The Speculist

Over the weekend we learned that the weight loss drug Acomplia (rimonabant) might be helpful in controlling a variety of compulsive or addictive behavior.

Scientists are now studying whether the drug will be useful in helping smokers and drug addicts.

Rimonabant is the first in a new class of drugs that target certain receptors on the surface of brain cells that are part of the endocannabinoid system, which helps regulate food intake and energy expenditure. In particular, the drug blocks the cannabinoid type 1 receptor, which is the same receptor that is active when people smoke marijuana and get hungry. The receptors also are found on the surface of fat cells.

People who overeat are believed to have an overactive cannabinoid system. The same system is active in cocaine use and smoking. Preliminary research suggests that rimonabant may help people quit smoking as well.

As our understanding of the brain and its chemistry advances we can look forward to a world where more of our behavior and thought processes could be influenced by medicine.

A conspiracy theorist looking for something to worry about might remember that Ahmanson Lovelace Brain Mapping Center at UCLA is trying to understand the differences between liberal and conservative brains.

[In reporting the initial tests, Iacoboni] said the amygdala -- an almond-sized region of the brain that processes emotions such as fear -- was more active among Democrats when watching scenes of violence than among Republicans viewing the same material. It did not matter whether the images promoted a Democratic or Republican position or candidate

The worry is that if we ever understand the difference, someone could chemically modify a political partisan. Tabloid Headline:

Fortunately for everyone, it appears that it would not be that simple.

...in the second batch tested in the fall, both Democrats and Republicans responded with greater emotion. This suggests a real difference in time frame. The first subjects were tested when the election wasn't so close. The 9-11 Commission hadn't happened yet. The reports about Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq hadn't come out. Neither had the movie 'Fahrenheit 9-11.' The second group was tested after these things, during the season of the conventions. Voters were getting more excited, and their responses were stronger."

In other words, said Jonas Kaplan, a colleague of Iacoboni's and collaborator on the project, "Republican brain activity looked more like the Democrats'."

My guess is that the party out of power - or in fear of being put out of power -tends to be emotional. What makes us liberal or conservative remains, thankfully, a mystery.

My more immediate concern is whether Acomplia would help me with my compulsion: