Neuroscience: Amateur Hour

When two young girls in 1692 started barking like dogs, fevering and convulsing into impossible positions, the deeply Puritan community of Salem, Massachusettes was quick to cry witchcraft. But they could never have envisioned that religious fervor, family feuds, and potentially a hallucinogenic fungus could have resulted in over 200 people being accused of witchcraft and 20 being executed for the deed.

Come and listen to learn a little bit more about the neuroscience of the Salem Witch Trials!

Please rate, review, and subscribe and if you have any questions, comments, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram.

Citations below:

Nast C. Inside the Salem Witch Trials. The New Yorker. Published August 31, 2015. Accessed March 8, 2022. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/07/the-witches-of-salem#:~:text=Nearly%20to%20a%20person%2C%20they

Larry Dale Gragg. A Quest for Security : The Life of Samuel Parris, 1653-1720. Conn. ; London; 1990.

Betty Parris: First Afflicted Girl of the Salem Witch Trials. Published June 10, 2013. Accessed March 8, 2022. https://historyofmassachusetts.org/betty-parris-first-afflicted-girl-of-the-salem-witch-trials/#:~:text=Shortly%20after%20the%20incident%2C%20Betty

Salem Witch Trials - Further Readings. Jrank.org. Published 2019. https://law.jrank.org/pages/9985/Salem-Witch-Trials.html

Protein structure reveals how LSD affects the brain. National Institutes of Health (NIH). Published February 13, 2017. https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/protein-structure-reveals-how-lsd-affects-brain

Cormier Z. Brain scans reveal how LSD affects consciousness. Nature. Published online April 11, 2016. doi:10.1038/nature.2016.19727

Eadie MJ. Convulsive ergotism: epidemics of the serotonin syndrome? The Lancet Neurology. 2003;2(7):429-434. doi:10.1016/s1474-4422(03)00439-3

‌A Common Misconception: The Ergot Theory and the Salem Witch Trials. Salem 1692. Published January 4, 2015. https://salemwitchtrialsresearch.wordpress.com/2015/01/04/a-common-misconception-the-ergot-theory-and-the-salem-witch-trials/

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Inspired by my coworker's tendency to superglue his fingers back together (listen for the full story), this episode dives into the pharmacological and neurological effects of sniffing glue and other recreational inhalants. Listen to learn a little bit more about how it both increases and decreases activity in dopamine neurons, acts on the same receptors as medical anesthetics and destroys the protective lining of your neurons.

Please rate, review, and subscribe and if you have any questions, comments, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram.

Citations below:

What Are the Effects of Inhalant Use? archives.drugabuse.gov. Accessed March 1, 2022. https://archives.drugabuse.gov/publications/nida-community-drug-alert-bulletin-inhalants/what-are-effects-inhalant-use

Williams JF, Storck M. Inhalant Abuse. PEDIATRICS. 2007;119(5):1009-1017. doi:10.1542/peds.2007-0470

Woodward JJ, Beckley J. Effects of the Abused Inhalant Toluene on the Mesolimbic Dopamine System. Journal of Drug and Alcohol Research. 2014;3:1-8. doi:10.4303/jdar/235838

MacIver MB. Abused inhalants enhance GABA-mediated synaptic inhibition. Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology. 2009;34(10):2296-2304. doi:10.1038/npp.2009.57

Themes UFO. The Pharmacology of Inhalants. Basicmedical Key. Published December 12, 2016. https://basicmedicalkey.com/the-pharmacology-of-inhalants/#head4

About inhalants. Paediatrics & Child Health. 1998;3(2):132-133. doi:10.1093/pch/3.2.132

Love S. Demyelinating diseases. Journal of Clinical Pathology. 2006;59(11):1151-1159. doi:10.1136/jcp.2005.031195

Abuse NI on D. What are the other medical consequences of inhalant abuse? National Institute on Drug Abuse. Accessed March 2, 2022. https://nida.nih.gov/publications/research-reports/inhalants/what-are-other-medical-consequences-inhalant-abuse

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ADHD -  attention deficit hyperactivity disorder - is a condition characterized by differences in brain development and brain activity that affect attention, the ability to sit still, and impulse control. It affects millions of children and adults and has far-reaching effects on the lives and well-being of these individuals. And yet we still don't know what going on!

