First "placebo gene" discovered

merry submitted, created time 1 month 1 day (www.newscientist.com)

For the first time, a gene is being linked to increased susceptibility to the placebo effect – the mysterious capacity some people have to benefit from sham treatments. The participants in one small study were told that they were being given anxiety medicine. Many of the participants' anxiety levels remained the same, but ten people improved dramatically, when tested, it was found that production of certain precursors to seratonin had increased.

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Antidepressant treatment may reduce male fertility

piggy submitted, created time 1 month 3 weeks (www.reuters.com)

Treatment with paroxetine (Paxil), which belongs to the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class of antidepressant drugs, increases DNA fragmentation in sperm, according to research presented today at the sixty-fourth annual meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine in San Francisco.

Although the study did not directly evaluate male fertility, the fivefold increase in the number of men who developed abnormal sperm DNA while being treated with paroxetine is "troubling" and "suggests an adverse effect on fertility," co-investigator Dr

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Deal or No Deal?

jerry submitted, created time 6 months 3 weeks (sciencenow.sciencemag.org)

What if your friend had a large apple pie but gave you only a sliver? Would you throw the piece on the floor in protest? Maybe, depending on your brain chemistry. New research suggests that such emotional decisions can be influenced by a shortage of the neurotransmitter serotonin.

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