Neuroepic: Nature, Nurture, Food, Family, Brains

As a society we are becoming more aware of how daily life patterns directly affect our health and wellness. Exercise, food, and sleep not only influence our short term mental and physical states, but there is increasing evidence that there are lasting effects on our DNA and potentially our offspring's DNA. Our DNA, or genome, is composed of a specific sequence of nucleotides that control our growth, development, and the ability to carry out biological functions needed for survival. How the DNA is packaged and changes to this packaging is referred to as the epigenome. This can be thought of as a recipe, where the genome is a set of particular directions to make a dish. However, a cook can make a recipe their own and change up the steps to better fit a desired outcome, which is like the epigenome. If more steps are added to a recipe, it becomes more difficult to use, and less people will make the dish, and it can also be simplified by taking out more in depth steps. In the epigenome, changes are made to proteins, making them more or less easily accessible to make genes that our bodies need to function.

All a pregnant woman longs for is a healthy, happy baby at the end of her pregnancy. While most women get their wish, the unfortunate reality is that some women have complications for several reasons. One potential complication is Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM), which is when a mother becomes diabetic during her pregnancy. GDM occurs in 12% - 18% of all pregnancies, and the risk of developing this increases with age or a prior diagnosis of diabetes. Women diagnosed with GDM must undergo major diet and lifestyle changes to combat their increase in blood sugar levels. Multiple women discussed how they created restricted meal plans, walked or exercised more, took blood sugar measurements before and after each meal, and sometimes took insulin doses. It is important to educate people about the causes of GDM, as well as the short-term and long-term effects on the DNA of women and their children. Although GDM cannot always be prevented, it is important to understand how women can best help themselves and their children from the lasting effects of GDM.

There is a constant barrage of information about cancer-causing chemicals, damaging pollution, and other toxins making us sick. With headlines like “11 potentially cancer-causing things you might use every day” and news stories about “Environmental pollution killing more people than war”, it's understandable that the public has become hyper-aware of the health consequences of chemicals and pollution. So, the prospect of protecting yourself and your loved ones with a simple diet change is intriguing.

The raging conflict in Ukraine is creating a humanitarian crisis through denial of food, water, and housing for those caught in the crossfire. Each day, thousands of people worldwide are added to a growing number of individuals facing food insecurity. Food insecurity is a widespread problem, even during peacetime. Families in the United States cannot afford consistent access to food. We must consider the psychological consequences of food insecurity, in addition to the physiological. The immediate victims are not the only ones affected, and their offspring will suffer from ailments tracing back to starvation.

Epilepsy is a seizure disorder that affects about 3.4 million Americans. It is characterized by abnormal or hyperactive brain cell activity. Although the cause of epilepsy is not always known, certain forms of epilepsy are linked to genetic disorders, stroke, infection, and brain injury. Epilepsy is most commonly treated with medications, which reduce the probability of having a seizure. However, anti-seizure medications don't work for everyone. Here, we investigate the keto diet and its potential health benefits. We interview patients, families, dietitians, and researchers to uncover the connection between food and epilepsy care.

“Next to water, tea is the most consumed beverage worldwide with approximately 20 billion cups consumed daily,” which is almost 2000 olympic swimming pools. Tea has long been a staple in the diets of individuals all over the world and has been heralded for its health benefits. Lots of people have a cup of tea when they are sick, and recent studies have shown that tea might be able to prevent cancer. Much of the research about the potential anti-cancer effects of tea has focused on chemicals called polyphenols, which are the major active compounds in tea and are also responsible for the distinct flavors and aromas of tea. There are many common dietary sources of polyphenols, including berries, peppers, dark chocolate, red wine, and coffee, and they have a wide variety of health effects. These compounds are structurally diverse, but they all have multiple hexagonal, ring-like components called phenols. Different types of tea can contain different polyphenols. For instance, For instance, the major polyphenol in green tea is a catechin called (−)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate, or EGCG. Theaflavins and thearubigins are commonly found in black tea. Polyphenols are a promising candidate for advancing numerous anti-cancer innovations due to their accessibility through common dietary sources like tea and potential ability to combat cancer through both reversing epigenetic changes and improving the efficacy of cancer treatments.

U.S. Olympic Swimmer Michael Phelps told ESPN that he eats between 8,000 and 10,000 calories a day. This is 4 times the amount of calories an average adult needs. Phelps must have a calorie-dense diet because of the large amount of calories he burns during high levels of physical activity he participates in when training and competing. University of Pittsburgh Director of Sports Nutrition Leslie Bonci, MPH, RD, estimated that, given his 6'4'' height at 190lb build he would burn about 1,000 calories per hour when training. In comparison, the average adult does not do as much physical activity and therefore does not burn, or need to consume, as many calories. One's lifestyle and body composition can inform us on what we should eat. A more specific term for this concept is personalized nutrition. Here, we investigate potential benefits and controversies regarding the use of personalized nutrition in athletic performance as well as overall health.

