[deep toke]

US IA: This Is Your Lizard On Drugs
URL: https://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v06/n483/a08.html
Pubdate: Fri, 14 Apr 2006
Source: Scarlet & Black (IA Edu)
Copyright: 2006 The Scarlet and Black/Grinnell SPARC
Contact: newspapr@grinnell.edu
Website: https://www.grinnell.edu/sandb/

THIS IS YOUR LIZARD ON DRUGS

Clark Lindgren, Biology, Is Conducting Research On Lizards To Further Investigate How Nerves In The Brain Communicate And Discovered That Endocannabanoid Occurs Naturally In The Human Body

Clark Lindgren, Biology, took a circuitous scientific route to teaching and researching biology-first studying physics, then physiology, then neurobiology and finally joining the Grinnell Biology department in 1992.

Now his career has taken another unexpected turn. His most recent research concerns a chemical dear to many college students: cannabis.

This year, Lindgren is on his third sabbatical and is researching an area so new that he and his student research assistant, Zach Newman '08, have had to construct their own equipment.

All of Lindgren's research revolves around deciphering the way nerves in the brain communicate, a job that requires dissecting hundreds of lizards, isolating certain nerves and seeing how they react to electrical stimulation.

"The really interesting thing that we've just discovered is that [a naturally occurring chemical] muscarine causes the release of another chemical, endocannabanoid," he said. "I don't know if you've heard the word cannabanoid. Have you heard of cannabis?"

The active ingredient in marijuana is a naturally occurring chemical in the human body, so nerves in the brain are naturally receptive to it. Bodies react physiologically and humans feel high when they consume cannabis.

"We don't have that receptor because we were one day discovering we could smoke grass," Lindgren said. "But it certainly explains why it can have such a profound effect on mood, on memories, on all those things."

It took scientists so long to discover this phenomena because cannabis is fat-soluble, making it very difficult to work with in the lab. Over the summer, Lindgren and Newman set up the research lab by hodge-podging together a fluorescence microscope, a digital camera and a metal tray called "The Robot."

In the midst of the nuts, bolts and wires of the expensive lab machinery, Lindgren points to a small clip held together with donated dental wax. That miniscule clip suspends a lizard nerve in the center of the machines. "This is where the biology happens," Lindgren said.

The work with cannabis and lizard nerves is helping to explain why the human brain works the way it does. Lindgren describes the communication between brain nerves as a conversation.

"But when we have all the nerves in the brain, it's like a party ... there are so many conversations going on at once that you can't understand what anyone is saying," Lindgren said. "But what if you could take two of those people at the party and put them in a separate room all by themselves? Then you could study their conversation."

Discovering that the human mind is naturally receptive to the active ingredient in marijuana is one step toward figuring out that larger conversation.

Lindgren arrived at the junction of lizards and cannabis after many years of schooling. He began at Wheaton College as a physics major. But during one memorable lab involving the dissection and electrical stimulation of frog nerves, he fell in love with physiology.

"If there was ever an 'Ah-ha!' moment, it was then, when I walked into the lab and actually saw on this instrument the phenomena of nerve impulse," Lindgren said. "I can't really describe it in words, but it was sort of like this really deep connection between a phenomena that's responsible for how brains work ... and you're able to look at it with the same sort of device you would use to troubleshoot your radio if it was broken."

Lindgren has spent his life studying this intersection between technology and biological life.

The author of his physiology textbook had an M.D., so Lindgren decided he, too, would go to medical school.

"I was totally clueless ... I went off thinking medical school was going to be the answer to my intellectual yearnings ? I knew where I wanted to end up, but I didn't know how to get there."

Lindgren soon got his education sorted out and graduated with a Ph.D. in physiology and took up postdoctoral schooling at Duke.

After a few months of pre-graduation panic when his job applications turned up no offers, Lindgren found a position at Allegheny College in Pennsylvania and three years later moved to Grinnell.

"I thought the most intellectually stimulating thing a scientist could do was be a researcher, but ? Students come in and ask questions that nobody would ever ask, because they're not quite as blinded by the theories and the preconceived notions of people in the field."

Lindgren's current research has not yet been published, but he hopes it will appear in the Journal of Physiology before the end of the year.

Man you can dig some cool stuff up!!

Go man.........go!

[ogrefugee]

teresting

[.♠.]

O.k. so this is quite a ways away from my grasp of this subject, but......

Since they have proven that cannabinoids naturally occure in the human brain, would this not be a great point for legalization.

Or will they outlaw our brains now?.......lol.

there's opiate and dopamine receptors in your brain too. Should cocaine be legal? I think not.

[.♠.]

Hey settle down there...no need to talk down to me. Like I stated it is above my understanding...hence the question.

Isn't a naturally occuring chemical and a receptor designed for a specific reason two different things?

Don't forget the tryptamines Like DMT and 5-MEO-DMT produced by the Pineal Gland.

Why is it that everyone thinks I'm always talking smack??!!

Dude....I'm just whipping out a fact. And I followed up by a quesiton which is to get you to think if that's really the kind of information you'd try to convince the government with.

I dunno....people always think I talk poo.

[.♠.]

SeñorSativa_OG - I aparently misinterpreted your post. For that I apologize.

I must say that your delivery is what made me think you were being a little nasty. Upon re-reading it I can see it as you have stated, but before it just came across as blunt and a bit rude.

So to answer the question... I also do not think it a wise idea to legalize coke, or most "hard" drugs for that matter. Whether they are found naturally in the body or not.

It is interesting though that so many of the substances that we all crave are naturally present in the body in one capacity or another.

Keep on Keepin' on Señor!

Peace

[bloodshot]

Now his career has taken another unexpected turn. His most recent research concerns a chemical dear to many college students: cannabis.

Never knew cannabis was a chemical...lol.