Douglas Researchers pack their bags
Scientists leave for DC to present newest findings at eminent international conference

Verdun, November 8, 2005 – Almost one third of Douglas researchers are packing their bags and heading off to Washington DC. Why? To present their newest findings at the world's largest organization of scientists devoted to studying the brain, the Society for Neuroscience. Want the latest scoop about mental health research? Listed below are some of the topics that will be presented:

More on the effect of mom’s touch
Previous animal model studies, from the Douglas Hospital Research Centre (DHRC) have shown that mom’s care influences the offspring’s behaviour right into adulthood. Michael Meaney, PhD and his research group have further characterized this effect on other responses including learning about fear, reproductive ability, and learning capability.

Learning about fear: Previous findings have demonstrated that offspring who received minimal care (less tactile stimulation) from mom show a greater fear response than those who received more care. Meaney’s group looked into this further and found that these offspring also learned to fear negative events faster than those more attended by mom. He can explain why this is beneficial and how this relates to humans.

Reproductive ability: Meaney and his colleagues show that minimal care leads to an earlier onset of puberty for both male and female offspring. They have also shown that female offspring, who are well cared for, are less sexually interested in males and less reproductively successful. Discuss with them how this occurs and its significance.

Learning capability: Meaney’s group is studying the role of maternal care on the offspring’s ability to learn from positive events. Their findings show that offspring raised in a caring environment learned tasks more quickly than those without care. They suggest this may be due to influences causing early changes in brain development

Maternal high fat diet and offspring’s mental health
Mother’s milk is a source of high fat. Claire-Dominique Walker, PhD and her research team are looking at the effect of this diet on offspring’s mental health and their vulnerability to obesity. Their study showed that offspring from mom rats fed a high-fat diet had lower levels of the brain chemical dopamine. These results suggest that high-fat feeding may reduce the vulnerability to chronic stress, drug addiction and schizophrenia. However, Walker’s group also showed that this diet predisposes some of the pups to obesity. Discuss with her the benefits and detriments of this type of feeding.

Suppression of eating
Obesity is a growing public health epidemic. Scientific Director of the DHRC, Rémi Quirion, PhD and his team are examining how the brain tells the body to eat. They are characterizing the role of the appetite-controlling hormone PYY. Discuss with him how their findings may lead to the development of new anti-obesity therapies.

Affiliated with McGill University and the World Health Organisation, the Douglas Hospital Research Centre is one of the largest in the country, with a team of over 60 scientists and clinical researchers and 180 post-graduate students. This team is devoted to understanding the causes of mental disorders – whether genetic, environmental, cultural or social – as well as developing diagnostic tools, treatments and prevention methods.
 

Information

Florence Meney
Media Relation
Communications and public affairs
Phone: 514-761-6131, ext. 2769
Cell.: 514-835-3236
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