Many people understand that a healthy diet can contribute to good health, but people might be less aware of how their diet can impact their future child's health. Pregnancy is a very sensitive period in which the behavior and diet of a mother can leave a lasting impact on her child. For example, studies show that Israeli children have an 81% lower rate of peanut allergies than their Western counterparts. This trend might be due to the widespread consumption of a popular peanut-flavored snack called Bamba during pregnancy and early childhood. Studies also demonstrate that consumption of folate, also known as vitamin B9, is associated with positive birth outcomes. Dark leafy vegetables, whole grains, peanuts, sunflower seeds, fresh fruits, liver, and seafood naturally contain folates. Mothers with a folate-poor diet during pregnancy have an increased risk of having a child with neural tube defects (NTDs) and other cognitive impairments. NTDs are severe birth defects that can cause serious health issues. On average, about 1-2 in every 1000 pregnancies are affected by NTDs. Therefore, many pregnant women take folate supplements throughout their pregnancy.

When I was younger, I was convinced my father was lying when he swore that salads made him sick, yet he could eat a ribeye-steak with no problem. It was comical then, but with age I learned that this was his harsh reality with Crohn's Disease. Chronic Crohn's Disease impacts half a million US individuals and is a heritable form of inflammatory bowel disease known to cause symptoms such as abdominal pain and weight loss. These symptoms can be managed with proper dietary restrictions, but the wide variability in both personal food-triggers and tolerance levels makes full treatment difficult. With similar disruptive symptoms and heritability, Celiac's Disease impacts about 1% of the US population and is also difficult to treat. Despite the only restriction being food containing gluten, this protein is found in wheat, barely, and rye, so many foods contain it. Additionally, an individual's tolerance to gluten may vary. Both Crohn's and Celiac's diseases often feel like an invisible battle, with each dietary choice needing to be made with care. This heightened awareness is only half the battle though, as beneficial treatment is often difficult to find given each person's variability in symptom severity, dietary options, and tolerance levels.

Many of us have heard that taking care of one's body is vital not only for physical health, but also for mental wellbeing. The supposed connection is that if the person has a healthy body then their mental health will follow suit. And how exactly does one take care of their body? The three most commonly suggested methods of caring for one's body are sleeping well, exercising, and eating. However, there is some natural ambiguity when trying to identify any of those three aspects of physical health as being a potential causal factor for positive mental health, or in trying to identify deficits in those areas which cause worsened mental health. Is poor sleep causing poor mental health, or does poor mental health disrupt sleep? Does a lack of exercise contribute to depressive symptoms, or does depression itself cause the lack of motivation that interferes with regular exercise? Does unhealthy food contribute to decreased mental health, or do depressed people simply tend to seek out sugary, fatty, unhealthy foods? The answer will surely not be easy to identify in conclusive terms, as either one could be causing the other, or they might be simultaneously causing each other, or there may even be other factors at play. Though sleep, exercise, and diet are assuredly all worthy of investigation, the question we will investigate is whether diet has an effect on mental health. Specifically, we want to examine the assumption that poor diets lead to an increased risk of depression and anxiety, and that good diets lead to a decreased risk of depression and anxiety.

Food is at the center of our everyday lives. We use it to fuel our bodies, to socialize and connect with others, even as a way to earn money! We all have some idea of which foods are “healthy” and which are not. The foods that make our taste buds dance when they hit our tongue and those that make our face scrunch and eyes water. What is happening on the cellular level when we eat a steak compared to when we eat broccoli? How does what we eat make us more or less susceptible to disease? The answers to these questions make us realize that food has a much greater impact on our genes than what makes it onto diet blogs and food magazines.

There's a constant debate between nature and nurture. Is it because of my genes that I behave the way I do, or is it because of my environment, like the foods I eat and the places I live? This is a question on the minds of many reflecting on their health, especially for parents concerned for the health of their children. Nutrition is essential for child development, but not only for building strong bones. Nutrition is critical for strong brain development, particularly learning and memory, from conception to adolescence.

There are a lot of delicious foods in the world: from a hot bowl of noodle soup on a cold day to a breakfast sandwich and a coffee in the morning. You have probably thought about how what you eat impacts your predisposition to acquire various diseases. But what about your predisposition to develop cancer, specifically? All of the foods that we eat have an impact on our bodily functions, including how our genes are expressed and regulated. The means by which this happens is what the field of nutriepigentics aims to uncover.

Imagine turning off your daily alarm, and refraining from that afternoon cup of coffee to keep you awake after you start to feel tired. Imagine yourself with no ensuing assignment deadline, or 5am task awaiting you, filling you with fear or excitement. Now you may wonder, how exactly would we wake up without a blaring phone or how would we fall asleep without exhausting our bodies nearly to the breaking point every night. Our bodies are actually much more complex than we think. Imagine the instructions to build and maintain our bodies are compiled into a book – a very long and convoluted book, known as our genetic code. And one chapter in this book has instructions written for setting an internal clock, known as our central circadian rhythm. Simply put, our circadian rhythm tells our brain that it is time to be awake in the presence of light, and asleep in the presence of dark.

Alongside the green matcha lattes and swirly chai lattes, a new, trendy, favorite has been added to coffee shop menus: golden lattes. These yellow lattes feature a special ingredient that gives them their warm hue: turmeric. As daughters of Indian immigrant parents, turmeric is quite a familiar ingredient. It is a staple in the Indian kitchen that is frequently used in many home remedies. In fact, in Ayurveda (Indian natural medicine) and ancient Chinese medicine, turmeric is a popular ingredient for various remedies ranging from digestive issues to healthier skin. Recent scientific studies are now beginning to validate and recognize the clinical value of turmeric. The active ingredient in turmeric is curcumin, and it has been shown to have beneficial effects including altering our susceptibility to colon cancer.

When growing up, there are many new experiences that shape your likes and dislikes long into the future. One of the big factors is food. When you have a bad experience with a certain food or type of food, it changes the expression of your genes. Whether fish gave you food poisoning or you got sick with the flu after eating lasagna, that experience can stay with you for a long time and affect how you feel about tastes and smells. This is just one example of the way that our day to day lives can actually make changes to our genes.

The technological advancements of the last several decades has far outpaced that of centuries prior, nothing more so than the introduction of the computer which has revolutionized fields the world over, including scientific research. From this innovation, tools including the varieties of software programs, modeling of phenomena, automation of repetitive tasks, and ever more capabilities have sprouted. One of the more recent additions to the researcher's toolkit has been introduced through the growing field of machine learning. Now it is possible to perform concrete data analysis on what previously would have been impossibly large datasets, that would have required painstakingly large amounts of labor. Unlike algorithms that may simply attempt to try and categorize data according to a strict and inadequate criterion, machine learning models can identify patterns and form novel organizations that in the past only humans could do. In many cases, it can actually surpass human limitations and see patterns that could be missed by professionals. Within machine learning though, there are as many models as there are things to be studied. In the biological sciences, some models are far more useful than others, and this holds even more true as we narrow down to the fields of epigenetics, where the traits of organisms are expressed through factors other than genetic code, and further into neuroepigenetics, where it is focused more specifically on the brain. The models that will be discussed are the ones most pertinent to epigenetics in general, but examples of methodologies used specifically in neuroepigenetic studies will also be evaluated.

Each year in the United States, there are 200,000 cases of Irritable Bowel Syndrome. It's estimated that 10-15 percent of the adult population suffers from IBS symptoms, making nearly 35 million people subject to abdominal pain with no apparent cause. The origins of IBS are still unknown, and research has yet to determine why and how a particular person may develop this syndrome. If you are not already familiar with Irritable Bowel Syndrome, it is a gastrointestinal disease commonly associated with chronic symptoms such as abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea, and bloating. Flare-ups of IBS can have disastrous consequences for those affected, such as having to miss work, school, or other important responsibilities because of the pain. In addition, those with IBS usually have to restrict their diet and daily routine, because stress, alcohol, caffeine, and even some leafy vegetables can aggravate an already fickle condition. Since so many people suffer from this illness, and the symptoms can impede daily functioning, it is imperative that research examines the origins of this disease, along with new and improved therapies to help those affected.

Chad Carr, the grandson of a famous University of Michigan football coach, Lloyd Carr, died of a brain tumor at the age of 5. With a bad fall and a suspected concussion, doctors ran a CT scan to discover an inoperable brain tumor called diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). As Carr fought hard, his family virtually made DIPG known internationally: #ChadTough. Through this spread of awareness, the University of Michigan Chad Carr Pediatric Brain Tumor Center was able to be established (Michigan Medicine). Another case, Senator John McCain, a war hero, a U.S. senator, and a 2008 presidential candidate, died of a brain tumor called glioblastoma (GBM) at the age of 81. A CT scan helped to connect the senator's inexplicable symptoms of fatigue, brain fog, and double vision. After more than a year of fighting the cancer, he made the decision to stop treatment in 2017. A day later he passed away (CNN). There is a great chance that you may have heard of either of these people and their tribulations with their horrific diseases. And, despite the fact that DIPGs and GBMs are rare, they both share one commonality: they possess the ability to rapidly progress and debilitate the patient, even in the face of treatment (Johns Hopkins Medicine). So, what exactly gives these conditions their notorious reputations and what does the future of medicine hold in stopping these diseases in their tracks?

