Femeia care nu stie ce este frica. Woman who cannot feel fear may help in treating PTSD

Doamnelor,nu va speriati,e doar un paianjen !

O femeie care nu poate simti frica din cauza unei structuri cerebrale inexistente  în creierul sau, ar putea ajuta oamenii de stiinta sa  descopere  tratamentul tulburarilor de stres post-traumatic (PTSD).

O cercetare publicata în revista Current Biology ,a arătat ca acea femeie nu a  simţit nici o teamă într-o varietate de situaţii  înfricoşătoare, care includeau expunerea la şerpi şi păianjeni uriasi , vizionarea unor filme de groază şi o plimbare printr-o „casa bantuita”.

Femeia simte alte emoţii, dar spune ca nu a avut niciodată simtamantul  fricii.

Ea este primul caz cunoscut al unei persoane care este imuna la  frica.

Cercetatorii din cadrul Universitatii din Iowa sunt de parere ca incapacitatea femeii de a simti frica, se datoareaza lipsei din creierul sau a unei structuri specifice, denumita in limbaj stiintific Amygdala.

Dupa parerea specialistilor, simpla supravietuire a acestei femei este un adevarat miracol, deoarece ea nu poseda abilitatea de a simti, si de a identifica si evita pericolele care o inconjoara, astfel incat se protejeaza de acestea doar rational.

Cercetatorii de la Universitatea  Iowa, din Iowa City, au observat şi înregistrat răspunsurile femeii în situaţii care ar face majoritatea oamenilor se simta frica.

Ea a privit o serie de filme horror,s-a dus intr- o casa bantuita si intr-un  magazin de animale de companie exotice  unde s-a jucat cu  şerpi pericul si  şi a cerut să se ocupe de o tarantula.

Pentru ca nu  a arătat nici o teamă, a trebuit să fie împiedicata să atingă tarantula din cauza riscului ridicat de a fi muscata.

Când a fost întrebată de ce ea a vrut să atingă ceva care stie este periculoasă, ea a răspuns că ea a fost depăşită cu curiozitate.

Cercetătorul Justin Feinstein a spus: „Este  remarcabil că ea este încă în viaţă.”

Oamenii de stiinta  spera ca prin studierea comportamentului acestei femei sa  poata înţelege modul în care  frica este perceputa de creier.

Acest lucru ar putea fi util în tratarea pacienţilor care suferă de PTSD – cum ar fi soldaţii din zonele de conflict.

Cercetatorii spera sa puna la punct  tratamente  selective pentru diverse  zone ale  creierului care sa poate permite tratarea fricii.

Woman who cannot feel fear may help in treating PTSD

A woman who cannot feel afraid because of a missing structure in her brain could help scientists discover treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Research published in Current Biology showed the woman felt no fear in a variety of scary situations.

These included exposure to snakes and spiders, horror films and a „haunted house”.

The woman feels other emotions but said as an adult, she had never felt afraid.

She is the first known case of someone who is unable to process fear.

Researchers at the University of Iowa said her inability to feel frightened was because she is missing a structure in her brain called the amygdala.

The structure has long been associated with emotional learning – experiments in animals have shown that removing it makes them fearless.

However, it has never been observed in a human before.

Tarantula risk

The woman experienced fear as a child and knows that some situations should be frightening.

As an adult she has been in various frightening situations, including being threatened with a knife and held at gunpoint

These did not make her afraid.

Researchers at the University of Iowa, in Iowa City, observed and recorded the woman’s responses in situations that would make most people feel fear.

She watched a series of horror films, went to a reputedly haunted house and to an exotic pet store – where she handled dangerous snakes and asked to handle a tarantula.

She showed no fear in any of the situations and had to be prevented from touching the tarantula because of the high risk of being bitten.

When asked why she wanted to touch something that she knows is dangerous, she replied that she was overcome with curiosity.

Lead researcher Justin Feinstein said: „Because she is missing her amygdala, she is also missing the ability to detect and avoid danger in the world.

„It is quite remarkable that she is still alive.”

Adam Perkins, a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London who specialises in researching the causal basis of anxiety and fear looked at the research.

He said the study was interesting because it suggested the amygdala is the neural seat of fear – and specifically responsible for generating feelings of fear, rather than emotions in general.

The researchers hope that by studying the woman they can understand how the brain processes fear.

This could be useful in treating patients suffering from PTSD – such as soldiers who have been serving in conflict areas.

Mr Feinstein added: „Their lives are marred by fear and they are often-times unable to even leave their home due to the ever-present feeling of danger.”

By studying the woman, researchers hope to create treatments that selectively target the brain areas that can sometimes allow fear to take over.

Sursa: BBC News

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