Is it genetic? Is it environmental? Come and listen to learn a little bit more about the neuroscience of ADHD and what's going on in your head.

Please rate, review, and subscribe and if you have any questions, comments, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram.

Citations below:

Demontis D, Walters RK, Martin J, et al. Discovery of the first genome-wide significant risk loci for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Nature Genetics. 2018;51(1):63-75. doi:10.1038/s41588-018-0269-7

Faraone SV, Larsson H. Genetics of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Molecular Psychiatry. 2018;24(4). doi:10.1038/s41380-018-0070-0

Froehlich TE, Anixt JS, Loe IM, Chirdkiatgumchai V, Kuan L, Gilman RC. Update on Environmental Risk Factors for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Current Psychiatry Reports. 2011;13(5):333-344. doi:10.1007/s11920-011-0221-3

Oscar Berman M, Blum K, Chen TJ, et al. Attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder and reward deficiency syndrome. Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment. 2008;4(5):893. doi:10.2147/ndt.s2627

Quist JF, Barr CL, Schachar R, et al. The serotonin 5-HT1B receptor gene and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Molecular Psychiatry. 2003;8(1):98-102. doi:10.1038/sj.mp.4001244

Zulauf CA, Sprich SE, Safren SA, Wilens TE. The Complicated Relationship Between Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Substance Use Disorders. Current Psychiatry Reports. 2014;16(3). doi:10.1007/s11920-013-0436-6

Tomasi D, Volkow ND, Wang R, et al. Dopamine Transporters in Striatum Correlate with Deactivation in the Default Mode Network during Visuospatial Attention. Rustichini A, ed. PLoS ONE. 2009;4(6):e6102. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0006102

Ritalin Poses Cognitive Risks to Those Without ADHD. Pharmacy Times. https://www.pharmacytimes.com/view/ritalin-poses-cognitive-risks-to-those-without-adhd

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Synesthesia is a fascinating condition where some people can hear tastes or see letters in color or other crazy combinations of senses. Imagine listening to a Geico commercial and tasting fajitas. Insanity.

Could this condition all come down to a genetic mutation that results in some hyperconnectivity between brain regions? Listen to find out more!

Please rate, review, and subscribe and if you have any questions, comments, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram.

Synesthesia quiz: https://exceptionalindividuals.com/candidates/neurodiversity-resources/neurodiversity-quizzes/synesthesia-quiz-test/

Citations and relevant papers below:
TYPES OF SYNESTHESIA IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER. Accessed February 13, 2022. https://www.thesynesthesiatree.com/2021/02/types-of-synaesthesia-in-alphabetical.html

Hooser SDV, Roy A, Rhodes HJ, Culp JH, Fitzpatrick D. Transformation of Receptive Field Properties from Lateral Geniculate Nucleus to Superficial V1 in the Tree Shrew. Journal of Neuroscience. 2013;33(28):11494-11505. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1464-13.2013

Huff T, Prasanna Tadi. Neuroanatomy, Visual Cortex. Nih.gov. Published March 15, 2019. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK482504/

Zhu MM, Xu YL, Ma HQ. Edge Detection Based On the Characteristics of Primary Visual Cortex Cells. Journal of Physics: Conference Series. 2018;960:012052. doi:10.1088/1742-6596/960/1/012052

Heywood C, Gadotti A, Cowey A. Cortical area V4 and its role in the perception of color. The Journal of Neuroscience. 1992;12(10):4056-4065. doi:10.1523/jneurosci.12-10-04056.1992

