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takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

Wish you could get rid of bad memories? Scientists say they may have found the key [sacbee.com]

[Scientists] say they have found the key chemical that helps our brains inhibit [...] unwanted, intrusive memories [nature.com] [open, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-00956-z] [DX [doi.org]]. That's a big deal, because the discovery could help pioneer new ways to help people get past debilitating thoughts, according to a new study published in Nature Communications this week.

So what's the key? It's a neurotransmitter called GABA — a chemical in the brain that sends messages between nerve cells, according the study's author, Michael Anderson, a professor at the University of Cambridge. Anderson and the rest of his research team revealed in the study that GABA levels within the hippocampus — a vital part of the brain when it comes to memory — are strong predictors of whether or not you can block unwanted thoughts from resurfacing.

Think of GABA as foot soldiers in the hippocampus, Anderson said in a statement [cam.ac.uk]. Their mission? To block your intrusive thoughts. You and your brain's prefrontal cortex (the brain's "master regulator") are the commander of that brigade of neurotransmitter troops, the researchers wrote. But if you don't have enough GABA soldiers on the ground in your hippocampus to block the things your prefrontal cortex doesn't want to think about, you're probably going to keep thinking about them.

"When this capacity breaks down, it causes some of the most debilitating symptoms of psychiatric diseases — intrusive memories, images, hallucinations, ruminations, and pathological and persistent worries," Anderson said.

γ-Aminobutyric acid [wikipedia.org]: That's another ingredient for my homebrewed soma mix.

Also at BBC [bbc.com] and Newsweek [newsweek.com].

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