A research group under the leadership of Link?ping University Professor Markus Heilig has identified an enzyme whose production is turned off in nerve cells of the frontal lobe2 when alcohol dependence3 develops. The deficiency in this enzyme leads to continued use of alcohol despite adverse4 consequences. The discovery is now published in the number-one ranked psychiatric journal from the Nature Publishing Group, and could mean completely new possibilities for treating alcoholism.
林雪平大學教授Markus Heilig領導的一個研究小組發現了一種酶,當酒精依賴性發展時,這種酶在額葉神經細胞中的產生會被關閉。這種酶的缺乏會導致持續使用酒精,盡管會產生不良后果。這一發現現在發表在自然出版集團排名第一的精神病學雜志上,這可能意味著治療酗酒的全新可能性。
He and his research group are linking together research into alcoholism and other addictive5 illnesses with advanced brain research. It has long been suspected that people with alcohol dependence have impaired6 function in the frontal lobes7 of the brain, but the underlying8 biological mechanisms9 have not been known. The research team behind the paper, which includes researchers from both Link?ping University and University of Miami, is the first to identify this molecular11 mechanism10.
他和他的研究小組正在將酗酒和其他成癮性疾病的研究與高級大腦研究聯系起來。長期以來,人們一直懷疑酒精依賴者大腦額葉功能受損,但其潛在的生物學機制尚不清楚。這篇論文背后的研究團隊,包括林雪平大學和邁阿密大學的研究人員,是第一個確定這種分子機制的人。
Several years of dedicated12 research lie behind this breakthrough. The research, in which Dr Estelle Barbier - post-doctoral fellow at CSAN - had a central role, has shown that alcohol dependence in rats leads to a down-regulation of PRDM2 production, which in turn leads to disruption of impulse control. This is why the laboratory animals continue to consume alcohol, even when it is unpleasant. If they are subjected to stress, they also quickly relapse into drinking alcohol.
這一突破背后有幾年的專注研究。CSAN博士后研究員Estelle Barbier博士在這項研究中發揮了核心作用,該研究表明,大鼠的酒精依賴會導致PRDM2產生的下調,進而導致沖動控制的中斷。這就是為什么實驗動物繼續飲酒,即使是在不愉快的時候。如果他們受到壓力,他們也會很快重新酗酒。
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