Ramachandran V, Hubbard E. Synaesthesia -A Window Into Perception, Thought and Language. Journal of Consciousness Studies. 2001;8(12):3-34. http://chip.ucsd.edu/pdf/Synaesthesia%20-%20JCS.pdf

Sakai J. Core Concept: How synaptic pruning shapes neural wiring during development and, possibly, in disease. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2020;117(28):16096-16099. doi:10.1073/pnas.2010281117

Brang D, Ramachandran VS. Survival of the Synesthesia Gene: Why Do People Hear Colors and Taste Words? PLoS Biology. 2011;9(11):e1001205. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1001205

Grossenbacher PG, Lovelace CT. Mechanisms of synesthesia: cognitive and physiological constraints. Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 2001;5(1):36-41. doi:10.1016/s1364-6613(00)01571-0

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We spend a third of our lives sleeping and there is no greater enjoyment than a really good afternoon nap. Back in preschool, the good old days, naps were built into our daily schedules but as adults - not so much. But should they be? Is there any neurological benefit or detriment to taking a nap?

Tune in to learn a little bit more about the neuroscience behind sleep, memory, and naps!

Please rate, review, and subscribe and if you have any questions, comments, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram. 

Citations and relevant papers below:

Cherry K. The 4 Stages of Sleep (NREM and REM Sleep Cycles). Verywell Health. Published June 16, 2007. https://www.verywellhealth.com/the-four-stages-of-sleep-2795920

The Haunting Effects Of Going Days Without Sleep. NPR.org. https://www.npr.org/2017/12/27/573739653/the-haunting-effects-of-going-days-without-sleep#:~:text=VEDANTAM%3A%20At%202%3A00%20in..

Alberini CM, Chen DY. Memory enhancement: consolidation, reconsolidation and insulin-like growth factor 2. Trends in Neurosciences. 2012;35(5):274-283. doi:10.1016/j.tins.2011.12.007

Walker MP, Stickgold R. Sleep-Dependent Learning and Memory Consolidation. Neuron. 2004;44(1):121-133. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2004.08.031

McKenzie S, Eichenbaum H. Consolidation and Reconsolidation: Two Lives of Memories? Neuron. 2011;71(2):224-233. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2011.06.037

Rasch B, Born J. About Sleep’s Role in Memory. Physiological Reviews. 2013;93(2):681-766. doi:10.1152/physrev.00032.2012

Walker MP. The role of slow wave sleep in memory processing. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. 2009;5(2 Suppl):S20-6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2824214/

Kumar D, Koyanagi I, Carrier-Ruiz A, et al. Sparse Activity of Hippocampal Adult-Born Neurons during REM Sleep Is Necessary for Memory Consolidation. Neuron. 2020;107(3):552-565.e10. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2020.05.008

Groch S, Wilhelm I, Diekelmann S, Born J. The role of REM sleep in the processing of emotional memories: Evidence from behavior and event-related potentials. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory. 2013;99:1-9. doi:10.1016/j.nlm.2012.10.006

Horváth K, Plunkett K. Spotlight on daytime napping during early childhood. Nature and Science of Sleep. 2018;Volume 10:97-104. doi:10.2147/nss.s126252

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How do we designate something, whether it's a painting, a sculpture, or a piece of music as beautiful? Where have our ideas of beauty arisen over the course of human evolution? How do we as individuals decide that something is beautiful to us compared to our neighbors? Dive into the gripping but controversial field of neuroaesthetics to learn a little bit more about the science behind beautiful things.

