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Pittsburgh Oktoberfest returns with food, music and Ferris wheel
Pittsburgh's annual Oktoberfest celebration has officially kicked off with German-inspired food, drinks and entertainment in the heart of downtown Pittsburgh through Oct. 11.
MSSM to Host Public STEM Night
The Maine School of Science and Mathematics in Limestone is hosting a STEM Discovery Night tonight.
UK author and politician Jeffrey Archer dies aged 86
Jeffrey Archer, the best-selling British novelist and former politician who was jailed for lying in a high-profile libel case, has died aged 86, his publisher HarperCollins said on Monday.
Executive MBA Grad Garners Industry Honors
The Daily Journal of Commerce has recognized Caitlin Powell, MBA '24, as one of its Women of Vision for 2026.
Teaching students scientific-storytelling skills to inspire change
The senior capstone course ESCI 191 equips environmental-science majors with digital-storytelling skills to translate complex climate data into compelling narratives to immerse and engage the public.
Physicians Committee Applauds New Guidance on Animal Use From the National Cancer Institute
In August, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) published new guidance on grant applications for studies involving animal experiments. This guidance requires researchers to justify their use of animals in the publicly available abstract section of applications and encourages them to use human-based methods.
Tony Gilroy on leaving the politics of ‘Andor’ behind for his 9-composer music drama ‘Behemoth!’
Tony Gilroy’s “Behemoth!”.
US says foreign financial institutions doing business with Iran may be sanctioned without notice
WASHINGTON, Oct 5 (Reuters) - The US Treasury Department said on Monday it was alerting foreign financial institutions that continue to do business with Iran or its financial sector that they may be sanctioned by Washington without advance notice.
Fox Creator Studios Hires Senior Executives
Bryan Thoensen and Kirsten McAuliffe join the media company as it seeks to push further into the creator economy.
Send us your questions for Texas Senate candidate James Talarico
Calling all Texas Republicans, Democrats, and Independents! Are you a registered voter in Texas? Then submit questions for CNN & Jubilee’s Town Hall with James Talarico on Wednesday, October 14 and engage in a direct conversation with the Texas Democratic Senate candidate on the issues that matter most to you.
Candidates to field questions at San Joaquin Delta College forum on Tuesday
The forum will be held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the college’s Dawn Mabalon Forum. It is free and open to the public.
Trump’s midterm messaging undercuts GOP candidates
Many Republican candidates have found themselves in surprisingly competitive races
Trump’s midterm messaging undercuts GOP candidates
Many Republican candidates have found themselves in surprisingly competitive races
Ted Cruz Says JD Vance’s ‘Political Bomb-Throwing’ Shows He’s ‘Insecure’ Ahead of 2028 Election
While Vice President JD Vance might have been floated as a potential frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination in the 2028 election, Senator Ted Cruz is doing his part to keep the party’s...
Maloy and Udell clash on Utah's public lands in 3rd District debate
Republican Celeste Maloy and Democrat Kent Udell also offered competing approaches to energy, water, and wildfire management.
What hospice work taught me that politics never will
In hospice, the person comes before the politics, a lesson that could make public life more humane.
Mail mystery: Astoria businesses, City Hall report spotty delivery, missing packages
Inconsistent mail delivery in Astoria has attracted the attention of Oregon's U.S. senators, especially as midterm elections near.
California scientist wins a Nobel Prize, then makes school lunches for his kids
Dr. Karl Deisseroth spent hours fielding congratulatory calls after learning that he had won a Nobel Prize for medicine for helping to open a new field of brain science called optogenetics.
Sen. Tillis says his vote for Hegseth was 'biggest regret of my career' in new book
Republican Sen. Thom Tillis says in a new book that his deciding vote to confirm Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in January 2025 is the “biggest regret of my career” and that he also “should’ve stopped” Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from becoming Health and Human Services secretary in the early days of President Donald Trump’s second term.
Enterprise Veteran to Mentor Oregon Consulting Group
Oregon Executive MBA alumnus Todd Grigsby, MBA ’00, has joined the University of Oregon as Professor of Practice and faculty director of the student-run Oregon Consulting Group (OCG) at the Lundquist College of Business.
