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Foundation Mourns the Loss of Passionate Mental Health Advocate and Longtime Board Member Philanthropist, longtime Brain & Behavior Research Foundation Board Member, and passionate mental health supporter, J. Robert Peterson passed away on Thursday, March 12 at the age of 88. |
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Former Foundation Spokesperson and Mental Health Advocate, Mike Wallace: 1918 - 2012 Legendary news anchor and award-winning journalist, Mike Wallace passed away on April 7, 2012 at the age of 93. As the pioneer of the hugely popular, "60 Minutes" TV news show, Wallace was best known for his unique interviewing style in which he often asked the "difficult" questions - causing many guests to hesitate before agreeing to sit down with him. Joseph Coors once said, "The four most frightening words in the English language are 'Mike Wallace is here.' " |
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NY Times Features NARSAD Grant-Funded Research Findings on Risk for Autism Three independent research teams recently reported that for the first time, specific gene mutations known as 'De novo mutations' are risk factors for autism.April 06, 2012 |
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NARSAD Grantees Learning to Predict Likelihood of Mental Illness in Teenagers A research team from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine led by 2005 NARSAD Independent Investigator, Mary Phillips, M.D. used a novel technique to predict future mental illness in teens at risk for mental illness from those with low risk. By combining data from fMRI testing and computer-based pattern recognition software, Dr. Phillips and her team studied (and continue to study) 32 teenagers, half of which have a biological parent with bipolar disorder (‘at risk’), and half with no history of brain and behavior disorders personally or within their immediate family (‘low risk’). The preliminary results of this study show promise for predicting individual risk of developing future mental illness, especially for at-risk populations. Continued research may also shed light on the relationship between depression, anxiety disorders, and bipolar disorder as previous research has shown bipolar disorder to often be preceded by depression or anxiety disorders. |
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New Discovery On Link Between Early Life Stress and Genetic Susceptibility in Schizophrenia In findings recently published in Cell, 2010 NARSAD Independent Investigator Grantee, Guo-li Ming, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, demonstrate that people are nearly one and a half times more likely to develop schizophrenia when they have a genetic risk factor and experience certain types of stress early in life. The researchers focused on the interaction of two factors long implicated in the disease: Disrupted-in-Schizophrenia 1 (DISC1) protein, which is important for brain development, and GABA, a brain chemical needed for normal brain function. Using mice models to find how these factors impact brain development and disease susceptibility, they then compared their initial results with the genetic sequences of 2,961 schizophrenia patients and healthy people from Scotland, Germany and the United States. |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: 'Father of CBT' Expands Scope of Treatment to Schizophrenia NARSAD distinguished Investigator Grantee, Aaron T. Beck, the 'Father of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)’ proved that it can be used to help treat the 'negative' symptoms of schizophrenia. CBT was invented by Beck in the 1960s as a method of talk therapy aimed at solving problems related to dysfunctional emotional behaviors and cognitions - primarily associated with depression and other mood disorders. Eventually it was used to help treat anxiety disorders as well. In 2011, Dr. Beck furthered the scope of its potential and discovered that CBT can treat the symptoms of schizophrenia that have been considered untreatable, such as emotional flatness, listlessness and isolation. |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Discovery Points Toward Improved Efficacy of Antidepressants In 2010, Scientific Council Member Rene Hen, Ph.D., professor of pharmacology in the Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience at Columbia University, and a researcher at the New York State Psychiatric Institute, led a team of researchers to a groundbreaking discovery in understanding why antidepressants may fail to relieve symptoms of depression for up to 50 percent of patients. Using an animal model, he found that an excess of one type of serotonin receptor in the center of the brain can actually reduce the production of serotonin. |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: 25-Year Study Links Thinning of Cortex in Brain to Depression Risk A groundbreaking twenty-five year study shows that there is a correlation between the thinning of the cortex and the development of depression. The cortex is the part of the brain responsible for higher thinking and functioning, located in the right hemisphere. Leading this study was three-time NARSAD Distinguished Investigator, Myrna M. Weissman, Ph.D., Professor of Epidemiology and Psychiatry at the College of Physicians and Surgeons and the School of Public Health at Columbia University and Chief of the Department in Clinical-Genetic Epidemiology at New York State Psychiatric institute. Weissman tracked three generations of families throughout her study to learn as much as she could about the environmental and genetic factors affecting depression. |
