Brain wiring makes women anorexic or obese
Why does one person become anorexic and another obese? A study shows that reward circuits in the brain are sensitized in anorexic women and desensitized in obese women.
Guido Frank, director of the Developmental Brain Research Program, University of Colorado School of Medicine and colleagues used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine brain activity in 63 women who were either anorexic or obese. They were compared to women considered "normal" weight.
Participants were visually conditioned to link certain shapes with either a sweet or a non-sweet solution and then received the taste solutions expectedly or unexpectedly. This task has been tied with brain dopamine function in the past, the journal Neuropsychopharmacology reports.
The authors found that during these fMRI sessions, an unexpected sweet-tasting solution resulted in increased neural motivation of reward systems in anorexic patients and diminished activation in obese individuals.
In rodents, food restriction and weight loss have been associated with greater dopamine-related reward responses in the brain, according to a Colorado School statement.
"It is clear that in humans, the brain's reward system helps to regulate food intake," said Frank. "The specific role of these networks in eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and, conversely, obesity, remains unclear." The findings also suggest that eating behaviour is related to brain dopamine pathways involved in addictions.
Comments
More St Petersburg News
RSS-
North Koreas bid to return to n-talks welcomed by Moscow
Russia regards as a "positive development" reports that North Korea is willing to return to six-party talks on the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, a Russian diplomat said. China's Xinhua news agency and South Korea's Yonhap reported Friday that Choe Ryong Hae, a special envoy for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, met Chinese President Xi Jinping and reaffirmed that Pyongyang "is ready ...
-
Russian social network blacklisted by mistake
Vkontakte, Russia's biggest social networking website, was put on a state registry of blacklisted websites by mistake Friday, an official said. "This was a mistake. Our employee put a tick in the wrong place," said Vladimir Pikov, spokesman for Russia's telecom watchdog Roskomnadzor. "We will remove VKontakte from the registry and it should be accessible for everyone." Some 40 million people ...
-
Foreign defence officials visit Russian military base
Members of foreign delegations attending an international conference on European security visited a military base near Moscow that has a motorized infantry division. Defence officials and military experts from Armenia, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Norway, South Africa, Sweden, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, the US and Zimbabwe were shown a training centre, a shooting range and the barracks at the Taman ...
-
Female suicide bomber injures 18 in southern Russia
Bombings have become common in Dagestan. On May 20th, four people died after two bombs exploded the regional capital of Makhachkala, where a suicide bomber struck on Saturday. (Abdula Magomedov/Associated ...
-
Black Widow Suicide Bomber Wounds 12 in Russia
Police say the bomber detonated her explosives in the central square in Makhachkala, Dagestan's capital. At least two of the wounded are in critical ...
-
Earthquake Triggers Aftershocks in Russian Far East
Moscow, May 25 (Prensa Latina) Countless seismic tremor was triggered in the territory of the Far East by the earthquake yesterday in Ojots sea, off the coast of Sakhalin peninsula, confirmed today the Emergency Situations Ministry. The earthquake was located at 10:00 local time about 372 miles deep in the sea, with a magnitude of 7.7 to 8.2 degrees, according to various sources. No casualties ...
-
Russian pro- anti-gay activists arrested after defying ban
1 of 5. Russian police take away a banner from gay rights activists during a rally outside the mayor's office in Moscow May 25, 2013. The banner reads, ''Love is ...
-
Twelve hurt in bomb attack on Dagestan police headquarters
Five police officers are among 12 people injured in a suicide bombing Saturday in Makhachkala, the capital of the Russian republic of Dagestan, police said. The attack, which targeted regional police headquarters, was carried out by the widow of a militant killed earlier by police, RIA Novosti reported. All of the victims were hospitalized. In a separate incident late Friday, two police ...
-
Georgia will cooperate on Sochi Olympics security
The prime minister of Georgia said his country is willing to "provide maximum assistance" with security during the 2014 Winter Olympics in neighboring Russia. Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili told reporters Friday Georgia would do its part to ensure the safety of the games, which will be held in the resort city of Sochi, a few miles from the border between Russia and the disputed ...