Imagine if your memory was so good, you could learn to speak a whole language fluently in a week. This is the case for Daniel Tammet, an extraordinary individual who can speak 11 languages, including Icelandic which he was challenged to learn in just seven days. Daniel is considered an autistic savant, and in addition to being exceptionally gifted with language and numbers, he suffers from Asperger Syndrome, a milder form of autism. In contrast to Daniel, some individuals who live with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) never develop any linguistic ability at all and must navigate the world unable to communicate verbally with those around them. How can two people with such drastically different abilities possibly be diagnosed with the same condition? Autism is a spectrum disorder, meaning the types and severity of symptoms experienced vary widely. While some people on the autism spectrum lead largely normal lives with only slight social deficits, others have severe social and behavioral disabilities and require constant supervision. In instances of the later, ASD presents significant challenges in the lives of those affected as well as their families. But such diversity of symptoms is just one aspect of autism that makes it so mysterious. The genetic and environmental factors that lead to autism remain elusive and hundreds of genes have been linked to the disorder, though the exact genes affected vary widely from case to case.

There are some genetic factors that researchers have identified in possibly playing a role in the development of AD. The apolipoprotein (APOE) gene, which plays a role in cholesterol transport has been shown to be linked with AD. There are 3 forms or alleles of this gene, e2, e3, and e4, and one allele is inherited from each parent resulting in six possible outcomes. For example, inheriting an e4 allele of this gene may increase one's risk of developing AD, while the e2 form may lower one's risk. Several studies have been conducted to determine the frequency of these alleles in patients with results ranging from 54-65% of people with AD in the US had at least one copy of the APOE-4 gene. However, it is important to note that having this gene does not mean that individuals will develop AD, other genes and epigenetic factors contribute to the development of AD as well.

Imagine telling people that there is a magic health pill that if they take once a day, they could be the most physically and mentally healthiest version of themselves. They could toss aside their sleeping pills, diet supplements, plans for liposuction, nootropics, and even some prescription medicines for blood pressure, cholesterol, and vascular health. In addition to these physiological benefits, this magic pill would also help improve cognitive function, be one of the best preventative measures for diseases, and improve overall longevity and mental well-being. Now, imagine telling people that this pill is free and has essentially no side effects. People would be lining outside the door for days without hesitation waiting to purchase this pill!

Vaping has become a quickly growing epidemic among teens in America, with over 25% of all high school students having used a vape in the past month in 2019 – an increase of more than 1800% the rate in 2011. Rates have similarly jumped among middle schoolers, rising from 0.6% reporting using an e-cigarette in the past month in 2011 to 10.5% in 20192. While the use of these products is growing, especially among youth, no long-term effects are known.

Prescription painkillers are vital for proper medical treatment for patients who endure chronic or acute pain. Opioids in particular are commonly prescribed due to their effectiveness in treating pain, however these drugs are known to be highly addictive and can have terrible effects if overused or abused. Opioids such as Vicodin, morphine, and fentanyl are known to be addictive and can lead to severe consequences when mistreated. How these drugs and the addiction it causes affect the brain is not yet fully understood, however every year we learn more and come closer to painting a full picture of the way the brain is affected by these drugs. Recent studies suggest opioid consumption leads to changes in DNA and DNA storage systems that have direct, long-lasting effects on brain circuitry as well as behavior. These DNA modifications, specifically those located in brain cells, have spawned an increasing amount of research which has led to the development of the field of neuroepigenetics. The field of neuroepigenetics looks at these DNA modifications that have been caused by life choices and the environment, and how they affect cell structure and function. These studies will potentially give us a better understanding of how and why opioids cause the effects they do, and hopefully inspire ways in which they can still be used without their detrimental effects.

Do cell phones cause brain cancer? What about hair dyes? These are things we use every day—what if they are responsible? So far, studies have found no consistent links. It might also worry us if we have relatives who have brain cancer because we might think we are likely to have it too. But genetics isn't everything. For example, glioblastoma, one of the most aggressive forms of brain cancer, is mostly sporadic: it is random who gets it and who doesn't. However, we aren't totally doomed, as a lot of research is being done to understand the causes of brain cancer and its potential treatments.

