SCIENCE NOTES

Fear And Cannabis

Marijuana's active ingredient may help erase bad memories, according to a
study published in Nature this week.

Researchers from the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, in Munich,
Germany, report that molecules known as cannabinoids may play a key role in
being able to forget traumatic events. The molecules circulate in certain
regions of the brain.

Mice that did not have a receptor in the brain for cannabinoids had trouble
forgetting the association between a tone and a shock.

When memories are being erased, the amygdala, known as the fear center for
the brain, becomes filled with cannabinoids.

Findings from the study could help with drugs to combat phobias and
post-traumatic stress disorders. Producing more cannabinoids in the
amygdala could help alleviate anxiety attacks.