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New Computer Program Improves Behavioral Symptoms and Brain Activity in Schizophrenia A hallmark symptom of schizophrenia is difficulty in distinguishing external reality from internal experiences. Whether or not this impairment is irreversible has long been debated. Now, a pilot study at the University of California, San Francisco, led by NARSAD Independent Investigator Grantee Sophia Vinogradov, M.D., has shown that targeted computer “brain training” can improve reality monitoring in people with schizophrenia. NARSAD Young Investigator Grantee Karuna Subramaniam, Ph.D., was the lead author of the research paper, published Feb. 23, 2012 in the journal Neuron. |
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Memory Training Program Shows Promise in Countering Memory Loss From ECT Treatment A promising pilot study of a program called Memory Training for ECT (Mem-ECT) designed to prevent or lessen the memory loss experienced by many people with depression who undergo electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) was conducted by NARSAD Independent Investigator Grantee Joan Prudic, M.D., and colleagues at Columbia University Medical Center. |
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Social Media Helps One Man Institutionalized for Schizophrenia Reconnect with Old Friends The summer before Neil Barber’s junior year in high school, he and three of his buddies decided to experiment with marijuana. Neil’s dad, Greg, recalls the four of them getting “pretty rocked,” but Neil being the only one unable to recover. “Perhaps the marijuana was laced with something,” Greg wonders. “But I also believe the drug may have been a catalyst to my son’s mental illness.” Up to that point, Neil was a popular, outgoing, gifted athlete with a bright future in Division 1 Lacrosse.March 20, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Important Genetic Links to Schizophrenia Discovered In 2008, Scientific Council Members Mary-Claire King, Ph.D. from the University of Washington—widely known for her discovery of a mutation in a gene she named BRCA1 that led to powerful breast cancer diagnostics—and Judith Rapoport, M.D. of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) led research teams discovering rare genetic mutations found in high volumes in people with schizophrenia. These mutations - genes that are either deleted or duplicated throughout the genome - are thought to disrupt the brain during development, offering evidence that they could signal susceptibility for developing various mental illnesses (in this case schizophrenia and autism). |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: 2008 Genetics Study Sheds Light on the Causes of Psychosis Arturas Petronis, M.D., Ph.D. from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, led researchers in a study, discovering that biochemical (or ‘epigenetic’) changes can impact the ‘expression’ of genes common in patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Focusing his work on the genomes of identical twins (who share the same exact sequences of DNA) where only one twin developed schizophrenia, Petronis and his team analyzed 1,800,000 spots on the epigenome and were able to see the changes that occurred within. What he discovered helped prove that epigenetic changes – changes that affect gene expression without altering the underlying DNA - were important to the development of schizophrenia. This groundbreaking discovery opened new avenues of research to identify the causes of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. March 14, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: 2007 Discovery of Tamoxifen as a Treatment for Bipolar Disorder NARSAD Independent Investigator Grantees, Husseini Manji, M.D. and Carlos Zarate, M.D. discovered that a common breast cancer drug called tamoxifen can also be used to treat symptoms of bipolar disorder during the manic phase of the illness. Tamoxifen was proven to be effective because it blocks kinase protein C (KPC), an enzyme regulating brain cell activity. The major benefit of this discovery is that this medication began working in a matter of days as opposed to other medications which had taken weeks to show positive effects. March 13, 2012 |