Judge allows student IDs as fallback for NH voters
A federal judge ruled New Hampshire election officials may consider student IDs as voter identity evidence when no other ID is available, despite a law barring ...
CSUN in D.C. Internship Expands Student’s Public Health Career Aspirations
For Josiah Morrow, a three-month internship in Washington, D.C., turned the nation’s capital into a classroom — and helped shape his future in healthcare.
Mexico Raises Science Funding 111% to Drive Tech Projects
Mexico increases science and technology funding by 111%, supporting 1,340 new projects to strengthen national technological capabilities.
Health officials issue urgent warning after four Utah deaths tied to herbal supplements
Utah health officials issued a public health warning after four deaths across the state were linked to certain herbal supplements, including kratom products and
Will R.I. voters, elected officials continue investing in life sciences?
Rhode Island starts in a strong position and has the ingredients needed for innovation and growth. What we don’t have yet is a long-term commitment, writes the CEO of the RI Life Science Hub.
Ted Cruz Says JD Vance Is ‘Feeling Insecure’ amid ‘Political Bomb-Throwing’ Ahead of 2028 GOP Primary
“In my experience, people engage in political bomb-throwing when they’re feeling insecure,” the Texas Republican said of the vice president over the weekend
Opinion: Pay for performance, not for politics
North Carolina should link teacher pay growth to hard-to-staff roles and performance, not seniority, credentials or political pressures, columnist John Hood arg...
Opinion: Pay for performance, not for politics
North Carolina should link teacher pay growth to hard-to-staff roles and performance, not seniority, credentials or political pressures, columnist John Hood arg...
American Heart Association Lobbies on Health, Tobacco, Nutrition
The AHA's lobbying disclosure outlines priorities on health care, tobacco, Medicare and Medicaid, agriculture and government issues. Read more.
Enabling, Denying, and Spiking the Proverbial Political Football
ANDOVER TOWNSHIP – Republicans are claiming victory over a proposed data center. But it really isn’t that simple. As one critical observer noted on a Stop Andover Data Center social media page: It was the all-Republican township committee that “opened the door (to a data center) in the first place.” This is a local issue to be sure,[...]
Angela Paxton’s ‘whole team’ ad gets politics totally wrong
Ken Paxton was the elephant in the room she failed to mention. Republicans know he's a dead weight on the party.
Orlando Science Schools begins enrollment process for six regional campuses
Orlando Science Schools is accepting applications for 2027-28, including new 11th grade spots at Seminole Science.
Best Entertainment Stocks To Watch Now
Warner Bros. Discovery, Autodesk, DraftKings, Verizon Communications, and Spotify Technology are the five Entertainment stocks to watch today, according to MarketBeat's stock screener tool. Entertainment stocks are shares of publicly traded companies involved in producing, distributing, or deliveri
Your Vote 2026 Maine Calling candidate interview: Bobby Charles, Republican for governor
Maine Calling host Jennifer Rooks interviews Republican gubernatorial candidate Bobby Charles ahead of the November election.
Democrats expand target list as polls point in their favor
Democrats are expanding the number of Republican-held House seats they hope to flip in November as polling moves in their favor ahead of the midterm elections. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced Monday that it added six candidates to its “Red to Blue” program, bringing the total to 46. The program provides candidates with strategic […]
Trump is clearly trying to buy votes with taxpayer money
President Donald Trump is ramping up his efforts to use taxpayer money and resources to help Republicans win the 2026 midterm elections.
New York and American Democracy: A Conversation with Christina Greer
Noted political scientist will unpack urban politics and public policy with Professor Mitchell Moss - Oct. 20 at NYU Wagner
Justin Bibb’s new Blue Cities/Red States coalition seeks the ‘radical center’
Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb is launching Blue Cities/Red States, a 15-mayor coalition aimed at showing Democrats can govern effectively even when Republicans control their statehouses.
