may also be used to treat patients suffering from schizophrenia.  

A new study in the journal Pediatrics reports that the number of teens using attention deficit drugs to get high has increased by 76 percent in eight years.

According to the Associated Press: "Kids taking ADHD drugs to get high or increase alertness may not realize that misuse of the drugs can cause serious, sometimes life-threatening symptoms, including agitation, rapid heartbeat, extremely high blood pressure."

After months of public outcry, Campbell, CA donut shop "Psycho Donuts" has decided to modify the more offensive names of some of their donuts, according to an interview given by owner Jordan Zweigeron to USA Today.

 

"He's renamed two popular donuts -- the "Bipolar" is now the "Mood Swing," and the "Massive Head Trauma" has given way to the "Headbanger." He's also added links to several mental health advocacy groups on his redesigned site." 

 

 

The American Psychiatric Association is currently revising its guidelines for accurate diagnoses of mental illnesses, known as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM). While critics argue that its development is being rushed and will ultimately be flawed, the APA leaders recently had a response, indicating those concerns were unfounded.  

APA representatives involved include William Carpenter, M.D., chair of the DSM-V Psychosis Work Group, and a NARSAD Scientific Council member.

Pharmaceutical company Pfizer, Inc., is teaming up information technology Private Access, Inc. to create a clinical trials networking Web site that would allow patients can find out about upcoming and ongoing clinical trials.

 

Healthcare professionals, researchers and drug companies will also have access to participants for studies.

An issue of the European Journal of Neuroscience reported on findings by Cambridge University researcher Graham Murray, MD, PhD, which pinpoint certain areas of the brain that may determine if you're a "people person."

In an interview with Reuters, Dr. Murray said, "It is interesting that we can pin down this relationship between a specific aspect of your personality and a specific region of the brain."

In a town hall meeting with staff, Geneticist Francis Collins, the new head of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), outlined his top five priorities for the organization:

(1) gene transcription and autism studies; 

(2) emphasis on translational research, such as a new NIH program to develop drugs for rare diseases;

(3) health care reform, including research comparing treatments, which he said NIH "should embrace";  

(4) global health; and

(5) "empower[ing] the biomedical research community," which he said includes sustained funding, encouraging young investigators, and funding innovative research.

Collins has also expressed a commitment to protecting investigator-initiated science.

A voluntary recall has been issued by generic drug maker Barr Laboratories for the following medications which are typically used to treat symptoms of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD):

"Dextroamphetamine Saccharate, Amphetamine Aspartate, Dextroamphetamine Sulfate and Amphetamine Sulfate (Mixed Salts of a Single Entity Amphetamine Product) 20mg Tablets, 100 count bottles, lot number 311756. The product identified is being recalled because the affected lot may contain some tablets exceeding weight requirements which may lead to super-potent tablets."

 

Adverse reactions could include: cardiovascular, neurologic, psychiatric and gastrointestinal reactions such as: palpitations, tachycardia, hypertension, headache, tremor, tic, dyskinesia, dizziness, blurred vision, sweating, insomnia, agitation, euphoria, mania, anxiety, restlessness, nausea, diarrhea, constipation, dry mouth, and decreased appetite. 

 

You can find more information about this and other recalls on the FDA's MedWatch Web site.

 

 

 

Huffington Post blogger David Kirby cites two studies he says are about to make big news. Data from one of them says the odds of a child being diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder are one in 63 overall, one in 38 for boys. It's not all bad news, though -- apparently, significant numbers of children diagnosed with the disorder later outgrow it.

Two new films being shown in England challenge the perception that people who suffer from schizophrenia are violent.