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N.Y. Times Speaks About Brain Research With Scientific Council Member, Eric Kandel, M.D. Scientific Council member, Eric R. Kandel, M.D. is featured in an insightful and inspiring question and answer session with New York Times journalist, Claudia Dreifus. In their discussions, Dr. Kandel (2000 Nobel Prizewinner along with fellow Scientific Council member, Paul Greengard, Ph.D.) speaks about overcoming the trauma of fleeing from Austria as a child during World War II and outlines his longstanding professional quest to understand how memory works. From psychiatrist to neuroscientist, Dr. Kandel has dedicated much of his life to helping unravel the mysteries of the brain. March 12, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: DBS ('Pacemaker for the Brain') - Effective Depression Treatment, 2003 Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) was invented in the late 1980s, however it was not used to treat depression-resistant patients until Scientific Council Member, Helen Mayberg, M.D. began testing it out in 2003. Her research showed that by using DBS to target a section of the brain that she identified as linked to depression in earlier research ('Brodmann Area 25'), symptoms of depression in patients were greatly reduced if not completely removed (in remission). In DBS, a pair of electrodes is implanted in the brain and connected by wires to a pair of pulsing devices in the chest - like a Pacemaker for the brain. The electrodes emit a sort of jamming signal to brain circuits thought to be involved in depression. March 05, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Researchers Discover Gene Linked to Schizophrenia Susceptibility In 2006, Scientific Council Member, Daniel R. Weinberger, M.D. and a team of researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), discovered that the presence of a gene known as neuregulin 1 increases the likelihood of a person having schizophrenia by about 30%. Assisting Dr. Weinberger, were NARSAD Grantees Amanda Law, Ph.D. (recipient of the Sidney R. Baer, Jr. Prize for Schizophrenia Research in 2011) and Barbara Lipska, Ph.D.; Joel Kleinman, M.D. (2011 Lieber Prizewinner for Schizophrenia Research); and others from the NIMH. March 02, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Fathering Late in Life Increases the Risk of Schizophrenia for Children In 2001, NARSAD Distinguished Investigator Grantee, Dolores Malaspina, M.D. concluded that having an older father increases the risk of developing schizophrenia. Schizophrenia has strong genetic components, including de novo genetic mutations, and this study shows there is a higher risk of these mutations as paternal age increases. In fact, men having children over the age of 50 triple the likelihood of their children developing the illness. March 01, 2012 |
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NARSAD Grantees Make Breakthrough to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia NARSAD Grantees from the University of California, San Francisco demonstrate that brain training, specifically in processes such as auditory and visual processing and emotional identification, can vastly improve the cognitive deficits associated with schizophrenia. NARSAD Independent Investigator Grantee, Sophia Vinogradov, M.D. led researchers at UCSF including NARSAD Young Investigator Grantee Karuna Subramaniam, Ph.D. who administered the testing. The importance of this work is that it demonstrates that behavioral manifestations of schizophrenia, including cognitive and social functioning deficits, and the underlying neural dysfunction, can be improved with well-designed computerized cognitive training. February 29, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Revolutionary Treatment for Depression Pioneered in 2001 With the help of a NARSAD Young Investigator Grant, Scientific Council Member Mark S. George, M.D. developed Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), a new kind of non-invasive brain stimulation as an alternative for electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in treatment-resistant depression. In 1995, unable to get NIH funding for TMS, a NARSAD Young Investigator Grant allowed the work to gather important clinical information and served as "bridge" funding to set the stage for the emergence of this industry. Following the initial NARSAD Young Investigator Grant, numerous NIH, Department of Defense and VA awards valued at several millions of dollars furthered development of TMS until it received FDA approval in 2008. February 24, 2012 |
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Luminaries & Scientists, Including NARSAD Grantees, Converge to Take Part in Symposium On Saturday, March 5th the Chopra Foundation will be hosting the Third Annual Sages and Scientists Symposium in Carlsbad, CA. The event, concluding on March 5th, will feature NARSAD Distinguished Investigator Grantee Richard Davidson, Ph.D. (1995 and 2003) of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and NARSAD Young Investigator Grantee Elissa Epel, Ph.D. (2002) of the University of California, San Francisco. Joining these researchers will be a handful of other scientists along with retired General Wesley Clark and former President of Mexico Vicente Fox. February 23, 2012 |