If you grew up in the United States, you are most likely familiar with the song “This Land is Your Land”, one of the most famous American folk songs. Though it has been rerecorded and performed by many famous artists, you may not know the original writer and performer, Woody Guthrie. Woody Guthrie was born in 1912 and was, and still is, one of the most influential figures American folk music. He traveled across the U.S. for much of his life, lived through the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, and World War II, and settled down in New York in the early 1950s. During this time, his health began to deteriorate, and he was hospitalized many times and was misdiagnosed with things from alcoholism to schizophrenia. In 1954, upon his admission to psychiatric hospital, he finally received the correct diagnosis: Huntington's Disease (HD). Sadly, Guthrie passed from complications of HD in 1967, but following his death, his ex-wife Marjorie Mazia founded the Huntington's Disease Society of America, and helped bring Huntington's Disease and the importance of research on the disease to the public eye. This publicity was well needed, as HD was not well known at the time and commonly misdiagnosed (such as the case of Guthrie's mother, who was institutionalized when he was 14, but posthumously diagnosed) (Woody Guthrie Official Website, n.d.). Though today there is a lot more information on the disease, there is still a long way to go to curing this fatal disease. Recent research has been looking towards the field of epigenetics to learn more about HD and possible treatments. But first, it is important to fully understand Huntington's disease and what causes it.

Imagine that you are a college student, whose professors all magically decided to give exams and projects due on the same date. For some reason, you procrastinated until the last minute, and now you need to pull an all-nighter at the library. You begrudgingly head to the fourth floor of the library, prepared to stay awake with a bag full of your favorite candy bars and snacks, a Venti Starbucks iced coffee, and a couple cans of Red Bull. You finally leave the library with sleepy eyes just as the sun slowly rises above the horizon. On the actual exam, you feel very tired and have trouble concentrating. A couple days later, you get your not-so-great grade back for your exams and projects, and you make a promise to yourself that you will never make the same mistake. But two weeks later, you end up doing it again a couple weeks later. This all sounds too familiar, right?

Are you a student? Do you work night shifts? Are you a night owl and stay awake through the night? What if I told you that if you sleep less than 6.5 hours a night, which many of us do, your body reacts to the lack of sleep. And that your body does so by cells altering their DNA's structure. Would you be surprised? These modifications can affect your emotions and reactions throughout your sleep-deprived day. Furthermore, the change in DNA can be passed down a generation, to the children of those who were often sleep deprived.

You're stuck in your house, taking responsibility and doing your part in social distancing. You've exhausted Netflix's contents. Hulu, Disney+, YouTube–it's all a blur. A constant cycle of switching between one time-wasting social media platform to another. There's only so many times you can reread the same couple books. You take a boredom nap, wake up to eat a meal. Does it count as breakfast or dinner? Who honestly knows at this point? Your university has shut down everything, classes are online, and everyone had to move back home. You haven't had non-familial in-person social contact in weeks. You keep waiting to wake up because it feels like a dream, but reality is slowly sinking in. This is life in self-isolation due to the pandemic called COVID-19, or better known as the Coronavirus. And no, this virus isn't caused by drinking Corona Beer.

Cancer is one of the most prevalent diseases that plagues our society. According to the National Cancer Institute, around 38% of people will be diagnosed with some form of the illness during their lifetime. Given this, almost every individual has either had their life uprooted by cancer, or knows of someone who has been personally affected. The burden of this disease expands past the emotional and financial turmoil experienced by an individual, and also has a large impact on our society as a whole. In 2017, an estimated $147.3 billion was spent in the United States alone for cancer care (National Cancer Institute). This price is expected to continuously rise due to a large aging population, an increase in diagnoses, and new, more expensive treatments being developed.

From work to school, social media to politics, there seem to be a growing number of stressors each year. For many of us stress is an everyday part of life while for others stress can be debilitating. According to the American Psychological Association, the stress level in America is increasing and along with it, depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues. Many people don't know that stress is an evolutionary adaptation to let animals know when they are in serious danger of death. However, when your term paper is due just a day after your chemistry final and you are experiencing a full-blown stress response, you are not in danger of dying. So what is going on here? Scientists have been looking at new mechanisms for why some people cannot control their stress response, so much so that it can lead to other diseases. To do that, they have been looking at your genes.