Harris County judge candidates find common ground on flooding, Houston Health, at Sunday forum
Democratic candidate Letitia Plummer and Republican candidate Orlando Sanchez shared the stage at a forum organized by The Metropolitan Organization on Sunday, October 4.
Hoptoberfest and Art Walk combined for art, entertainment, and fun
COLDWATER, MI. - Downtown Coldwater was filled with hundreds of visitors Friday evening, Oct. 2, as Hoptoberfest and the annual Art Walk combined to create an evening of art, entertainment, and fun.
St. Louis County issues political sign placement reminders
St. Louis County Public Works staff will remove any signs that are illegally placed.
Former White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt lands her next gig as Fox News contributor
Leavitt follows Kayleigh McEnany, the former press secretary who joined Fox in 2021.
Henning Willers: Inspiring Correlative Science Talks on Radiation and Immunotherapy at RadRes2026
Henning Willers: Inspiring Correlative Science Talks on Radiation and Immunotherapy at RadRes2026 / Anthony Nguyen, cancer, Everett Moding, Henning Willers,
After a legal battle, Marylanders will vote on future redist...
Marylanders will vote on Question 3 in November after the state’s highest court cleared a revised redistricting amendment for the ballot.
Whole Hog Politics: Audience capture and the GOP’s #content trap
You did not, I hope, have to take any notice of an empty online furor over Arkansas’s Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’s campaign ad that cast a young, white male as a welfare freeloader redeemed from sloth by...
OPINION: Pay for performance, not for politics
The North Carolina General Assembly approved substantial pay increases for public schoolteachers earlier this year. If a bipartisan commission has its way, teacher compensation will soar over …
Dennis Hastert, longtime Republican House speaker who went to prison, dies at age 84
Dennis Hastert, who served as House speaker longer than any other Republican but later was sent to prison in a hush-money case, has died. The Kendall County, Illinois, coroner said
‘A five-alarm fire’ confronts President Trump in red-state October blitz
The midterm elections were just two days away the last time a sitting president visited Grand Island, the fourth-largest city in the middle of one of the nation’s most reliably Republican states.
'Here & Now' Highlights: Charles Franklin, Jason Stein
A month before the 2026 election, the Marquette Law School Poll shows candidates for governor neck-and-neck — poll director Charles Franklin explained where voters stand and why. Enrollment caps for ...
Weaner Pig Breakeven at $22.46, Up $12.25 From Last Week
When you consider that today’s purchased weaner would be sold in March 2027 using April 2027 futures, the weaner breakeven was $22.46, up $12.25 for the week, and $0.57 below the average cash price for the week of $23.03.
Hamilton County Public Health reports first human West Nile virus case
Officials said the evidence supports that the person, who lives in the Symmes Township area, was likely bitten by a local mosquito
Hamilton County Public Health reports first human West Nile virus case
Officials said the evidence supports that the person, who lives in the Symmes Township area, was likely bitten by a local mosquito
Science in French? Bien sûr!
As English dominates the publication landscape, support for French-language research is a strategic investment in the quality, equity and the future of knowledge.
Chevron elevates CFO to head oil and gas operations
HOUSTON, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Chevron Chief Financial Officer Eimear Bonner will become president of the US oil producer's oil, products and gas business, the company said on Monday.
Nobel for medicine awarded to 3 scientists for work that helps map the brain
A method that controls nerve signals with light, developed by an American and two Germans, has provided greater understanding of Alzheimer’s and is used in efforts to restore sight.
Dennis Hastert, longtime Republican House speaker who went to prison, dies at age 84
Dennis Hastert, the nation’s longest-serving Republican House speaker, whose own political legacy was forever fouled by allegations that he molested high school
Dennis Hastert, longtime Republican House speaker who went to prison, dies at age 84
Dennis Hastert, who served as House speaker longer than any other Republican but later was sent to prison in a hush-money case, has died.
Dennis Hastert, longtime Republican House speaker who went to prison, dies at age 84
Dennis Hastert, who served as House speaker longer than any other Republican but later was sent to prison in a hush-money case, has died.
