[bvFTD]

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

"Late Life Bipolar Disorder Evolving into Frontotemporal Dementia Mimic"

"Conclusion:

Symptoms fitting the criteria for possible behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia may be present in end stage of bipolar disorder. An alternative neurodegenerative nature seems unlikely based on repeated normal neuro imaging and the absence of clinical progression. Functional involvement of the frontal-sub cortical networks might play a role."

[kikki]

Thanks for sharing this link bvftd

"Most profound was their lack of insight and empathy. All four displayed disinhibition and stereotyped behavior, "

"A possible link between bipolar disorder and bvFTD has also been suggested by case reports on patients presenting with manic symptoms as a first manifestation of bvFTD and patients with a lifetime diagnosis of bipolar disorder evolving into bvFTD. This large clinical overlap in social cognition, executive disturbances, and behavioral profiles might be explained by the involvement of common functional neuroanatomical networks"  (just as we have often discussed on this board)

"The condition fulfilling criteria for possible bvFTD failing to convert to probable bvFTD over time is labeled benign bvFTD phenocopy syndrome. These patients exhibit behavioral and functional impairments consistent with a frontal lobe syndrome but fail to progress over time and have no frontal or anterior temporal atrophy or hypoperfusion at follow-up. Although an alternative explanation is generally lacking in these cases, end-stage bipolar disorder may be one of the underlying causes of this syndrome, with a male predominance as in our cases."

[Velika]

Wow, Kikki, so interesting.

bv, your post about the ALS viral symptoms led me to come across articles about the role of retrovirus HERV-K in diseases. It sounds like this is actually a virus that lives in the RNA? I just started investigating but was curious if you had read anything about this. It certainly speaks to the hereditary component.

[bvFTD]

Yes, I came across that theory a little while ago, too.

NIH

"Dormant Viral Genes May Awaken to Cause ALS"

" . . . reactivation of ancient viral genes embedded in the human genome may cause the destruction in some forms of ALS. The result, suggests a link between human endogenous retro viral genes (HERVS) and ALS.
. . . raise  the question of whether antiretroviral drugs, similar to those used for suppressing HIV, may also help some ALS patients."

The article goes on to say that humans have been passing on genetic remnants of ancient HERV infections, but the genes for these viruses were considered junk DNA, but motor neurons may be susceptible to activation of those genes in ALS.

I am just glad they are finally climbing out of their silos they've been in for 100 years, or is it that alternative theories that have been around for a long time are only now being given some credence and funding?

You cited a researcher studying bacteria as the cause for some neurodegenerative diseases: others are looking at common viruses. Regardless, I think we are still on the right track of thinking inflammation and the autoimmune system are still involved. The body starts attacking the pathogen but does not stop. I am still fascinated by the thought there could also be a fungal link, or who Knows, maybe a devastating combination of events that begins the fatal cascade.

[kikki]

Just found a piece of information that has been troubling me ever since the early days.  My MLCer (when I finally knew about the OW), said that she made him 'feel safe'.  How on earth could that be when they barely knew each other?  And what was this new found need to feel safe when he had never had this need prior?
I finally have the answer to that below:

https://www.bphope.com/blog/bipolar-disorder-and-the-marriage-go-round/

Of course I was also hypersexual and I thought we were in love. The hypersexuality, I later found out, was really a deeper cry for safety and calm. Researchers have found that the brains of people with bipolar disorder lack the homeostatic regulation necessary between the amygdala and other parts of the brain. Furthermore, chemicals released during arousal generate a sense of safety in the brain. Of course it doesn’t last long, so it creates an addictive pattern of behavior … hence—hypersexuality …

[bvFTD]

Kikki:

It's kind of hard to describe the feeling when the puzzle pieces finally fall into place: Relief? Satisfaction? Vindication? Peace? Or Resignation?

But I think it's always better to know than to be left wondering what the f^*k went so wrong.

[kikki]

You summed up those feelings very well bvftd.
Possibly also add in frustration, that it has taken this long for some of the puzzle pieces to make sense.

[Velika]

Kikki, wow this is so tragic. I find that when I can let go of my own anger and pain that is my dominant feeling. It is a tragedy.

[kikki]

Absolutely agree Velika. The pain of this train wreck and the cruelty towards us due to the new lack of empathy and strange thought processes, makes for a horror of an experience for us. Even though it's obvious that something has seriously gone amiss, it's nigh on impossible to be compassionate 100% of the time.  Especially when they are messing with our children's heads and hearts and our financial wellbeing. 

[Velika]

Brain’s “Brakes” Suppress Unwanted Thoughts
Researchers identify a new target for disorders such as PTSD and schizophrenia
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/brain-rsquo-s-ldquo-brakes-rdquo-suppress-unwanted-thoughts/

Everyone has unwelcome thoughts from time to time. But such intrusions can signal serious psychiatric conditions—from “flashbacks” in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to obsessive negative thinking in depression to hallucinations in schizophrenia. “These are some of the most debilitating symptoms,” says neuroscientist Michael Anderson of the University of Cambridge.

New research led by Anderson and neuroscientist Taylor Schmitz, now at McGill University, suggests these symptoms may all stem from a faulty brain mechanism responsible for blocking thoughts. Researchers studying this faculty usually focus on the prefrontal cortex (PFC), a control center that directs the activity of other brain regions. But Anderson and his colleagues noticed that conditions featuring intrusive thoughts—such as schizophrenia—often involve increased activity in the hippocampus, an important memory region. The severity of symptoms such as hallucinations also increases with this elevated activity.

In the new study, Anderson and his team had healthy participants learn a series of word pairs. The subjects were presented with one word and had to either recall or suppress the associated one. When participants suppressed thoughts, brain scans detected increased activity in part of the PFC and reduced activity in the hippocampus. The findings, which were published last November in Nature Communications, are consistent with a brain circuit in which a “stop” command from the PFC suppresses hippocampus activity.

Using magnetic resonance spectroscopy, the team also found that levels of GABA—the main chemical that inhibits signals in the brain—in participants' hippocampi predicted their ability to suppress thoughts. “If you have more GABA to work with, you're better at controlling your thoughts,” Anderson says. In other words, if the PFC contains the mental brake pedal, hippocampal GABA levels are the brake pads that determine how effectively the brain stops.

The study helps to bridge the gap between molecular neuroscience and human behavior—and how the process goes awry in disease. “It's a great step,” says neuroscientist Brendan Depue of the University of Louisville, who was not involved in the work. “The next step is to do a drug study,” Anderson says. “Could we make people better [at suppressing thoughts] by giving them drugs that enhance GABA?”