Name: Your brain is more than a bag of chemicals
Uploaded: 2013-03-12T15:01:55Z
Duration: 15 min 8 s
Description: Modern psychiatric drugs treat the chemistry of the whole brain, but neurobiologist David Anderson has a more nuanced view of how the brain functions. He shares new research that could lead to targeted psychiatric medications -- that work better and avoid side effects. How's he doing it? For a start, by making a bunch of fruit flies angry.

Modern psychiatric drugs treat the chemistry of the whole brain, but neurobiologist David Anderson has a more nuanced view of how the brain functions. He shares new research that could lead to targeted psychiatric medications -- that work better and avoid side effects. How's he doing it? For a start, by making a bunch of fruit flies angry.

Your brain is more than a bag of chemicals

Treating psychiatric disorders as simple chemical imbalances overlooks the brain’s real complexity. Unlike cancer, where concrete tests abound, a depression diagnosis often relies only on a questionnaire. Research with fruit flies reveals that brain chemicals like dopamine act on specific neural circuits, not everywhere at once. This targeted view could lead to more precise treatments for mental illness, with fewer side effects and deeper understanding.