Imagine that you are a 5-inch field mouse running for dear life from a hungry snake eager to have you as a tasty snack. Not only is your focus sharpened, but your senses are heightened, allowing you to hear every slithering movement and smell the terrifying odor emanating from this predator. If you could successfully outrun this snake, what is the most important lesson you might take away from this dramatic episode? What lessons would you want to pass down to your future offspring? Nature has come up with two answers to these questions: (1) An exaggerated sensitivity to the odorants emanated by the predator that almost killed you—this induced defense could act as a preventative shield in future predator encounters. (2) The ability to somehow pass on this predator-induced shield to your future offspring.

Cognition is, according to the Oxford dictionary, the “mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses.” In simpler terms, cognition is basically how we think. But what determines how we think? There has to be some influence from the environment. After all, the experiences we have can shape what we remember, and basically how we perceive the world. That can't be the only thing though, because cognition comes from the brain, and our brains are made with the genetic information we get from our parents. How in the world can we even start to look at this question? Cognition is a very complicated process. There are many specific mechanisms involved, and multiple levels where things can go wrong. To learn about normal cognition, scientists will often look at cognitive disorders. By understanding more about where things go wrong, they can use that information to gain insight into cognition in general, and even try to develop treatments.

It's 1:50pm. You have an assignment to submit in 10 minutes. You are meeting your team project members in about an hour. You need to call your parents about your health insurance. You have a paper due tomorrow. And you still have not eaten lunch. Do you feel anxious? These feelings of anxiety are a normal reaction to stressful feelings of tensions and thoughts. And though these feelings may be uncomfortable and seemingly uncontrollable, these feelings keep us alert and inform us about how to behave. Though feelings of anxiety are common, depending on the person, there are various degrees of how we experience anxiety. But why is this the case? It probably would not be surprising if I told you that your susceptibility to anxious behaviors are a result of the environment you are in. Now, what if I told you that your susceptibility can be affected by the lifestyle of your parents, or even your grandparents? Would you be surprised?

Every 98 seconds, an American is sexually assaulted. 90% of the adult rape victims are female. Nearly all of them experience symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and severe distress in the weeks after the rape (RAINN, n.d.). For many this suffering is connected to suicidal or depressive thoughts and can last for months or years, this is shown by 33% of women who are raped that think about commiting suicide. While we need social and political prevention of sexual assault, scientific research also has to consider that there is a high number of women suffering from PTSD after sexual assault. This is especially important since, so far, PTSD has mostly been associated with military and war trauma; hence, mainly with men. Yet, women are twice as likely as men to meet the criteria for PTSD. One of the reasons for that is that sexual assault is one of the traumatic experiences with the highest risk of developing into PTSD. Another one could be that our bodies work slightly different depending on our biological sex, whether we are male or female. Although there are some disorders that are more prevalent in females than in males, such as PTSD and Alzheimer's Diseases, there is more research done on males (Beery & Zucker, 2011). This imbalance of studies may lead to a male-oriented approach in treatment. Therefore, it is important to look at the differences in males' and females' reaction to stress and any differences in how they process memories in order to be able provide effective treatment for both males and females.

Schizophrenia is a disease that many times is associated with an insane asylum or tragic instances of violence in the news. Media and other outlets tend to portray this illness in a negative lens that only reinforces the stigmas that have surrounded it for decades using headlines like “Schizophrenic stabbed brother, nine, to death hours after health workers said he was no threat” and “1,200 killed by mental patients”. But instead of encouraging the fear and obscurity that have been built up around schizophrenia, increasing awareness and knowledge can have a huge effect on how people with the disorder are integrated into society. Both social stigmas and acceptance movements can impact the research that goes into finding the cause and treatments to help them live a better life.

Samuel L. Jackson is one of America's biggest movie stars, starring in iconic films such as Star Wars, Jurassic Park, Iron Man, and many more. He has fought snakes on a plane, has been titled the Master of the Jedi High Council, and has enlisted Tony Stark to create a secret organization of superheroes called the Avengers. Jackson has rightfully earned his fame and success throughout the years, with films that have grossed over $8 billion. However, his road to success was not as glamorous as one may predict. At a young age, Jackson lost his father to alcoholism and has struggled with the disease himself. With the start of his career in the early 80s, Jackson found his addiction worsening and taking control of his life.