Dennis Hastert, Powerful Politician Disgraced by Child Sexual Abuse, Dies
The longest-serving Republican speaker of the House admitted in 2016 to abusing teenage boys decades earlier. He was 84.
Jeffries says House Democrats aiming to repeat 2018 sweep by flipping Trump districts
The Democratic Party is working to expand the map by going on offense in Republican-held districts, while President Donald Trump hits the trail in a red-state sprint to boost voter enthusiasm and shore up support from his base.
See photos from the final day of Aftershock 2026
See photos from performances by Oleander, Dance Gavin Dance and others during the final day of Aftershock.
Apple Releases MagSafe 3 Charging Cable Firmware Update
For the first time since February 2023, Apple has released a firmware update for the MagSafe 3 charging cable for the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. Specifically, Apple last week released firmware version 3.2.0 for the USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable. The previous firmware version for the cable was 3.1.12. It is unclear what is included in the latest firmware, as Apple does not publish release notes for this.
Why your health insurance problem might not be over when you turn 65
Couples with an age gap have an extra consideration: How to continue coverage for the younger spouse who’s not yet eligible for Medicare.
Health Brief: Exclusive | Inside the new health price transparency rules
Plus: Trump’s checks to Medicare enrollees could complicate year-end health care negotiations,
PEN America: Nearly 12,000 school book bans in a year, a record high
A new study from PEN America reveals that there were nearly 12,000 book bans in public schools over the past year, the highest since tracking began five years ago | WBBM Newsradio 780 AM & 105.9 FM
PEN America: Nearly 12,000 school book bans in a year, a record high
A new study from PEN America reveals that there were nearly 12,000 book bans in public schools over the past year, the highest since tracking began five years ago | Talk 1370
PEN America: Nearly 12,000 school book bans in a year, a record high
A new study from PEN America reveals that there were nearly 12,000 book bans in public schools over the past year, the highest since tracking began five years ago | KNSS Radio
PEN America: Nearly 12,000 school book bans in a year, a record high
A new study from PEN America reveals that there were nearly 12,000 book bans in public schools over the past year, the highest since tracking began five years ago | Talk Radio 1210 WPHT
PEN America: Nearly 12,000 school book bans in a year, a record high
A new study from PEN America reveals that there were nearly 12,000 book bans in public schools over the past year, the highest since tracking began five years ago | 1010 WINS
PEN America: Nearly 12,000 school book bans in a year, a record high
A new study from PEN America reveals that there were nearly 12,000 book bans in public schools over the past year, the highest since tracking began five years ago.
Digital Science appoints Charlesworth as strategic sales partner of Altmetric and Dimensions in China’s scholarly publishing sector
Digital Science has appointed Charlesworth as its strategic sales partner of Altmetric and Dimensions in China’s scholarly publishing sector. This collaboration aims to support the growing demand for research data and information across this rapidly developing market.
George L․ Kumar: Six Biology Breakthroughs Stockholm Missed
George L․ Kumar: Six Biology Breakthroughs Stockholm Missed / Ben Barres, cancer, Colin MacLeod, Ernest McCulloch, George L. Kumar, James Till, Kavli Prize,
ACSH in the Media: Yahoo News, RealClear, Science & Culture, and More
From cancer and cannabis to perverse research incentives, we’ve been busy confronting nonsense. Here’s a roundup of recent media appearances and pickups featuring ACSH experts across the web, including coverage in Yahoo News, RealClearHealth, RealClearScience, and Science and Culture.
Samsung One UI 9 Rollout: These Galaxy Phones Are Getting Android 17
Samsung’s One UI 9 rollout is expanding. See which Galaxy phones are getting Android 17, which devices are next, and how to check for the update.
Pope Francis' diaries to be published next month, revealing reflections on Vatican years
Pope Francis' journal entries from his time in the Vatican and years before will be published this fall | WBBM Newsradio 780 AM & 105.9 FM
Pope Francis' diaries to be published next month, revealing reflections on Vatican years
Pope Francis' journal entries from his time in the Vatican and years before will be published this fall | Talk 1370
Pope Francis' diaries to be published next month, revealing reflections on Vatican years
Pope Francis' journal entries from his time in the Vatican and years before will be published this fall.