If you have any comments, questions, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at @NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram. Citations and relevant papers below:

Neuroaesthetics: Beauty is Only Brain Deep - Omniscience. MyScienceWork. Accessed January 31, 2022. https://www.mysciencework.com/omniscience/neuroaesthetics-beauty-is-only-brain-deep#:~:text=Those%20who%20oppose%20neuroaesthetics%20are

Diessner R. Magnificent Moral Beauty: The Trait of Engagement with Moral Beauty. Understanding the Beauty Appreciation Trait. Published online 2019:183-204. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-32333-2_7

‌Beauty and the Brain: The Emerging Field of Neuroaesthetics | Arts | The Harvard Crimson. Thecrimson.com. Published November 10, 2017. https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2017/11/10/neuroaesthetics-cover/

MBB 980N - Neuroaesthetics at Harvard University | Coursicle Harvard. www.coursicle.com. Accessed February 1, 2022. https://www.coursicle.com/harvard/courses/MBB/980N/

Xie J, Liu B, Elsadek M. How Can Flowers and Their Colors Promote Individuals’ Physiological and Psychological States during the COVID-19 Lockdown? International Journal of Environmental 

Eckert J. Why we like flowers: the new psychology of bright colors (Part 1). Medium. Published July 3, 2021. Accessed February 1, 2022. https://psychologyofart.medium.com/why-do-we-like-flowers-on-the-origin-of-pretty-colors-f3ddd400d168

Castro J. How the Brain Responds to Beauty. Scientific American. Accessed February 1, 2022. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-the-brain-responds-to-beauty/#:~:text=So%20what%20part%20of%20our%20brain%20responds%20to%20beauty%3F&text=Brain%20scientists%20who%20favor%20the

Chuan-Peng H, Huang Y, Eickhoff SB, Peng K, Sui J. Seeking the “Beauty Center” in the Brain: A Meta-Analysis of fMRI Studies of Beautiful Human Faces and Visual Art. Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience. 2020;20(6):1200-1215. doi:10.3758/s13415-020-00827-z

Lüttge U, Souza GM. The Golden Section and beauty in nature: The perfection of symmetry and the charm of asymmetry. Progress in Biophysics and Molecular Biology. 2019;146:98-103. doi:10.1016/j.pbiomolbio.2018.12.008

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Today's episode journeys into the neuroscience behind magic mushrooms! Psilocybin, the psychoactive ingredient, is known for making its users feel like their senses are mixing, their brains are dissociating, and the walls are melting? Does it all come down to cortical deactivation in the brain region responsible for encoding our sense of self? Come and listen to learn a little bit more about magic mushrooms effects, their huge potential as therapies for mental health disorders, and the potential consequences of their use.

If you have any comments, questions, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at @NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram. Citations below:

Hartney E. What to Know About Magic Mushroom Use. Verywell Mind. Published February 26, 2012.

Psilocybin (Magic Mushrooms) Uses, Effects & Hazards. Drugs.com. https://www.drugs.com/illicit/psilocybin.html.

Lowe H, Toyang N, Steele B, et al. The Therapeutic Potential of Psilocybin. Molecules. 2021;26(10):2948. doi:10.3390/molecules26102948

‌Aronson JK, ed. Psilocybin. ScienceDirect. Published January 1, 2016. Accessed January 26, 2022. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B978044453717100158X

Drug Scheduling. www.dea.gov. https://www.dea.gov/drug-information/drug-scheduling#:~:text=Schedule%20I%20drugs%2C%20substances%2C%20or

Carhart-Harris RL, Erritzoe D, Williams T, et al. Neural correlates of the psychedelic state as determined by fMRI studies with psilocybin. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2012;109(6):2138-2143. doi:10.1073/pnas.1119598109

Bhagwagar Z, Hinz R, Taylor M, Fancy S, Cowen P, Grasby P. Increased 5-HT(2A) receptor binding in euthymic, medication-free patients recovered from depression: a positron emission study with [(11)C]MDL 100,907. The American Journal of Psychiatry. 2006;163(9):1580-1587. doi:10.1176/ajp.2006.163.9.1580

Psychedelic Treatment with Psilocybin Relieves Major Depression, Study Shows. Johns Hopkins Medicine Newsroom. Published November 4, 2020. 

‌More promise for psilocybin in depression but safety remains a concern. Clinical Trials Arena. Published November 15, 2021.