-
Putin Business amnesty bill needs changes
Russian President Vladimir Putin said a bill that would free thousands of jailed businessmen required revisions. RIA Novosti reported Saturday the office of Russia's business ombudsman Boris Titov estimates 110,000 businessmen could be directly affected by the bill. Andrei Nazarov, who co-authored the bill with Titov, said it would be ready for consideration by lawmakers "within ...
-
Russia 8.2 earthquake is big but no deaths
Russia 8.2 earthquake: The USGS says it was even bigger, an 8.3 earthquake, and felt as far away as Moscow. But the Russia earthquake caused no ...
-
Russian police detain activists foes at gay rally
Police detain a gay rights supporter, left, and an opponent, right, who scuffle during an unsanctioned gay rally near the City Hall in Moscow, Saturday, May 25, 2013. The Kremlin initiated a bill banning "propaganda of homosexuality" and routinely banned gay rallies and parade. Russian police say they detained at least 30 gay rights campaigners and their opponents at an unsanctioned ...
-
Russia Gay Rights Activists Arrested At Rally
Dozens of activists at a gay pride march in Moscow have been arrested by Russian police. Authorities said at ...
-
Russian pays $1.5M to go to space with DiCaprio at Cannes auction
Leonardo DiCaprio arrives at a photocall for the film "The Great Gatsby" during the 66th annual Cannes International Film Festival in Cannes, France on May 15, 2013. UPI/David ...
-
Black widow suicide bomber injures 12 in Russias Dagestan
including two children , on Saturday. The bomber detonated a belt she wore in the central square of the regional capital Makhachkala, about 100 meters from the police ministry, after authorities attempted to check her driver's documents. The bomber has been identified as the twice widowed Madina Alieva, who married an Islamist militant killed in 2009, and then married another radical who ...
-
Meqdad ends Russia visit returns to Syria
United States are seeking to broker an international peace conference on Syria in an effort to end the more than two-year-old crisis that has claimed at least 94,000 lives. No date has been set for the conference to be held ...
-
Shurooq seeks to attract Russian investors to Sharjah
Sharjah, 25 May 2013 (WAM) - The Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) has announced that it will be participating in Arabia Expo 2013, which will take place from 30 May to 1 June at Lenexpo, the largest exhibition centre in St. Petersburg, Russia. Shurooq's participation in the event during their inaugural visit to Russia forms part of the Authority's strategy to ...
-
Russia and the Arctic Ocean in the next century
Modern geopolitics in the West has always targeted Russia since the famous thesis of Halford Mackinder. Russia is seen of course as an evil empire, also as the Heartland of Eurasia, heir of the Mongols, enjoying so the biggest and most strategic position on earth. Twice invaded and destroyed by the troops of Napoleon and Hitler, Russia is still considered the land of Asiatic invaders! As stated ...
-
Interpol rejects Russias political case against fund manager Browder
By Jason BushMOSCOW - Interpol has refused to include UK-based fund manager William Browder on its international search list after deciding that Russia's tax evasion case against him is "of a predominantly political nature".The decision is the latest twist in a long-running battle between the government of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Browder, whose investment company ...
-
Tornado rips through central Russia - video
Amateur footage captures a tornado ripping through residential areas 110km southwest of Moscow on Thursday. This is the second twister to hit Russia in a week, destroying vehicles and leaving houses and business properties damaged. Trees and electricity poles were ripped up, leaving local residents without power. There have been no reports of serious injuries as a result of the ...
-
Suicide car bombing in Russias Dagestan injures 11
MOSCOW (Reuters) - A suicide bomber blew herself up in car near a police building in Russia's Dagestan region on Saturday, injuring 11 policemen and passers-by, Russian media ...
-
Ghaddafi thanks Germany Russia and China
Colonel Ghaddafi today in an interview thanked the governments of Germany, Russia and China for opposing a no-fly zone over Libya, promising new oil ...
News from around our Network
Comments
No comments yet for this story
Have your say