Imagine you have just welcomed a lovely baby girl into the world, be it your own daughter, niece or sister. She appears happy (despite the common initial tears) and the doctors announce her to be healthy. For a few months, she continues to grow and develop successfully. However, just after her first birthday, you notice that she starts taking less pleasure in playing with her once favorite toys. Additionally, she does not appear to be sitting or crawling as your family friend's child, who is of similar age. A year or so later, the girl appears to have difficulties breathing, has begun displaying bizarre hand motions, like repeatedly moving her hands to her mouth and wringing them, and you notice her head appears smaller than the average child her age. She is not communicating as much as she used to. A few years later, she begins having severe motor deficits as well as seizures, however, she showcases increased alertness and attention. Finally, you notice that the girl struggles with reduced mobility, muscle weakness, but has an increase in eye gaze. These symptoms represent issues that one may encounter during the four stages of Rett Syndrome, a cognitive disorder (with features of autism) afflicting approximately 1 in every 10,000-15,000 girls worldwide (NIH).

Ironically, in a world that is exploding with new technology, more and more individuals are feeling increasingly disconnected with others and with themselves. As Anderson Cooper stated on 60 minutes, “I'm on mobile devices all day long. I feel like I could go through an entire day and not be present. It's exhausting”11. As a way to remedy this disconnection with oneself and relieve everyday stress, mindfulness-based practices have been on the rise, especially in workplaces and hospitals. Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) practices are techniques that help individuals self-manage worrisome, intrusive thoughts1. A few examples of well-known mindfulness-based practices include yoga, sitting/walking meditation, repetitive prayer, and other therapeutic practices that allow an individual to become more aware of their own physical and mental condition in that particular moment.

Taylor is a sophomore at the University of Michigan. Since coming to campus, she has been struggling with severe bouts of depression and spends many days feeling lonely and sad. Her friends have noticed her skipping class more often and bailing on social gatherings. She was previously on an antidepressant medication, but it doesn't seem to be working and all she can feel are the side effects, like feeling tired and not being able to concentrate—which as you can imagine, interferes with her role as a student. She feels like she's tried everything to help with her depression but nothing is working. What if we told you we might have the answer for Taylor? It's not a miracle drug, but a different way of looking at medicine.

When we visit the doctor with a medical concern we typically expect to leave with a prescription. One pill in the morning, one at night, and some water and nourishing foods to fuel the body for healing. But when Hollywood producer Jim Abrahams took his one year old son, Charlie, to Johns Hopkins in 1993 for treatment of epilepsy, he was prescribed… high fat diet? Doctors prescribing fat? It seems a little bit counterintuitive, but to Jim's surprise, this once-controversial treatment stopped his son's crippling seizures altogether in only three days, a feat that several medications and surgical attempts had failed to accomplish (Baruchin, 2008)! Charlie is one of about 2.5 million people in the U.S. living with epilepsy, one-third of whom also do not respond to anti-seizure medications (Holland, 2014). Charlie remained on the diet for five years, and has since been seizure free. The high-fat diet that miraculously stopped Charlie's seizures is now a standard treatment for epilepsy patients. But this diet and its unexpected success raises a flustering question for scientists: How on earth can fat rewire a brain to prevent seizures?

Robert Leahy is the sheriff in Clermont County, Ohio. In 2017, his ex-wife overdosed on heroin after years of prescription opioid and heroin use. As we can see here, even a law enforcement was not safe from effects of the opioid crisis. Ohio alone saw 2,700 deaths from opioid overdoses just in 20172. The influx of overdoses and death caused Ohio's morgues to resort to refrigerators on trucks to hold the bodies. From across the country the evidence is clear: there is an opioid epidemic killing tens of thousands of people a year. Now, scientists are wondering, how can prescription painkillers lead to opioid addiction? What effects do these medications have on the body? Is there any treatment for this disease?

What makes you crave food, your hunger? Imagine you woke up with not enough sleep and drove to your office; coincidently, a colleague brought a Starbucks vanilla latte to let you try; unexpectedly, you felt energetic and performed well at your work that day. Then, you start to buy Starbucks coffee every workday. When you go out on weekends, you see a Starbucks and cannot help getting a cup of drink even though you don't need coffee. It is similar when we encounter food: for example, sometimes when we see a yellow M of McDonald and get some food even if we are not hungry. We are born to have the innate physiological response to food: once we smell or sees a delicious food, our internal digestive organs will secrete in response to the food. This response is heightened or taken advantage of by food company through well-shaped advertisement. It is because our appetite-drives are more complicated than simple physical responses that they can be shaped by even more abstract things in the environment, for example, the logo of a food brand alone can elicit our motivation to eat. A sign of Starbucks itself can motivate us to buy a drink even not necessarily have a drink present. That's because we have unconsciously learned to associate the symbolic sign with food and make ‘good' use of this association in daily life. Today we are going to introduce what does Neuroepigentics tell us about reward association formation and the cue-driven motivated behavior, and understanding the neuroscience will partially help us control our behavior.

