TIME.com Features PTSD Research Finding of NARSAD Scientific Council Member
NARSAD Scientific Council Member Kerry J. Ressler, M.D., Ph.D., led scientists in a discovery of why women may be more vulnerable to PTSD than men. Dr. Ressler and his team found that levels of the hormone-like molecule PACAP were higher in patients with PTSD than patients without PTSD. Further testing revealed the association between PACAP and PTSD was significant only in women.

Circadian Rhythm and Blues: The Interface of Depression with Sleep and Dreams
Depression is a disorder of waking life. At least, that’s our common presumption. Although insomnia is among its diagnostic criteria, depression is generally understood in terms of disrupted function and mood in waking life. Extensive evidence, however, suggests that depression is rooted deeply in our nights. In fact, insomnia and depression are so strongly linked, some experts believe they are flip sides of the same disorder – what we might think of as a depression-insomnia complex.

Effects of Depression on Quality of Life Improvement After Endoscopic Sinus Surgery
Depression is a common problem in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and negatively impacts patients’ symptom burden, ability to function, and quality of life (QOL), according to new research published in the March 2011 issue of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery.

Natalie Portman, Oscar Winner, Was Also a Precocious Scientist
The Intel Science Talent Search is considered the nation’s most elite and demanding high school research competition, attracting the crème de la milk-fats-encased-in-a-phospholipid-and-protein-membrane of aspiring young scientists. Victors and near-victors in the 69-year-old contest have gone on to win seven Nobel Prizes in physics or chemistry, two Fields Medals in mathematics, a half-dozen National Medals in science and technology, a long string of MacArthur Foundation “genius” grants – and now, an Academy Award for best actress in a leading role.

by Barbara Wheeler, NARSAD manager of communications and media relations