John W. Olney
John William Olney (born October 23, 1931 in Marathon , Iowa , † April 14, 2015 in St. Louis , Missouri ) was an American psychiatrist and neuropathologist . He was the John P. Feighner Professor of Psychiatry and Professor of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University in St. Louis . Olney was a member of many scientific associations, including the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences and recipient of scientific honors.
Act
Olney became known, among other things, for his research into damage to the brain caused by glutamate , aspartame and cysteine . His publications on aspartame (a sweetener widely used in the food industry ) include 34 different studies. He was involved in over 80 studies to investigate glutamate, many of which were in the lead. A total of approximately 500 publications are known. Many of his studies have also been published in the leading scientific newspapers in the USA and Great Britain ( Science , Nature ).
In 1996, Olney et al. a study with the (translated) title: Rise in Brain Cancer Rates - Is It Related to Aspartame? , which also caused a sensation in Europe. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), however, has been speaking of aspartame since 2002. In 2003, the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment was unable to confirm any connection between the metabolic substances aspartic acid, phenylalanine and methanol with undesirable effects such as headaches, allergies, neuroendocrine changes, epilepsy or brain tumors.
Olney's lesions
Olney's lesions are brain damage caused by neurotoxic doses of noncompetitive NMDA antagonists ( channel blockers ), some of which are known as dissociative drugs .
In experiments on mice, rats and monkeys, Olney discovered small cavities or injuries ( lesions ) primarily in posterior cingulate and retrosplenial areas of the cortex.
A corresponding human-toxic effect is based on experience reports that z. B. Describe learning and memory disorders, close. However, neuroscientific human research in this context remains fundamentally a difficult undertaking.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Obituary: John W. Olney, 83, professor of psychiatry and neuropathology. Washington University in St. Louis, April 15, 2015, accessed July 30, 2016 (American English).
- ↑ Olney, JW et al. (1996): Increasing brain tumor rates: is there a link to aspartame? In: J. Neuropathol. Exp. Neurol. Vol. 55, pp. 1115-1123. PMID 8939194
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Olney, John W. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Olney, John William (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American psychiatrist and neuropathologist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 23, 1931 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Marathon , Iowa |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 14, 2015 |
| Place of death | St. Louis , Missouri |