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posted by Fnord666 on Sunday October 21 2018, @02:19PM   Printer-friendly

Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:

In a new study, scientists from Imperial College London investigated how a recently discovered hormone called kisspeptin alters brain activity in healthy volunteers.

The hormone, known as the master regulator of reproduction, not only has a crucial role in sperm and egg production, but may also boost reproductive behaviours.

In the new research, the scientists investigated how the hormone affects the brain when it is 'at rest'. So-called resting brain activity is the state our brain enters when not concentrating on a task, and is akin to a car ticking over in neutral. Studying this 'neutral', resting state is crucial for understanding what happens when the brain is active, and the car accelerates. Furthermore, studying the resting brain allows scientists to examine large brain networks they know are abnormal in various psychological disorders, and see if certain hormones or drugs can affect this.

In the study, published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation Insight, the hormone was shown to change activity in key brain networks at rest, which was linked to decreased sexual aversion, and increased brain activity associated with sexual arousal. The scientists also observed that the hormone boosted several networks in the brain involved in mood and depression. Professor Waljit Dhillo, an NIHR Research Professor and senior author of the study from Imperial's Department of Medicine said: 'Although we have previously investigated how this hormone affects the brain when it is in an active state, this is the first time we've demonstrated it also affects the brain in its baseline, resting state. These insights suggest the hormone could one day be used to treat conditions such as low sex drive or depression'.

[...] [Co-Author] Dr Comninos concluded: "We have conducted previous studies that showed kisspeptin can activate specific brain areas involved in sex and emotions. However, this study enhances our knowledge of the hormone even further. Our findings suggest it can actually influence entire networks in the brain even when we are not doing anything, and this is linked to subsequent sexual and emotional function. Taken together, these findings provide the scientific basis to investigate kisspeptin-based treatments in patients with psychosexual and mood disorders, which are both huge health issues, and frequently occur together."

The team are now hoping to further investigate how kisspeptin affects sexual behaviours, and translate this work into patients with psychosexual and mood disorders.

-- submitted from IRC


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  • (Score: 0, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday October 21 2018, @05:46PM (7 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday October 21 2018, @05:46PM (#751726)

    The last thing men need is to feel more horny.

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  • (Score: 2) by takyon on Sunday October 21 2018, @09:43PM

    by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Sunday October 21 2018, @09:43PM (#751776) Journal

    Depends. A gigolo might need this. Wealthy men and women will have plenty of sex slaves companions to choose from in the post-employment era. If you want to get a leg up on the competition, you need to be ready to go, day and night.

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  • (Score: 2) by linkdude64 on Sunday October 21 2018, @10:31PM (3 children)

    by linkdude64 (5482) on Sunday October 21 2018, @10:31PM (#751793)

    Yeah when I read, "Fix problems such as low sex drive" the red flags and warning bells went off - if you're in a sexless marriage you have deeper problems that "forced" sex will only make worse, because there will be no connection there, and the "If this doesn't fix it, nothing will!" mentality will cement in; equally troublesome is the medical concept of "low sex drive." I can hear the doctors diagnosing young women with that like young boys are diagnosed with ADD now: "What? You aren't twerking and wearing revealing clothing like a liberated woman would? Oy vey! Here's your medication!"

    • (Score: 3, Touché) by takyon on Sunday October 21 2018, @10:55PM

      by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Sunday October 21 2018, @10:55PM (#751799) Journal

      Why does there need to be a diagnosis? Just let people take what they want.

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    • (Score: 2) by Bot on Monday October 22 2018, @07:34AM (1 child)

      by Bot (3902) on Monday October 22 2018, @07:34AM (#751897) Journal

      >because there will be no connection there
      no connection in sex? I am curious about your copulation at a distance technique.

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      Account abandoned.
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 22 2018, @09:09AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 22 2018, @09:09AM (#751911)

        Zeus was quite good at those, I heard.

  • (Score: 2) by Bot on Monday October 22 2018, @07:32AM

    by Bot (3902) on Monday October 22 2018, @07:32AM (#751896) Journal

    In your twenties:
    he: cmon!
    she: not in the mood sry

    In your fifties:
    she: cmon!
    he: not in the mood sry

    --
    Account abandoned.
  • (Score: 2) by aim on Monday October 22 2018, @11:13AM

    by aim (6322) on Monday October 22 2018, @11:13AM (#751932)

    The question is, what's the equivalent hormone working on the female brain?