Friends newsletter layout 11-24-13

FALL 2013
News From the Friends
Mark your calendar
Tuesday, Dec. 3
Preventing Violence
in Educational
Institutions
Dr. Park Dietz
Friends Scholars leading the way in research
Three extraordinary young researchers have
been named the 2014 Friends of the Semel
Institute Scholars. Dr. Tara Peris, Dr. Felipe Jain
and Dr. Erin Kelly (shown left to right in photo)
will receive funding to support two-year,
pioneering research studies to advance the
understanding and treatment of mental illness.
Friends Founder and President Vicky Goodman
introduced the Scholars to members of the board
and generous donors during a reception on
October 27. “This is an incredible achievement
for all of us,” she said, citing the tremendously
successful “Music and the Mind” gala last spring,
which contributed funds to benefit the program.
Tara Peris, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist and
assistant professor of psychiatry in UCLA’s
Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. She
is conducting brain-mapping research to
determine the most effective treatments for
debilitating anxiety disorders. “My interest is in
taking a look at these conditions early in life and
seeing how to intervene with durable, lasting,
efficient treatments,” Peris said.
Felipe Jain, M.D., a post-doctoral scholar at the
Semel, is exploring ways to help the caregivers of
people with Alzheimer’s and other forms of
dementia. “Caregivers are some of the most noble
and generous people that I’ve come across.
They’re also some of the most burdened, stressed
and depressed,” said Jain, who will test the
depression-relieving effects of a unique form of
meditation that he developed.
Erin Kelly, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist and
post-doctoral scholar who is seeking to improve
health care for people with serious mental
illnesses, many of whom are homeless and, she
said, “are dying about 25 years before their
peers,” she said. Kelly is developing an approach
in which “peer health navigators” will teach them
skills such as how to communicate better with
their doctors and how to access their personal
medical records online.
Tuesday, Feb. 4
Far from the Tree:
Parents, Children
and the Search for
Identity
Andrew Solomon &
Dr. Peter Whybrow
Tuesday, March 4
Clean: Recovering
from Addiction and
Ending America’s
Greatest Tragedy
David Sheff &
Dr. Timothy Fong
Tuesday, May 13
Too Bright to Hear,
Too Loud to See:
Bipolar Disorder
Juliann Garey &
Dr. Michael Gitlin
Find details on the
Friends website. Admission to
Open Mind programs is free,
but an RSVP is required. Email
patty@friendsofsemelinstitute.
org or call 424-214-3851.
www.friendsofthesemelinstitute.org
FALL 2013
NEW RESEARCH FROM THE SEMEL INSTITUTE
Do you obsess over your appearance?
Your brain may be wired abnormally
Perks of a meaningful life
The happiness that comes from
having a deep sense of purpose
and meaning in life is good for
your immune system.
Research by Professor of
Medicine Steven Cole found
that people with high levels of
“eudaimonic” well-being
showed strong expression of
antiviral and antibody genes in
their immune cells, and low
levels of inflammatory gene
expression.
“Hedonic” happiness --- the
kind that comes from selfgratification --- showed the
opposite immune effect.
Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is a
disabling but often misunderstood
psychiatric condition in which people
perceive themselves to be disfigured and ugly,
even though they look normal to others.
New research at UCLA shows that these
individuals have abnormalities in the
underlying connections in their brains.
Dr. Jamie Feusner, the study's
senior author and a UCLA associate
professor of psychiatry, and his
colleagues report that individuals
with BDD have, in essence, global
"bad wiring" in their brains — that is,
there are abnormal network-wiring
patterns across the brain as a whole.
And in line with earlier ULCA research
showing that people with BDD process visual
information abnormally, the study discovered
abnormal connections between regions of
the brain involved in visual and emotional
processing.
"We found a strong correlation between
low efficiency of connections across the
whole brain and the severity of BDD,"
Feusner said. "The less efficient patients'
brain connections, the worse the symptoms,
particularly for compulsive behaviors, such
as checking mirrors."
People suffering from BDD tend to fixate
on minute details, such as a single blemish
on their face or body, rather than viewing
themselves in their entirety.
They become so distressed
with their appearance that
they often can't lead
normal lives, are fearful of
leaving their homes and
occasionally even commit
suicide. Patients frequently
have to be hospitalized.
BDD affects approximately 2 percent of
the population and is more prevalent than
schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Despite its
prevalence and severity, scientists know
relatively little about the neurobiology of
BDD.
NEW CULPRIT BEHIND ALZHEIMER’S AMYLOID PLAQUES?
Most researchers believe that Alzheimer’s disease is caused by one of two proteins, tau and betaamyloid, that either disrupt signaling between neurons or simply kill them as we age. A new UCLA
study suggests a third possible cause: iron accumulation.
Dr. George Bartzokis, a professor of psychiatry at the Semel Institute, and his colleagues looked at
two areas of the brain in patients with Alzheimer's. Using sophisticated brain-imaging techniques,
they compared the hippocampus, which is known to be damaged early in the disease, and the
thalamus, an area that is generally not affected until the late stages. They found that iron is increased in the hippocampus and is
associated with tissue damage in that area. But increased iron was not found in the thalamus.
