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15:30 Psychopaths may have a similar issue with their brains’ wiring as people who compulsively over-eat, reports the Metro.
A Harvard University study measured responses to immediate gratification and delayed gratification within a prison population.
They found that those who had been assessed as having high psychopathic tendencies also showed higher brain activity in the ventral striatum, which evaluates short-term rewards.
Professor Joshua Buckholtz said, ‘The more psychopathic a person is, the greater the magnitude of that striatal response. That suggests that the way they are calculating the value rewards is dysregulated – they may over-represent the value of immediate reward.’
‘We found that connections between the striatum and the ventral medial prefrontal cortex were much weaker in people with psychopathy.
‘If you break that connection in anyone, they’re going to start making bad choices because they won’t have the information that would otherwise guide their decision-making to more adaptive ends.’
12:45 Prime Minister Theresa May has just announced an inquiry into the contaminated bloods scandal, reports the BBC.
The huge failure, which killed 2,400 NHS patients in the 1970s and 1980s, saw swathes of patients given blood products infected with diseases such as hepatitis C and HIV.
The inquiry comes following lengthy campaigning for justice for those affected.
12:15 A study has found promising signs of an effective vaccine against sexually transmitted disease gonorrhoea, reports the Evening Standard.
The Lancet-published study said: ‘Exposure to MeNZB was associated with reduced rates of gonorrhoea diagnosis, the first time a vaccine has shown any protection against gonorrhoea.
‘These results provide a proof of principle that can inform prospective vaccine development not only for gonorrhoea but also for meningococcal vaccines.’
09:50 Totnes MP and former GP Dr Sarah Wollaston is going to continue chairing the House of Commons health committee following the general election.
Dr Wollaston, who was a GP in Torbay, Devon, until becoming an MP in 2010, has chaired the committee since 2014.
As the only nomination, @sarahwollaston will be declared elected as our Chair after the ballots on 12 July https://t.co/k9up02nFQU
— Health Committee (@CommonsHealth) July 7, 2017
