resonance Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 Manic mice Mice engineered to lack a specific gene showed behaviors similar to human mania in a study funded in part by NIMH; they were hyperactive, slept less, appeared less depressed and anxious, and craved sugar, cocaine and pleasure stimulation. The rodents' behavior was more normal after lithium treatment or restoration of a functioning CLOCK protein, which the knocked-out gene codes for. The article says this is similar to human mania, and it sounds like it's similar enough to tell us useful stuff, although the mice don't sound bipolar, just manic or pseudo-manic. The CLOCK protein is involved in circadian rhythms. And so here is some interesting stuff on circadian rhythms in bipolar disorder, and on how lithium works, from Jim Phelps' Psych Education site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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