Vollenweider FX, Vollenweider-Scherpenhuyzen MFI, Bäbler A, Vogel H, Hell D. Psilocybin induces schizophrenia-like psychosis in humans via a serotonin-2 agonist action. NeuroReport. 1998;9(17):3897-3902. 

Mozhdehipanah H, Gorji R. Subarachnoid Hemorrhage as a Manifestation of Magic Mushroom Abuse: A Case Report and Review Literature. Journal of Vessels and Circulation. 2020;1(3):40-42. doi:10.52547/jvesselcirc.1.3.40

‌Hendricks PS, Johnson MW, Griffiths RR. Psilocybin, psychological distress, and suicidality. Journal of Psychopharmacology. 2015;29(9):1041-1043. doi:10.1177/0269881115598338

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: 

SAMHSA's National Helpline
800-662-HELP (4357)
TTY: 800-487-4889

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It's a common sight on Sunday afternoon. The snacks are gathered. The couch cushions are plumped. The beer is cold. Across the screen, twenty-two people in tight white pants and polished helmets trot across the screen. But behind the shiny exterior of football, America's favorite pastime, lies a dark secret - chronic traumatic encephalopathy (a word I am incapable of pronouncing). A neurodegenerative disease characterized by psychological, behavioral, and cognitive changes, CTE and repeated head trauma has been linked to rage behaviors and increased aggression. In fact, Aaron Hernandez, a former NFL player was posthumously diagnosed with advanced CTE, potentially providing a "why" for his brutal murder of Odin Llyod. 

If you have any comments, questions, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at @NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram. Citations and relevant papers below: 

NFL Helmet Challenge Raises the Bar for Helmet Technology and Performance, Awards $1.55 Million in Grant Funding to Help New Models Get on Field Faster. NFL.com. https://www.nfl.com/playerhealthandsafety/equipment-and-innovation/innovation-challenges/nfl-helmet-challenge-raises-the-bar-for-helmet-technology-and-performance-awards Published 2021. 

Built By Data: NFL Helmet Innovation. NFL.com. https://www.nfl.com/playerhealthandsafety/equipment-and-innovation/engineering-technology/built-by-data-nfl-helmet-innovation. Published 2021. 

Heintz E, Breaux L, Lewis A, Foreman J. Determinants of Missed Games Following Concussions in the National Football League. Front Sports Act Living. 2020;2. doi:10.3389/fspor.2020.595445

Tator C. Concussions and their consequences: current diagnosis, management and prevention. Can Med Assoc J. 2013;185(11):975-979. doi:10.1503/cmaj.120039

Mez J, Daneshvar D, Kiernan P et al. Clinicopathological Evaluation of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy in Players of American Football. JAMA. 2017;318(4):360. doi:10.1001/jama.2017.8334

McKee A, Stein T, Kiernan P, Alvarez V. The Neuropathology of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. Brain Pathology. 2015;25(3):350-364. doi:10.1111/bpa.12248

Asken B, Sullan M, DeKosky S, Jaffee M, Bauer R. Research Gaps and Controversies in Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. JAMA Neurol. 2017;74(10):1255. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2017.2396

Turner R, Lucke-Wold B, Robson M, Lee J, Bailes J. Alzheimer’s disease and chronic traumatic encephalopathy: Distinct but possibly overlapping disease entities. Brain Inj. 2016;30(11):1279-1292. doi:10.1080/02699052.2016.1193631

Giza C, Hovda D. The New Neurometabolic Cascade of Concussion. Neurosurgery. 2014;75:S24-S33. doi:10.1227/neu.0000000000000505

Haislop T. Aaron Hernandez timeline: From murders and trials to prison suicide. Sportingnews.com. https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/aaron-hernandez-timeline-murders-trials-prison-suicide/1886y82a8bgyx123qxcgg04lb5. Published 2020. 

