JohnRich 4 #1 November 18, 2005 News: Scientists may have found a gene for fear -- a gene that controls production of a protein in the region of the brain linked with fearful responses. Their finding, published on Thursday, could lead to new treatments for mental disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder and generalized anxiety. ...the gene may control both learned and innate fear, the researchers said.Full Story I can see it now: handing out anti-fear pills to first-jump students... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 35 #2 November 18, 2005 QuoteNews: Scientists may have found a gene for fear -- a gene that controls production of a protein in the region of the brain linked with fearful responses. Their finding, published on Thursday, could lead to new treatments for mental disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder and generalized anxiety. ...the gene may control both learned and innate fear, the researchers said.Full Story I can see it now: handing out anti-fear pills to first-jump students... Or god forbid, to stupid-ass rednecks. Next thing we know, we'll see a "hey bubba, watch this!" deaths epidemic! "Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CSpenceFLY 1 #3 November 18, 2005 Too bad they can't find the gene for stupid.I think that would be more useful. . Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kelpdiver 2 #4 November 18, 2005 QuoteI can see it now: handing out anti-fear pills to first-jump students... This would be a really bad development in playing god. I worry what happens when you screw with the low level programming of the brain - fight or flight is a core element. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LouDiamond 1 #5 November 19, 2005 QuoteI can see it now: handing out anti-fear pills to first-jump students... That pill has been out for a long time, it's called Valium."It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required" Some people dream about flying, I live my dream SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GQ_jumper 4 #6 November 19, 2005 That pill has been out for a long time, it's called Valium. Quote Also available in liquid form, the bottles are cleverly disguised with the name "beer" thoughHistory does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or the timid. --Dwight D. Eisenhower Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Eule 0 #7 November 19, 2005 QuoteQuoteI can see it now: handing out anti-fear pills to first-jump students... That pill has been out for a long time, it's called Valium. I prefer the Cherry Flavored Children's Valium, myself. It has teddy bears and ducks on the box. You can even buy it on Sunday! The article seems a little bit muddled... it says the "gene" is stathmin or oncoprotein 18, but that should be the _protein_ that the gene regulates the production of. Maybe that's how biologists say things, but it sounds weird to say that a gene is concentrated in a certain area of the brain. I wonder if there's any easy way to measure the levels of this protein - like does it get into the blood at a known rate, so it could be tested with a blood sample. If so it might be interesting to give the tests to different populations, like skydivers, accountants, and horror movie fans, to see what the relative levels are. EulePLF does not stand for Please Land on Face. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites ScottMcC 0 #8 November 19, 2005 QuoteThe article seems a little bit muddled... it says the "gene" is stathmin or oncoprotein 18, but that should be the _protein_ that the gene regulates the production of. Maybe that's how biologists say things, but it sounds weird to say that a gene is concentrated in a certain area of the brain. I wonder if there's any easy way to measure the levels of this protein - like does it get into the blood at a known rate, so it could be tested with a blood sample. If so it might be interesting to give the tests to different populations, like skydivers, accountants, and horror movie fans, to see what the relative levels are. Eule The gene is stathmin, and the expression of it is enriched in the amygdyla. The Reuter's article muddies it some. To put it another way, even though every cell in the body has identical DNA, certain genes are more active in different cells of the body, which is why a liver cell is a liver cell and not a brain cell or a lung cell. Turns out that the gene stathmin is not only most active in the amygdyla, a region of the brain already known to be involved in fear, but that when you genetically engineer a mice to not possess that gene, their fear conditioning responses are not present, but that otherwise, they appear largely unaffected. (and just so you know, I pulled up the original article in Cell, so I'm not just making this up. As to whether the protein is found in the blood, I don't think so. It's very much a brain protein, and what with the whole blood-brain barrier, most brain proteins don't make it into the periphery. But this is one of those areas where "further study and clinical correlation is required." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites gravitysucks 0 #9 November 19, 2005 QuoteQuoteI can see it now: handing out anti-fear pills to first-jump students... This would be a really bad development in playing god. I worry what happens when you screw with the low level programming of the brain - fight or flight is a core element. But we already treat depression, anxiety, inattentiveness, hyperactivity, etc.. with drugs, why not treat fear? Many people have what would generally be considered unreasonable fears. The responsible thing to do would be to treat those whose fears are so great that it interferes with them living a "normal" life. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites kelpdiver 2 #10 November 19, 2005 Quote But we already treat depression, anxiety, inattentiveness, hyperactivity, etc.. with drugs, why not treat fear? IMO, our 'success' with all those others is a big part of my concern. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Praetorian 1 #11 November 19, 2005 QuoteThis would be a really bad development in playing god. I worry what happens when you screw with the low level programming of the brain - fight or flight is a core element. Not directly about fear.. but the flight or fight responce, in most cases in the modern world is something we train to supress, most life threatning things are better handled without reverting to over amped RUN or FIGHT. people who flip out when taking tests, or tyging to fly a damaged plane, or trying to shoot back at the badguy are often being dis served by their biological flight or fight response Good Judgment comes from experience...a lot of experience comes from bad judgment. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Eule 0 #7 November 19, 2005 QuoteQuoteI can see it now: handing out anti-fear pills to first-jump students... That pill has been out for a long time, it's called Valium. I prefer the Cherry Flavored Children's Valium, myself. It has teddy bears and ducks on the box. You can even buy it on Sunday! The article seems a little bit muddled... it says the "gene" is stathmin or oncoprotein 18, but that should be the _protein_ that the gene regulates the production of. Maybe that's how biologists say things, but it sounds weird to say that a gene is concentrated in a certain area of the brain. I wonder if there's any easy way to measure the levels of this protein - like does it get into the blood at a known rate, so it could be tested with a blood sample. If so it might be interesting to give the tests to different populations, like skydivers, accountants, and horror movie fans, to see what the relative levels are. EulePLF does not stand for Please Land on Face. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ScottMcC 0 #8 November 19, 2005 QuoteThe article seems a little bit muddled... it says the "gene" is stathmin or oncoprotein 18, but that should be the _protein_ that the gene regulates the production of. Maybe that's how biologists say things, but it sounds weird to say that a gene is concentrated in a certain area of the brain. I wonder if there's any easy way to measure the levels of this protein - like does it get into the blood at a known rate, so it could be tested with a blood sample. If so it might be interesting to give the tests to different populations, like skydivers, accountants, and horror movie fans, to see what the relative levels are. Eule The gene is stathmin, and the expression of it is enriched in the amygdyla. The Reuter's article muddies it some. To put it another way, even though every cell in the body has identical DNA, certain genes are more active in different cells of the body, which is why a liver cell is a liver cell and not a brain cell or a lung cell. Turns out that the gene stathmin is not only most active in the amygdyla, a region of the brain already known to be involved in fear, but that when you genetically engineer a mice to not possess that gene, their fear conditioning responses are not present, but that otherwise, they appear largely unaffected. (and just so you know, I pulled up the original article in Cell, so I'm not just making this up. As to whether the protein is found in the blood, I don't think so. It's very much a brain protein, and what with the whole blood-brain barrier, most brain proteins don't make it into the periphery. But this is one of those areas where "further study and clinical correlation is required." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gravitysucks 0 #9 November 19, 2005 QuoteQuoteI can see it now: handing out anti-fear pills to first-jump students... This would be a really bad development in playing god. I worry what happens when you screw with the low level programming of the brain - fight or flight is a core element. But we already treat depression, anxiety, inattentiveness, hyperactivity, etc.. with drugs, why not treat fear? Many people have what would generally be considered unreasonable fears. The responsible thing to do would be to treat those whose fears are so great that it interferes with them living a "normal" life. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kelpdiver 2 #10 November 19, 2005 Quote But we already treat depression, anxiety, inattentiveness, hyperactivity, etc.. with drugs, why not treat fear? IMO, our 'success' with all those others is a big part of my concern. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Praetorian 1 #11 November 19, 2005 QuoteThis would be a really bad development in playing god. I worry what happens when you screw with the low level programming of the brain - fight or flight is a core element. Not directly about fear.. but the flight or fight responce, in most cases in the modern world is something we train to supress, most life threatning things are better handled without reverting to over amped RUN or FIGHT. people who flip out when taking tests, or tyging to fly a damaged plane, or trying to shoot back at the badguy are often being dis served by their biological flight or fight response Good Judgment comes from experience...a lot of experience comes from bad judgment. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ViperPilot 0 #12 November 20, 2005 Ah, finally a cure for the pussy gene Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstime 0 #13 November 20, 2005 Or god forbid, to stupid-ass rednecks. Next thing we know, we'll see a "hey bubba, watch this!" deaths epidemic! LMAO Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
popsjumper 2 #14 November 20, 2005 QuoteToo bad they can't find the gene for stupid.I think that would be more useful. . Would have saved me a lot of trouble in my teen years....My reality and yours are quite different. I think we're all Bozos on this bus. Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kelpdiver 2 #15 November 20, 2005 Quote Not directly about fear.. but the flight or fight responce, in most cases in the modern world is something we train to supress, most life threatning things are better handled without reverting to over amped RUN or FIGHT. people who flip out when taking tests, or tyging to fly a damaged plane, or trying to shoot back at the badguy are often being dis served by their biological flight or fight response But is killing it entirely a good step? Humans have a mix of risk takers and scardycats. Each have their day depending on the situation. Call it diversication for the sake of long term suvival/evolution. Taking a pill to enable you to take a risk your body thinks unwise, esp for a recreational event like skydiving - totally crazy. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gravitysucks 0 #16 November 20, 2005 QuoteQuote But we already treat depression, anxiety, inattentiveness, hyperactivity, etc.. with drugs, why not treat fear? IMO, our 'success' with all those others is a big part of my concern. My concern is that ignorance about the scientific basis of medicine will hinder the progression of its practice. Yes, our emotions and idiosyncrasies give us our character. Hopefully we are not one day walking around like identical robots. I believe in treating the soul and the body, "holistically" if you will. But if a biological cause for something like depression can be isolated and treated with a drug, then that is certainly a success in my book. Most if not all psych drugs work best in conjunction with therapy, but many people do well and improve their lives on meds alone. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Eule 0 #17 November 21, 2005 Quote To put it another way, even though every cell in the body has identical DNA, certain genes are more active in different cells of the body, which is why a liver cell is a liver cell and not a brain cell or a lung cell. That makes more sense. I was having trouble trying to reconcile "concentrated" with "all the cells have the same DNA". Quote amygdyla Does this make anyone else think of the recent Star Wars films? Quote But this is one of those areas where "further study and clinical correlation is required." Dear Rutgers and Harvard: I hereby volunteer for the study. All you have to do is buy the jump tickets. :) EulePLF does not stand for Please Land on Face. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