Democrats release midterms ad featuring family of Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre
The campaign arm working to elect House Democrats released a political advertisement on Monday featuring the family of Virginia Giuffre, who was the first victim of Jeffrey Epstein to go public with allegations of abuse.
October 2026: Open Enrollment Starts Today
The 2027 insurance open enrollment is October 5-30, 2026. Changes made during this period will take effect January 1, 2027.
Innovation That Solves: From Business Needs to AI Solutions
Targeted AI innovation transforms business challenges like hydrocarbon compliance into effective technological solutions, writes Jorge Mandujano.
2026 HCD Conference + Expo Preview: Designing Community-based Public Health Campuses
Explore design and planning strategies for public health facilities ahead of the 2026 Healthcare Design Conference in New Orleans.
Business Ingenuity Gives Birth to Edgy, an AI Agent Educated in the Theory Behind Natural Synergy™ to Show Leaders Where Their Organizations Are Headed
SAN FRANCISCO, October 05, 2026--Business Ingenuity, Inc. today announced the availability of Edgy, an AI agent educated using Natural Synergy: From Natural Mystery to Mastery, co-authored by co-founder Charles Follett and Ray Scott and available on Amazon. Edgy analyzes an organization through its public footprint and its own people, then tells executives which Operating State the organization occupies, which direction it is being driven, and what adjustments would improve its performance.
Fiserv Small Business Index Shows Small Business Sales Rise in September as Back-to-School Lifts Retail
Index rises to 146 as sales increase +2.2% year over year and +0.7% month over month MILWAUKEE, Oct. 05, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fiserv, Inc. (NASDAQ: FISV), a leading global provider of payments and financial services technology, today published the Fiserv Small Business Index for September 2026,
Gallery of Unearthing the Ground: Architecture and the Politics of Waste - 2
Image 2 of 15 from gallery of Unearthing the Ground: Architecture and the Politics of Waste. Fresh Kills Park. Image © USEPA Environmental-Protection-Agency - December 6, 2012 via Wikipedia under Public Domain
‘An anchor’: Oakshire fans celebrate, grieve as business prepares to shut down
Oakshire Public House has been a gathering space in the Whiteaker neighborhood since 2013 and holds many individual and community memories. Oakshire as a company is closing, but it plans to transition the Public House to a new company in the next two months, keeping the location open through the process.
'Totally Spies!' Expands Licensing with Apparel and Jewelry Deals
Banijay Kids & Family announces new "Totally Spies!" licensing agreements spanning apparel, jewelry and publishing as the franchise marks 25 years.
Medicare-for-all is back. Now comes the hard part.
Democrats are reviving an old idea. Now they have to define it and pay for it.
Florida commissioner’s social media on science standards aims for attention
The big story: When Henry Mack III became Florida’s education commissioner in the summer, public education advocates expressed high hopes for the positive way he kicked things off with school official...
