April 27, 2016 – Networks

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Anchor lead:  How do brain networks impact on mental illness? Elizabeth Tracey reports

Brain networks, parts of the brain that talk with each other, may be critical to understanding mental conditions and illnesses, including ADHD, a recent study concludes.  Constantine Lyketsos, director of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Bayview, explains the concept.

Lyketsos: The brain operates through networks.  And what networks means is that different parts of the brain that are separated in space they talk to each other very closely.  So that region A, that’s next to region B, might be talking much more often to region C that’s far away, as opposed to region B, which is right next to it.   :21

And these may indeed explain much.

Lyketsos: It is probably true that major diseases like schizophrenia, like bipolar disorder, are either reflecting network dysfunction or are causing network dysfunction.  ADHD being this last example, it stands to reason that people who have ADHD will have networks that look different.  :19

At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.