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They dominate the doctor's office waiting room, the bus ride home, any spare few minutes in our lives that we want to fill with something low-effort and mindless. What are they? Mobile games like Candy Crush Saga and other mindless match-three timesucks. Listen now to learn about how these games are engineered to hack into your brain to make them easy to get into, satisfying to play, and impossible to put down. 

If you have any comments, questions, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at @NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram. Citations and relevant papers below: 

Dockterman, E., Candy Crush Saga: The Science Behind our Addiction, TIME, November 13, 2013

Fruhlinger, J., Candy Crush Addiction is Real - and Can Lead to Destructive Results, Observer, (2019). 

Soroush, M., Hancock, M., Bohns, VK., Self-Control in Casual Games: The Relationship between Candy Crush Saga (™) players in-app purchases and self-control. IEEE Games Media Entertainment, Conference Paper (2014). 

Larche, C., Musielak, N., Dixon, M., The Candy Crush Sweet Tooth: How “Near-misses’ in Candy Crush Increases Frustration, and the Urge to Continue Gameplay, Journal of Gambling Studies (2016). 

Madigan, J., Why You Don’t Burn out on Candy Crush Saga, Psychology of Video Games (2013). 

Perez-Truglia, R., On the causes and consequences of hedonic adaptation, Journal of Economic Psychology, Volume 33, Issue 6 (2012). 

Camgoz, N., Yener, C., Guvenc, D., Effects of hue, saturation, and brightness: Part 2: Attention. Color Research and Application, Volume 29, Issue 1 (2003). 

Madore, J., Wagner, A., Multicosts of Multitasking, Cerebrum, (2019).

Duverge, G., Insert More Coins: The Psychology Behind Microtransactions, Touro University Worldwide (2016).

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This legend took a metal bar through the brain that took out 4% of his cerebral cortex and still retained the ability to move, speak, and live his life. The behavioral changes that occurred after his accident have fascinated neuroscientists for centuries and still remain a fascinating insight into the function of the prefrontal cortex today. 

If you have any comments, questions, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at @NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram. Citations and relevant papers below: 

O’Driscoll, K., Leach, J., “‘No longer Gage’: an iron bar through the head, early observations of personality change after injury to the prefrontal cortex, BMJ (1998). doi: 10.1136/bmj.317.7174.1673a

Siddiqui, S., Chatterjee, U., Kumar, D., Siddiqui, A., Goyal, N., Neuropsychology of prefrontal cortex, Indian Journal of Psychiatry, Volume 50, Issue 3 (2008). doi: 10.4103/0019-5545.43634

Harlow, JM, Passage of an iron rod through the head. Boston Med Surg Journal. (1848)

Harlow JM, Recovery from the passage of an iron bar through the head, Publ Mass Med Soc, (1868). 

Hamilton, J., Why Brain Scientists are Still Obsessed with the Curious Case of Phineas Gage, NPR, Weekend Edition Sunday (2017). 

Demnasio, H., Grabowski, T., Frank, R., Galaburda, AM., Damasio, AR., The Return of Phineas Gage: Clues about the Brain from the Skull of a Famous Patient, Science, Vol. 264, Issue 5162 (May 20, 1994). 

Van Horn, JD., Irimia, A., Torgerson, C., Chambers, M., Kikinis, R., Toga, A., Mapping Connectivity Damage in the Case of Phineas Gage, PLoS ONE, Volume 7, Issue 5 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0037454

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Sex is a complex but inescapable part of our lives. Lots of people do it every day, it affects our advertisements, our clothing, even our interactions with other people. But have you ever wondered what's happening in your brain during sex? Tune in to learn a little bit about the brain regions, circuits, and neurotransmitters at play during sexy times. 