The destruction of myelin, the fatty tissue that coats nerve fibers in the brain, disrupts communication between neurons and
promotes the buildup of amyloid plaques, Bartzokis said. These plaques in turn destroy more and more myelin, disrupting brain
signaling and leading to cell death and signs of Alzheimer's. Myelin is produced by cells called oligodendrocytes. These cells, along
with myelin, have the highest levels of iron of any cells in the brain, Bartzokis says, and circumstantial evidence has long supported the
possibility that brain iron levels might be a risk factor for age-related diseases like Alzheimer's. Although iron is essential for cell
function, too much iron can promote oxidative damage, to which the brain is especially vulnerable.
The sudy isn’t all bad news, Bartzokis said. The accumulation of iron in the brain may be influenced by modifying environmental
factors, such as how much red meat and iron dietary supplements we consume. In addition, medications that chelate and remove iron
from tissue are being developed by several pharmaceutical companies as treatments for the disorder.
www.friendsofthesemelinstitute.org
FALL 2013
Introducing our new
board members
The Board of the Friends
elected Ms. Shelley Singer
and Ms. Joan Steier to the
Board at its August meeting.
Welcome Shelley and Joan!
Good
reads
THE SCIENCE OF MAKING FRIENDS
Friendship comes natural to many of us. But for some, it’s a painful struggle -especially for those with autism, depression, ADHD or other social impairments.
That’s where Dr. Elizabeth Laugeson and her PEERS team come in.
How do you introduce
yourself to someone
you don’t know at a
party? Or join a group
already engaged in a
lively conversation?
Social savvy isn’t
something you’re just
born with, nor is it an
estoteric art form.
“Social skills are more of a science than an
art. They can be studied and taught,” said
Elizabeth Laugeson, Ph.D., a UCLA associate
clinical professor of psychiatry who presented
her new book, “The Science of Making
Friends,” during a recent Open Mind Lecture at
UCLA.
Laugeson’s book is based on nearly a decade
of experience in helping hundreds of
adolescents and young adults cultivate satisfying
friendships with guidance and support from
UCLA PEERS (Program for the Education and
Enrichment of Relational Skills), which she
founded at the Semel Institute in 2004 and
continues to direct.
Friendships are essential for long-term health
and happiness, Laugeson said. Having one or
two close friendships early in life, research has
shown, is linked to improved self-esteem and a
better ability to cope with life’s ups and downs.
Said Laugeson of PEERS participants, “It’s
not that our kids don’t want to make friends.
They just don’t know how to.” Many children
find their way to the program after suffering
years of teasing, bullying or outright neglect by
other kids. But they make great strides in
PEERS, a social skills training program
conducted in a group format for 12 to 14 weeks.
“We’re not teaching them what we think they
should do in social situations, but what we know
from research actually works,” Laugeson said.
This is sometimes quite different from advice
kids get from their well-meaning parents. For
example, parents commonly suggest starting a
conversation with somebody new by
straightforwardly introducing yourself and
shaking hands – an approach, Laugeson said,
that’s awkward and usually ineffective.
PEERS teaches kids to create conversations
by “trading information.” “Share a little about
yourself and ask the other person some
questions,” PEERS trainers will explain.“Try to
find common interests, which are the
foundation of friendship.”
Learn more about PEERS and upcoming
sessions for children from preschool through
adolescence as well as young adults at the
website: www.semel.ucla.edu/peers.
The Friends recommends
these books on topics of the
brain and mind:
Breaking the Silence
by Mariette Hartley
I’m Walking as Straight as I
Can: Transcending Disability in
Hollywood and Beyond
by Geri Jewell, Ted Nichelson
and Patty Duke
Breakpoint: Why the Web will
Implode, Search will be Obsolete,
and Everything Else you Need to
Know about Technology is in
Your Brain
by Jeff Stibel
Social: Why Our Brains are Wired
to Connect
by Matthew Lieberman
The Friends of the Semel Institute
for Neuroscience and Human
Behavior at UCLA
Vicky Goodman
Founder and President
Patty Evans
Executive Director
Andrew Leuchter, M.D.
Faculty Advisor
Copyright 2013
Friends of the Semel Institute
www.friendsofthesemelinstitute.org
NON-PROFIT ORG.
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
UCLA
405 Hilgard Ave.
Box 175919
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1795
The mission of the Friends of the Semel Institute is twofold: To educate
the public about illnesses of the mind and brain; and to support state-ofthe art research to develop new treatments and cures.
Join us
Contribute
Your annual membership enables
the Friends to continue to provide
compelling, informative Open
Mind programs as a free public
service to the Los Angeles
community. Annual membership of
at least $100 qualifies you for
reserved seating at all Open Mind
events.
Your donations support the Friends’
mission to inform the public about
issues of the brain and mind through
the Open Mind lecture series. Your
contributions also help to reduce the
stigma of mental and
neurological
disorders, and
support young
scientists doing cutting-edge research
at the Semel Institute for
Neuroscience and Human Behavior.
Join the Friends, update your membership or make a secure online donation
through our website: www.friendsofthesemelinstitute.org. Or mail a check to Friends of
the Semel Institute, 760 Westwood Plaza, 57-440, Los Angeles, CA 90024.
For more information, contact Executive Director Patricia Evans by email at
[email protected] or call 424-214-3851.
How else
you can help
With the holiday season upon us, your
grocery shopping will benefit the Friends
when you register your Ralphs Rewards
Card in the Community Contribution
Program. Go to www.ralphs.com and
open an account linked to your rewards
card. Click on Community, then
Community Contribution. Scroll down
to Participant (that’s you) and follow the
instructions to select the Friends of the
Semel Institute as your charitable
recipient. This annual program runs
from Sept. 1-Aug. 31. Even if you
registered last year, you must register
your card again this year.