Are You Afraid of The Dark?

Whether it’s insects, public speaking, physical harm, or heights, most people in this world are generally afraid of at least one thing. These fears can sometimes be minor, making us feel a little bit frightened while watching a scary movie, or walking home late at night, or they can be quite large, stopping us from doing certain things and forcing us to live extra cautiously.

However, there are a select few people who don’t feel fear the same way that normal people do. Individuals inflicted with Urbach-Weithe disease, a rare genetic disorder, experience a number of symptoms, most notably the hardening of certain brain tissues. Depending on what parts of the brain are affected by the disease, the symptoms can widely range, including epilepsy, mental retardation, and the inability to cry.

One specific case has procured the attention of a number of scientists and has played a role in directing their research. This case has been incredibly important in brain research, and appears to have addressed the root of human fear. A woman from Kentucky, U.S.A, who is known only as SM, who suffers from Urbach-Weithe is incapable of feeling fear. Her inability to feel fear is due to the effect of the disease on her amygdala, an almond shaped part of the brain, long believed to be the only reason for fear in humans.

Highlighted red is the Amygdala.

J Hizzle via Flickr Creative Commons

Even though it was believed for years that damage to the amgydala would render someone “fearless”, a new study coming out of the University of Iowa suggests that these past studies may have been too narrow, and that fear may in fact be controlled by other parts of the brain along with the amygdala. The study focused on comparing the fear responses of three people with amygdalas affected by Urbach-Weithe disease to the fear responses of twelve people with no history of amygdala disease or damage. All participants were exposed to a gas mixture, which consisted of 35% carbon dioxide, which is known to create a panicked response in experiments.

The results astounded researchers, and generally rocked the foundations of scientists view the fear response in the brain. All three of the participants with Urbach-Weithe disease had immediate and panicked responses; their heart rates all rose, they all became incredibly distressed and they tried to rip off their gas masks. Shockingly, only three of the healthy twelve individuals experienced such panic attacks.

Ellen shows us how scaring people is done.

zsuzsu19 via Youtube

This study is incredibly exciting, because it shows that a fear response may not be controlled singularly by the amygdala, but instead may be controlled by many other parts of the brain. It also shows that we might be able to give a good scare to those deemed “fearless”.

A scary mask that some of you may recognize.

Bobbeyjazz via Flickr Creative Commons

Brian Kahnamelli