In 2010, Canada declared bisphenol-A (BPA) a toxic substance, yet BPA may be lurking right in your own kitchen. Today, BPA can be found in canned foods, plastic bottles, tupperware, and receipts. Consumption of BPA has been linked to increased rates of cancer, issues with brain development, and higher rates of reproductive issues. Even though the FDA does not classify BPA as a toxic substance in America, the FDA passed laws in 2012 and 2013 prohibiting the use of BPA in children sippy cups, baby bottles, and infant formula packaging. Many other countries around the world have also banned the use of BPA in infant feeding bottles and pacifiers. Nevertheless, BPA can be found in the urine of about 95% of the US population. With these facts come many questions. What is BPA, where does it come from, and why is it harmful? Should it be banned completely?

Alcoholism is a very serious disease that affects about 1 out of 14 Americans. Unfortunately, children of alcoholics are more likely to develop alcoholism. Environmental factors, such as influence from one's peers or community, can also promote alcoholism. If a child is born from parents that are alcoholics and is raised in an environment that promotes alcohol consumption, this can be the ultimate maelstrom to promote the development of alcoholism. Since alcoholics are predisposed to alcoholism from birth and American culture largely promotes drinking, society is beginning to regard alcoholism as a serious disease, rather than dismissing the fact that alcoholics find it extremely hard to quit drinking.

Depression, a mood disorder associated with excessive sadness and cognitive dysfunction, is a debilitating mental illness that affects 350 million adults worldwide – more than the population of the entire United States. It can be so debilitating that an individual with depression may be unable to function in daily life, work, and school. In fact, the World Health Organization estimates that depression is the leading cause of disability in the world. While researchers and doctors have made incredible progress in treating depression, around half of patients do not respond to at least one treatment regimen. There is still so much we don't know about the causes of depression and how it affects the brain in order to develop a nearly 100% effective treatment. Scientists have known for a long time that depression often runs in families. We inherit our genes, or the biological blueprint that tells our bodies how to function, from our parents. Each gene is like a unique recipe in a cookbook that the cells in your body read in order to make a protein, the tiny machines that carry out many important functions in our cells.

Imagine you're in a room. It's 110 degrees, you've drank the last of your water and you know you're approaching dehydration. However, there are five doors in front of you and all you know is that behind one of them is an unending supply of water. Desperate, you pick door number one (because it's your lucky number) only to get punched in the face. Ouch. So you try door number two; there's a glass of water which eases your thirst a little bit, but it's not enough. You try door number three and hear the faint sound of running water coming from…somewhere. When people first start on antidepressants, the period of finding the “perfect” cocktail works a lot like this. It can take weeks before they find the medication and dosage that works best for them. 20 million people in the United States suffer from depression.

This essay will be discussing how childhood environments, such as abusive homes, can influence a person's biology and their risk for depression and suicide later in life. The last essay stated how maternal care affects the animals, and now how care affects humans will be described. To begin, what is childhood abuse and what effect can it have upon a child?

In 2011 in Glasgow, Scotland, a fourteen-year-old boy was sentenced to seven years in jail for stabbing his thirty-four-year-old foster mother to death. Leading up to this tragedy, the boy had suffered a troubled childhood, moving around from one foster family to another. After two failed placements, he ended up with a third foster family. This one, however, only wanted one child, causing him to be separated from his half sisters. Although he was reported to have settled in well with his third foster family, the boy's life took a turn for the worse and the result was catastrophic. What caused this boy to kill his foster mother? One possible explanation for his sudden turn to violence is the absence of maternal love and nurture in his early life, which in turn, might have provided him with the stability necessary to avoid killing his foster mother.

In April of 2014 Flint, Michigan changed its water supply from the Detroit-supplied Lake Huron water to the Flint River while waiting on a new pipeline from Lake Huron in order to save money. Residents were immediately alarmed by this news, as the pollution of the Flint River was common local knowledge. Soon after this change, residents found that the water from their faucets was discolored brown and smelly. For months the government trivialized the issue and even went to far as to alter evidence. As the problem persisted, they issued notices for residents to boil the water before consumption without making any serious changes.

Drugs are bad…or so we've been told over and over. With the topic of marijuana legalization making its way to the national and global spotlight, hard evidence and straightforward facts cannot come too soon. Colorado, Washington, and Oregon have already legalized the recreational use of marijuana, and it seems inevitable that others will soon follow suit. Pot, dope, ganja, trees, that sticky icky icky—whatever you want to call it—is becoming more accepted in both medical and social settings, but we worry that the research done on its properties and effects is not enough well known. Here, we will share research that demonstrates early exposure to marijuana can make long-lasting changes to the brain, making one more susceptible to later substance abuse.