| | |  Health & Beauty | September 2009 
Drug to Erase Bad Memories Could See the End of Troubling Flashbacks
 Ryan Kisiel - UK Daily Mail
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September 16, 2009
| | Memories: Scientists could one day develop a drug to get rid of bad memories such as soldiers traumatised by the horrors of war. | |
A memory-cleansing drug that has the ability to remove any recollection of unhappy or embarrassing incidents could be developed by scientists.
Childhood teasing, the unpleasant experience of losing a pet and the upsetting memories of a failed love affair could all be wiped from people's minds.
The possibility of a memory drug for human consumption has been raised following successful animal trials by Andreas Lüthi, of the Friedrich Miescher Institute in Switzerland.
If manufactured, a pill that selectively wipes memory would mimic the plot of the Oscar-winning film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, in which Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey use a pill to erase memories of their soured love affair.
During the latest research, animals had been given a drug that dissolves a barrier around the amygdala - the almond-shaped organ in the brain where mammals store their memories of fear.
It was found that after receiving treatment, laboratory animals stopped being scared of sounds associated with electric shocks, indicating the memories had been erased.
Humans share the same organ in the brain and scientists have argued that the drug could work on patients.
Although the prospect of a drug to wipe out troubling memories is attractive to many, for others it raises medical and ethical questions.
Some critics fear the prospect of good or useful memories accidentally being lost during treatment while for others there is the danger of misuse.
Joseph LeDoux, professor of neuroscience at New York University, said human brains had similar sheaths and that drug treatment and therapy could help human sufferers 'overwrite' memories with happier thoughts.
The treatment could also be used to ease soldiers with post-traumatic stress disorder or people who suffer from severe phobias related to bad memories.
LeDoux, who specialises on biological reactions to fear, said: 'Any soldier with post-traumatic stress I’ve talked to would have been willing to sacrifice a few normal memories for the bad ones they may get rid of if these experiments are successful.'
Ashok Hegde, a neurologist at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, said a past episode of public mockery is the main memory that most people would want erased.
She said: 'Public humiliation is a constant source of lingering memories.'
But Dr Hegde said many bad memories, such as the death of a pet or an unsuccessful love affair faded naturally over time.
She added: 'Most bad memories fade by themselves, but good memories remain more intense and stronger for a lot longer.' |
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