Methamphetamine Increases, and HIV Decreases, Brain Volumes
In a study that confirmed the association between HIV infection and loss of brain volume, NIDA-funded investigators also found an association between methamphetamine addiction and increased regional brain volume. Each type of volume change was associated with neurocognitive impairments, but it was unclear whether the two together caused any cognitive effects beyond the sum of what each produced individually. Using structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), Drs. Terry L. Jernigan, Anthony C. Gamst, and colleagues at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) mapped the major gray-matter