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NARSAD Grantees Discover that a History of Child Abuse and Maternal Separation Are Risk Factors for Mental Illness February 22, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Nobel Prize Awarded for Groundbreaking Research on Memory & Mood In 2000, Scientific Council Members, Eric R. Kandel, M.D. and Paul Greengard, Ph.D. were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their important contributions to understanding the molecular changes in the brain that underlie memory and mood. Dr. Kandel’s research has focused on what happens in the brain when memories are formed, while Dr. Greengard’s research focuses on what happens inside a neuron after a signal is received. The results of their studies have proven to affect long-term processes such as mood and memory. February 17, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Medication Combined with Talk Therapy Best for Treating ADHD In 1999, results from the Multimodal Treatment for ADHD (MTA) study - the most comprehensive study of treatment strategies for ADHD ever undertaken - were published explaining that for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), medication is a more successful treatment option than non-medication treatments such as behavioral therapy and community care. Additionally, it was determined that the use of medication in combination with therapy is also a stronger treatment than therapy alone. The MTA study was led by Scientific Council Member and NARSAD Distinguished Investigator Grantee, John March, M.D., M.P.H. February 13, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Bipolar Disorder and Schizophrenia Linked by Common Risk Genes In 1998, Brain & Behavior Research Foundation Scientific Council Member and NARSAD Distinguished Investigator Grantee, Elliot S. Gershon, M.D. and colleagues made a significant discovery identifying a linkage of genes that are risk factors for both bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. According to Dr.Gershon, “Our hope is that identifying susceptibility genes will lead to new molecular targets for drugs, producing completely new treatments, some of which might well be more effective than those currently available.” February 09, 2012 |
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Scientific Council Member Outlines the Progress in – and Need for – Mental Health Research Scientific Council Member, Jeffrey A. Lieberman, M.D. of Columbia University Medical Center presents an overview of the current state of mental healthcare, offering specific recommendations on how to continue to improve it. He notes that “the care for persons with mental illness is better now than ever before in human history, and there is great promise for it to get better in the future.” February 07, 2012 |
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“THE TEENAGE MIND: WHAT EVERY PARENT NEEDS TO KNOW”: Presented by the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation in partnership with Sage Hill School February 02, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Research Leads to First National Teen Suicide Diagnostic Tool in 1996 In 1996, NARSAD Distinguished Investigator Grantee, David Shaffer, M.D. demonstrated that mental illness, along with other factors, such as substance abuse and prior suicide attempts, are major causes of teen suicide. His significant discoveries led to the creation of the Columbia University Teen Screen Program, a non-profit health initiative dedicated to early detection of mental illness in teenagers. This program is now considered the national standard for routine screening and is used nationwide by primary healthcare providers. February 02, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Progress in Predicting Mental Illness in Children Beginning in 1992, a longitudinal investigation known as the Great Smoky Mountain Study was conducted with approximately 1,400 children ages 9 - 16. The study, lead by NARSAD Distinguished Investigator Grantee, E. Jane Costello, Ph.D. identified key factors related to children and brain and behavior disorders. Specifically, the findings continue to help reveal which young people tend to get mental illness, who gets treated, who needs treatment and doesn’t get it, how effective current treatments are and what might be promising directions for future research and treatment. In 2007, Costello received her NARSAD Distinguished Investigator Grant to further explore one of the key findings of the Great Smoky Mountains Study: the startlingly high percentage of depression occurring at puberty in girls who had had low birth weights. February 01, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: NARSAD Grantee Determines Key Risk Factors for Teen Suicide In 1988, NARSAD Distinguished Investigator Grantee, David A. Brent, M.D. made significant discoveries leading to the identification of risk factors for youth suicide. Until his research in the late 1980s, the media portrayed suicidal teens as “talented”, “misunderstood” and it being “the parents’ fault”. Dr. Brent’s studies determined that the true warning signs for youths at risk for committing suicide related more to presence of bipolar disorder and/or depression (family history and/or the individual), substance abuse, impulsive aggression, parental suicidal behavior and access to firearms. Dr. Brent’s research group went on to demonstrate the efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy for adolescent depression. January 30, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: 1989 Breakthrough in Schizophrenia Treatment In 1989 NARSAD Distinguished Investigator and Foundation Scientific Council member, Herbert Y. Meltzer, M.D., proved that the drug Clozapine(tm) can be used on patients with severe treatment-resistant schizophrenia. Clozapine, developed in the early 1960s, was used in trials and on a limited basis around the world until it fell out of favor in the mid-1970s. Dr. Meltzer, with the assistance of a NARSAD Grant, studied the effects of this antipsychotic medication on schizophrenia patients that, until then, could not find relief from other medications. He discovered that Clozapine was, in fact, an effective treatment and today, it continues to be used as a last resort to treating the illness. In the early 2000s, Meltzer further discovered that Clozapine can also be used to reduce the risk of suicide in patients with schizophrenia. January 27, 2012 |
