Thursday, November 29, 2007

The cure to pathological aggression?

Researchers in the Netherlands have been studying the aggressive behaviour in feral rats and have recently come up with a "cure" for this type of behaviour. Male feral rats are aggressive in nature however, they will not attack female rats or anesthetized male rats they don't see as a threat. The scientists altered the aggressive behaviour of the male feral rats be repeatedly exposing them to other weak male rats whom they were bound to win a fight with. After repeatedly winning these fights for weeks, the male rats seemed to become a lot more violently, attacking weak males and females that were put in it's cage.
The researchers noticed that the hyper-aggressive males had decreased levels of serotonin in their brains. Low levels of serotonin have been linked to violent behaviour, and unusually violent people have been found to have lower levels of serotonin in their spinal fluid.
Researchers then experimented with altering the serotonin levels in the rats. The use of certain compounds brought the rats serotonin levels and aggressive behaviour back in check. Similarly, the aggression behaviors of particularly docile rats could be brought back to normal levels. The compound does not make the animals drowsy or lethargic like tranquillizers, but simply alters their aggressiveness.
Although this could be a step towards unlocking the clues to pathological violence in humans, the researchers doubt the compound could work entirely because it only targets a single brain receptor. The study does help scientists further understand the connection between serotonin levels and violent behavior. Similar studies about aggression have been conducted, and soon we will perhaps have a better understanding of human and animal aggression.

Posted by: Emily King (10)

18 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:57 AM

    Have you ever considered publishing an e-book or guest authoring on other sites?

    I have a blog centered on the same topics you discuss and would really like to have you share some stories/information.
    I know my viewers would value your work. If you're even remotely interested, feel free to send me an email.

    Review my blog post :: http://garciniaultrablog.com/

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous8:10 PM

    I visited several blogs but the audio feature for audio
    songs current at this web page is genuinely excellent.


    Feel free to visit my page; way to make money online

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous10:26 AM

    Thanks for another excellent article. The place else may anyone
    get that kind of info in such a perfect method
    of writing? I've a presentation subsequent week, and I'm
    on the look for such information.

    Here is my page - Green coffee info

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous11:27 AM

    If you wish for to get much from this paragraph then you have to apply such methods to your won blog.



    payday loan

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous12:36 PM

    Do you have a spam problem on this website; I also am a blogger, and I was curious about your situation;
    many of us have developed some nice practices and we are looking to trade
    solutions with other folks, be sure to shoot me an e-mail if
    interested.

    online profit master

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous1:12 PM

    Hey There. I found your blog using msn. That is a really
    well written article. I will be sure to bookmark it and come back to learn more
    of your helpful info. Thanks for the post. I'll definitely comeback.


    e-cig

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous3:52 PM

    I do agree with all of the ideas you've introduced on your post. They're very convincing and can
    certainly work. Still, the posts are too quick for newbies.
    May just you please prolong them a little from subsequent time?

    Thanks for the post.

    My blog post :: Ultra SLim Patch Review

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous3:58 PM

    I got this web page from my friend who shared with me about this
    web page and now this time I am browsing this web site and reading very informative content at this place.


    Also visit my weblog - Lean Muscle Formula

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous4:06 PM

    hello there and thank you for your info – I've definitely picked up something new from right here. I did however expertise several technical issues using this web site, as I experienced to reload the website lots of times previous to I could get it to load properly. I had been wondering if your web host is OK? Not that I'm complaining, but slow loading instances times will very frequently affect your placement in google and
    can damage your quality score if advertising and marketing with Adwords.
    Anyway I am adding this RSS to my e-mail and could look out for much more of your
    respective exciting content. Ensure that you update this again very soon.


    my webpage - fast cash loans

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous4:39 PM

    What's Happening i'm new to this, I stumbled upon this I have discovered It absolutely useful and
    it has aided me out loads. I hope to give a contribution & aid
    different users like its aided me. Great job.


    Feel free to surf to my homepage ... Work form home

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous5:59 PM

    I really like your blog.. very nice colors & theme.
    Did you design this website yourself or did you hire someone to do it for you?
    Plz reply as I'm looking to design my own blog and would like to know where u got this from. thanks

    Feel free to visit my site: Power Pump XL

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous6:23 PM

    My brother suggested I might like this web site.
    He was entirely right. This submit actually made
    my day. You can not imagine simply how much time I had spent for this info!

    Thank you!

    my homepage Androsolve Muscle

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous7:58 PM

    I love your blog.. very nice colors & theme. Did you design
    this website yourself or did you hire someone to do it for you?
    Plz answer back as I'm looking to construct my own blog and would like to know where u got this from. many thanks

    anti-aging cream

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous8:27 PM

    Hi there! I just wish to offer you a huge
    thumbs up for the excellent information you have
    got right here on this post. I will be coming back to your blog for
    more soon.

    My web site acai ultralean

    ReplyDelete
  15. Anonymous8:28 PM

    If some one needs to be updated with newest technologies after that he must
    be pay a visit this web page and be up to date every day.



    Feel free to surf to my web site; Weight loss formula

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous1:53 AM

    Pretty component to content. I just stumbled upon your
    website and in accession capital to claim that I acquire actually enjoyed account your blog posts.

    Anyway I'll be subscribing to your feeds and even I success you get right of entry to constantly quickly.

    Here is my webpage :: Blast Male

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous2:18 PM

    Howdy! Do you use Twitter? I'd like to follow you if that would be ok. I'm definitely enjoying your blog
    and look forward to new updates.

    Feel free to surf to my blog - Online HOme Careers Review

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous11:07 AM

    Hello, i think that i saw you visited my web site thus i came to
    “return the favor”.I'm trying to find things to enhance my web site!I suppose its ok to use some of your ideas!!

    buy testostrong

    ReplyDelete