Yale School of Medicine On the Science of Childhood Anxiety, Say, Anxiety Disorders Are the Most Common Mental Health Challenges In Youth
Credit: Matt Bradbury October 5, 2026 - By Isabella Backman - Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health challenges in youth. Left untreated, they can disrupt the lives of both children and their families. The good news is that with intervention, most children will overcome these conditions. Across Yale School of Medicine, scientists are working to understand anxiety at every level, from common anxious behaviors to molecular biomarkers in the brain. They are using their findings to develop and disseminate new evidence-based treatments for childhood anxiety. Today, the go-to treatment for childhood anxiety disorders is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This is a form of psychotherapy that teaches children skills for confronting anxious thoughts and helps them practice managing situations that cause anxiety. While it is the gold-standard treatment backed by considerable scientific evidence, up to 50% of children will not see sufficient benefit from CBT alone. Wendy Silverman, PhD, Alfred A. Messer Professor in the Child Study Center, co-directs the Anxiety and Mood Disorders Program alongside Eli Lebowitz, PhD, associate professor in the Child Study Center. One of their main interests is learning how to improve outcomes beyond CBT. “We’re developing cutting-edge, research-based knowledge that can reduce the suffering that anxiety causes children and their families,” says Silverman. Changing parent behavior YSM experts are investigating how to improve CBT outcomes for children by involving the parents. Silverman’s research has uncovered two main components of parent intervention that improve childhood anxiety: not enabling children to completely avoid the things that make them anxious and taking steps to enhance their autonomy. Parents may unintentionally reinforce their child’s anxiety by allowing them to avoid what makes them anxious. They also may unintentionally limit the children’s sense of autonomy by being overly intrusive. “One of the things that we take pride in is that we’ve focused on trying to understand what parents need to do, and to test our ideas and see if changing the parents’ behaviors is enhancing the effects of CBT,” Silverman says. “Our findings thus far suggest that they do." As much as CBT can be helpful, it can also be challenging to get one’s child to do the necessary steps for CBT to work. This is one important reason why Lebowitz created a novel intervention program for parents named Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE). Existing intervention programs often teach parents to act as therapists for their child, such as training them on how to practice breathing exercises. “It makes sense, but this doesn’t work very well in practice,” says Lebowitz. “And part of the reason, I think, is that it’s not easy to get your kid to do things, especially if they’re not excited about doing it.” SPACE is unique because it focuses entirely on parent involvement and changing parental behavior—children are not involved in the sessions. For example, parents learn how to use supportive messages that convey confidence that their child can tolerate and manage distress. “It might sound like a parent saying to a child, ‘I get that this is really hard for you, but I know that you can handle it,’” Lebowitz says. The program also works with parents to identify the ways in which they are accommodating anxious behaviors. “We’ll pick one thing that parents are doing that is an accommodation and help them make a detailed plan for how they’re going to change that,” Lebowitz explains. Treating Anxiety in Children and Adolescents Much of the existing research on SPACE has focused on parents of children under age 14. Ongoing studies are now exploring its use with parents of older teens. “Both anxiety and accommodation can interfere with normative developmental shifts during the teen years, including increased autonomy and individuation from parents,” says Rebecca Etkin, PhD, associate research scientist in the Child Study Center. “In this sense, SPACE may be particularly well-suited for anxious teens and their parents. We want to see whether it is effective during this distinct developmental window.” Unfortunately, many families in need of CBT face barriers, including limited availability of services and geographic constraints. One way to improve access is digital interventions. Silverman and her team are developing an evidence-based digitized intervention program for parents that they can access directly from their computer or smart phone. “The work we’re doing will be one of the very few parent interventions that is digitized and importantly tested for effectiveness,” she says. Creating interventions for anxiety-related challenges Silverman and Lebowitz recently received a generous gift to develop and test other interventions that help parents reduce other child anxiety-related behavioral and emotional difficulties, such as restrictive eating and unexplained somatic symptoms. One of these projects in particular focuses on understanding the risks of social media and its potential benefits, including offering a sense of connection. “A lot of research has focused on the idea that social media is harmful and the less of it the better,” says Lebowitz. “But we actually see is that this is not quite right—there are negatives, but there are also positives. So, we’re trying to get a little bit more nuanced of a picture.” The team is working with teens with social anxiety and their parents over an extended period to better