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First Lady's Initiative to Boost PTSD Research: 92 Foundation-Funded Institutions Participate Michelle Obama and Jill Biden announced this initiative as part of their Joining Forces Campaign to focus on issues that affect veterans and their families. Obama said that while an estimated 300,000 veterans suffer PTSD or major depression, fewer than half got treatment in the past year. With this initiative, many of the country’s leading medical schools will boost their efforts to research PTSD and traumatic brain injuries. The first lady told Virginia Commonwealth University medical students that the profession they've chosen is "the essence of true service.” Ninety-two of the participating medical schools and institutions have NARSAD-Grant-funded scientists. January 27, 2012 |
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25 Years of Breakthroughs: Scientific Council Member Develops Breakthrough New Technology Optogenetics, a new technology invented by Karl Deisseroth, M.D., Ph.D., in 2005 with the help of a NARSAD Young Investigator Grant, gives researchers extraordinary control over specific brain circuits — and with it, new insights into an array of disorders, among them, depression, anxiety and Parkinson’s disease. Optogenetics uses light to make neurons fire one at a time, opening new vistas to understanding the mechanisms behind brain and behavior disorders. January 27, 2012 |
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NPR Features Scientific Council Members on Depression, its Biological Causes and the Out-of-Date Term “Chemical Imbalance” NPR’s ‘Morning Edition’ featured two Brain & Behavior Research Foundation Scientific Council Members on the topic of depression, neuroscience and Prozac as ‘a blockbuster’. The term “chemical imbalance” has referred to a deficiency in serotonin associated with depression and commonly thought to be ‘the cause’ of depression. January 23, 2012 |
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SC Member Makes Discovery About Teen Susceptibility to Depression and Schizophrenia Scientific Council Member Bita Moghaddam, PhD, led adolescent brain research at the University of Pittsburgh that identified more activity in teen brains, in the dorsal striatum, in response to ‘happy chemicals’ released naturally in the brain when compared with similar adult brain activity. The dorsal striatum is a part of the basal ganglia, a part of the brain responsible for forming what are normally considered good habits and emotional responses to external stimuli. These findings will initiate further studies and may lead to the development of early intervention techniques and new treatments for adolescents. The results will be published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. January 20, 2012 |
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Late-Onset Mental Illness Unravels a Family's Life A daughter supports mental health research to ensure other families don’t have to live through what hers did. |
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2011 Highlights of NARSAD Grants Supporting Breakthroughs An Impressive Year of Progress: from establishing early intervention techniques and working toward diagnostic tools, to proving the effectiveness of next generation therapies, to advancing basic research and our understanding of how the brain functions and can malfunction, and continuing to refine the use of new technologies – this highlight of NARSAD-Grant funded discoveries in 2011 demonstrates how Foundation-funded research spans across research disciplines to better understand and treat all mental illness. We continue to make substantial progress in our mission to alleviate the suffering caused by mental illness. January 18, 2012 |
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New Discovery Improves Capacity to Identify Genetic Susceptibility for Autism and Develop Better Treatments In people with autism spectrum disorders, nerve cells in the prefrontal cortex and other brain regions show subtle defects. Rare genetic mutations account for only about 10 percent of autism cases. The cause of the remaining 90 percent remains unknown. Brain & Behavior Research Foundation Scientific Council Member Schahram Akbarian, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues at the University of Massachusetts and the University of Maryland have now shown that epigenetic changes may play an important role. January 16, 2012 |