If you have any comments, questions, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at @NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram. Citations and relevant papers below: 

•  Hellier et al., Female Sexual Behavior in Mice Controlled by Kisspeptin Neurons, Nature Communications (2018). 
• Seok, J., Sohn, J., Neural Substrates of Sexual Desire in Individuals with Problematic Hypersexual Disorder, Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience (2015). 
• Stahl, S., Illustrating the circuits of sexual desire, Journal of Clinical Psychiatry (2010). 
• Yang, L., Comninos, A., Dhillo, W., Intrinsic links among sex, emotion, and reproduction, Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences (2018). 
• Leuner, B., Glasper, E., Gould, E., Sexual Experience Promotes Adult Neurogenesis in the Hippocampus Despite an Initial Elevation in Stress Hormones, PloS One (2010). 
• Baird, A., Sex and the Single Amygdala, Part 2 of your Sexiest Brain Bits, Psychology Today (2019). 
• Micevych, P., Meisel, R., Integrating Neural Circuits Controlling Female Sexual Behavior, Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience (2017). https://doi.org/10.3389/fnsys.2017.00042
• Jennings, K., De Lecea, L., Neural and Hormonal Control of Sexual Behavior, Endocrinology, Volume 161, Issue 10 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1210/endocr/bqaa150
• Baird, A. et al., Neurological Control of human sexual behavior: insight from new lesion studies. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, Volume 78, Issue 10, (2006). https://jnnp.bmj.com/content/78/10/1042
• Oei, N., Rombouts, S., Soeter, R., van Gerven, J., Both, S., Dopamine modulates reward system activity during subconscious processing of sexual stimuli, Neuropsychopharmacology, Volume 37 (2012). https://www.nature.com/articles/npp201219
• Magon, N., Kalra, S., The orgasmic history of oxytocin, love, lust and labor, Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, (2011). 10.4103/2230-8210.84851
• Algoe, S., Kurtz, L., Grewen, K., Oxytocin and Social Bonds: The Role of Oxytocin in Perceptions of Romantic Partners’ Bonding Behaviors, Psychological Science, Volume 28, Issue 12 (2017).

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Whether it's meeting your ex at a party or your upcoming presentation at work, we have all felt the sinking feeling of anxiety. Come and find out a little bit about what's happening upstairs in this bite-sized look at the brain regions, connections, and neurotransmitters involved in anxiety processing and regulation. 

If you have any comments, questions, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at @NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram. Citations and relevant papers below: 

• Price, J.S., An Evolutionary Perspective on Anxiety and Anxiety Disorders, New Insights into Anxiety Disorders (2012). 
• Davis, M., The Role of the Amygdala in Fear and Anxiety, Annual Review Neuroscience (1992). 
• Duval, Javanbakht, Liberzon., Neural circuits in anxiety and stress disorders: a focused review, Therapeutics and Clinical Risk Management (2015). 
• Ventura Silva et al., Excitotoxic lesions in the central nucleus of the amygdala attenuate stress-induced anxiety behavior, Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience (2013). 
• Levar et al., GABA concentrations in the anterior cingulate cortex are associated with fear network function and fear recovery in humans, Frontiers in Human Neuroscience (2017)
• Fuchs, Flugge., Cellular consequences of stress and depression, Dialogues Clinical Neuroscience, (2004)
• Lechin et al., Effects of buspirone on plasma neurotransmitters in healthy subjects, Journal of Neural Transmission (1998)
• Botterill et al., Bidirectional regulation of cognitive and anxiety-like behaviors by dentate gyrus mossy cells in male and female mice, Journal of Neuroscience (2021)
• Martin et al., The Neurobiology of Anxiety Disorders: Brain Imaging, Genetics, and Psychoneuroendocrinology, Psychiatric Clinics of North America (2013)
• Cominski et al., The role of the hippocampus in avoidance learning and anxiety vulnerability, Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience (2014). 
• LeBlanc et al., Striatopallidal neurons control avoidance behaviors in exploratory tasks, Psychiatry (2018). 
• Adhikari et al., Synchronized Activity between the Ventral Hippocampus and the Medial Prefrontal Cortex during Anxiety, Neuron (2010). 
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