understand their social media habits and how their anxiety levels affect engagement with different platforms. The teens will answer questions sent to an app on their phones about mood and social media usage in an effort to capture emotional responses as they unfold. “We hope to develop interventions that can help make the best of social media while protecting against the more problematic effects,” Lebowitz says. The brain’s role in anxiety Researchers are also testing therapies to address anxiety at the neurological and molecular levels. In collaboration with Dylan Gee, PhD, professor of psychology in Yale's Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and Hilary Blumberg, MD, John and Hope Furth Professor of Psychiatric Neuroscience at Yale School of Medicine, Lebowitz and Silverman are using brain imaging to identify changes in a child’s brain before and after parents enroll in SPACE. In one study, children viewed anxiety-inducing images while undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); the researchers conducted scans with and without the children’s parents nearby. Before SPACE, children’s brains were better able to activate the regulatory circuitry needed to turn off an anxious response when their parents were nearby. But after SPACE, children could activate this circuitry even without the parent around. “As parents work on gradually reducing some of their accommodations, you can see a child get better at regulating their own fear system in the brain,” Lebowitz says. “It’s remarkable.” Research into the molecular underpinnings of anxiety can also inform new childhood anxiety treatments. In a recent study, Lebowitz, Silverman, and Flora Vaccarino, MD, Harris Professor in the Child Study Center, discovered that a protein known as fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2) could be protective from the toxic effects of stress. FGF2 levels in children and their parents were linked to the children’s risk of developing anxiety and depression, the study showed. The findings could help explain why some children who are exposed to early life trauma such as poverty or abuse are more prone to developing mental health disorders. And FGF2 could be a target for treatment. “This is very novel because it starts to give a clue to what is the molecular chain that connects those lived experiences to the actual psychological outcomes,” Lebowitz says. New ways to study and treat childhood anxiety Michael Crowley, PhD, associate professor in the Child Study Center, collaborates with Silverman and Lebowitz to study the role that attention plays in development and maintenance of childhood anxiety. There is a large body of research that shows that anxious children, like anxious adults, are prone to focus on threatening stimuli such as angry faces compared with neutral faces. This has led to innovative interventions that involve attention retraining. The idea is that if experts train children to look away from threatening stimuli, it may reduce their anxiety—especially children with social anxiety who are most prone to attend to threats. The researchers have just completed a clinical trial for attention retraining with 10- to 14-year-olds with social anxiety disorders and are currently analyzing the findings. Besides this innovative attention retraining research, as Crowly notes, “I like to design tasks that are engaging to kids,” Crowley says. “My goal is to assess something without the kids knowing what we are assessing.” With this goal in mind, Crowley has created a virtual game, named Boom, to study threat processing in children with anxiety disorders. The game is similar to that of hot potato—the child and three digital players take turns virtually passing a ball to each other’s gloves. At some point, the ball turns into a bomb, and as the bomb lands in each player’s glove, the outline of the glove turns yellow. The goal is to avoid having the bomb go off in your glove. What isn’t obvious is that the game is designed to measure different types of threatening stimuli, both ambiguous and direct. In the game, the direct threat occurs as the bomb is traveling towards your glove. The ambiguous threat is the yellow outlined glove as it is unknown where the bomb will travel next. While children play the game, Crowley’s team measures their brain activity using electroencephalography (EEG). The researchers have discovered that in kids with anxiety, the brain reacts more strongly to ambiguous threats than it does in their peers, but less strongly to direct threats. They believe that the initial abnormally large brain response to not knowing where the bomb is going impairs the brain's ability to properly respond when the threat is actually traveling the child’s way. “The brains of children with anxiety are unable to differentiate between threats you need to do something about and those that are not your problem.” Michael Crowley, PhD, develops innovative games for studying anxiety in children and adolescents.Credit: Matt Bradbury Based on these insights, Crowley hopes to study whether interventions like attention training could restore appropriate threat processing. Crowley’s team is also working on a test called the Balloon Risk Avoidance Task, which evaluates risk-taking and avoidance behaviors. It features a digital balloon that is full of air and about to burst. Kids have six seconds to let air out of the balloon. The more air they let out, the less risk they face that the balloon will pop. But at the same time, the balloon becomes less valuable as it deflates. “The more air you keep in the balloon, the more points you get,” Crowley explains. So far, the researchers have found