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"Look at me!" we might say while attempting to
engage our children. It turns out there is a
neurochemical explanation for why looking at mom or
dad actually helps kiddoes pay better attention.
Researcher report that norepinephrine, a fundamental
chemical for brain performance, is locally regulated
in a brain region called the visual cortex. Before
this study, research suggested the possibility of
local regulation of norepinephrine release, but it
had never been directly demonstrated. Norepinephrine
is known to be involved in paying attention. A
certain amount of this chemical needs to be released
for optimum brain performance and ability to pay
attention. So, if there is either too much of it or
too little of it, it may affect how we process
information. Disease states in which norepinephrine
is known to be altered include substance use
disorders, Alzheimer's disease, post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD) and
attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In
some substance use, Alzheimer's and ADHD, the
release of norepinephrine is reduced, resulting in
lower attention. In other substance use and PTSD,
the level is too high. The researcher’s findings
also extend to cells called astrocytes that function
as helper cells in the brain and central nervous
system. When a person makes a movement, such as
turning the head to listen to a parent, and that is
combined with visual stimulation, then more
norepinephrine is released where visual information
is processed and another important, thing is that
astrocytes can reliably detect the rate of
norepinephrine release. They are sensitive to it, in
other words. Astrocytes alter their response
accordingly, which is expected to change brain
performance. The researcher said that Understanding
norepinephrine release, its local regulation, and
the astrocyte response may represent a mechanism by
which one could enhance sensory-specific attention. |