that when the balloons pop unexpectedly, teens with social anxiety show distinct brain responses. Studying these responses can help psychologists understand the underlying pathways driving the various manifestations of anxiety. The genetics of anxiety When Thomas Fernandez, MD, associate professor in the Child Study Center and of psychiatry, was still in training, there was a lot of excitement about understanding the genetics associated with autism spectrum disorder. Since then, scientists have identified around 250 genes associated with autism. The genetic contribution to anxiety disorders, on the other hand, has historically received less attention. Anxiety is less heritable than autism, but the genetic contribution for anxiety disorders that emerge in childhood may be higher than for anxiety disorders overall. While scientists estimate the heritability of anxiety disorders in general to be around 30% to 50%, some studies suggest higher heritability for certain childhood-onset anxiety presentations. “I saw firsthand how researchers in the field went about finding vulnerability genes for autism,” Fernandez says. “So, we’re using a very similar playbook for childhood anxiety.” “I saw firsthand how researchers in the field went about finding vulnerability genes for autism. So, we’re using a very similar playbook for childhood anxiety.” Thomas Fernandez, MD Associate Professor In the Child Study Center and in Psychiatry Now, Fernandez and Emily Olfson, MD, PhD, assistant professor in the Child Study Center, are studying children and their parents to identify genetic changes that are present in the child but not the parents, known as “de novo mutations.” “All of us have some de novo mutations—maybe about 50 to 100 sprinkled throughout the genome,” Olfson says. “But when they occur within the coding regions of genes, they can be really disruptive.” Previous research shows that people with autism have higher rates of damaging de novo mutations than the general population. In 2022, Olfson, Lebowitz, Silverman, and Fernandez published a study on 68 children and their families that found that children with anxiety had similarly high levels of these mutations. Studying de novo mutations can help point the researchers to where they should be looking for genes associated with anxiety. “The end game is using the genes to steer us toward the right part of biology that we can then target to come up with better treatments,” Fernandez says. Building on those findings, the team is now studying more families to better understand how these de novo mutations, along with other genetic and environmental factors, shape pediatric anxiety disorders. They recently received a National Institutes of Health grant to enroll 750 new families over the next five years. Olfson is the principal investigator, with co-investigators Lebowitz, Fernandez, Silverman, and Shuangge Steven Ma, PhD, department chair and professor of biostatistics at Yale School of Public Health. Neurodevelopment, Risk Genes, and Mental Health Conditions - The Olfson Lab Joel Gelernter, MD, Foundations Fund Professor of Psychiatry, is interested in how different anxiety disorders differ genomically. “We are studying social phobia, panic disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder, working to understand why people differ in their risk to these specific anxiety disorders and evaluating various risk factors,” he says. Gelernter was recently involved in one of the largest studies to date of the genomics underlying anxiety disorder. The study included around 122,000 people with anxiety disorders and around 730,000 without. It found that some genetic differences associated with anxiety were linked to signaling that helps reduce overactivity in the nervous system. Many anxiety medications available today work by targeting this process. “It’s nice when the biology that you get out of a large genome-wide study ratifies things that we already know because that can help increase confidence in further findings from the study,” Gelernter says. Uncovering the neurobiology of psychiatric disorders John Krystal, MD, Robert L. McNeil, Jr. Professor of Translational Research and chair of the Department of Psychiatry, is interested in the neurobiology of psychiatric disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), of which anxiety is a major symptom. In the late 1980s, Krystal’s team discovered that the drug yohimbine activated symptoms in patients with PTSD. “This was the first time we could link a specific biological mechanism to the symptoms of PTSD,” Krystal says. At the time, he adds, this finding was highly controversial. “A lot of people felt that PTSD was a purely psychological syndrome that didn’t have an underlying biology.” Since then, Krystal has dived deep into understanding the neurobiology of PTSD to learn how to better treat it. His team is evaluating the use of ketamine and psychedelics. These would be among the first treatments to be developed specifically for PTSD. They may also be applicable for other disorders including anxiety disorders, Krystal adds. An important gap in PTSD treatment is the absence of biological tests that inform how to best help patients manage their PTSD symptoms. A doctor doesn’t diagnose cancer based on how they feel. Rather, they use tests of the biology of the cancer to determine the best course of treatment. “And we can’t do that in any psychiatric disorder other than Alzheimer’s disease,” Krystal says. “But now we are building a foundation for this approach to the treatment of anxiety disorders for the first time.” Source: Yale School of Medicine
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