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27 April 2013 | NewScientist | 31 quite often see people who are both mentally and physically ill. In the calcium channel example, it may help explain why we often see patients with both heart disease and mood disorders. Another tantalising finding is the involvement of the major histocompatibility complex – a key part of the immune system – in influencing how susceptible people are to mental illness. Together with research into other immune-related genes in diseases such as Alzheimer’s, the idea that immune processes are involved in some psychiatric phenotypes is looking ever more solid. Powerful advances are also being made in using computer networks to model neuron biology and to build complex neuronal networks, which should produce interesting emergent properties. The European Union’s €1.1 billion Human Brain Project, for example, aims to understand the brain as a single system, integrating multiple levels of organisation – surely a key step towards preventing or curing psychiatric diseases. One of the biggest challenges will be to unite these disparate methodologies to tease apart the normal and abnormal working of the brain in schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, and the like, diseases that devastate the lives of so many and are so often associated with early death. So, in 2013, psychiatry has powerful scientific tools and a developing narrative that already points to strong theoretical bases. Yet, in the UK research into mental illness has stalled at around 5 per cent of the annual medical research budget, and the picture is similar in other rich countries. That will have to change – and governments and funders are starting to see this. The door is open: all that is needed is for more of the best to come in and find out just how hot psychiatry really is. n Nick Craddock is professor of psychiatry at Cardiff University Comment on these stories at newscientist.com/opinion Has the internet increased wildlife crime? Definitely. It makes it easier for those buying and selling live wild animals or their derivatives to contact each other, and it has globalised trade. Species that we previously only occasionally heard of being traded – rare newts, for example – we now hear about more and more. Campaign groups estimate the online illegal wildlife trade to be worth as much as £6 billion per year. Is that accurate? The difficulty with some of the surveys that have been carried out by campaigners is that it is not always possible to know whether the item you are viewing in an online advert is legal or illegal. Selling ivory objects produced before 1947 can be legal, for example. So often, non-governmental organisations can only discuss the probability that items are being offered for sale illegally. As law enforcement officers we have the power to investigate further to pin down whether something is actually lawful or not. So what is your focus in combating wildlife crime over the internet? We’re focusing on trying to work out the volume and scope of online trade. We’re also seeking to identify trends related to specific species and locations, investigate whether there are trade routes that overlap with those of other illegal trades such as drugs, and develop a framework for future monitoring of illegal activity. The internet is so vast that nobody can possibly find everything being bought and sold. But it is important to be able to estimate these trades accurately in order to tackle them effectively. Policing resources will only be made available if there is a proven need. How are most illegal online sales made? Most obviously, products are sold on auction sites. There is also trade through specialist sites such as those for bird of prey or reptile enthusiasts, in forums, and of course through social networking. We are also aware of people using the “dark net” – parts of the internet not accessible via search engines. Right now we're working out which parts One minute with... Christie Alldridge of the internet are the biggest problem areas, and which species and products need our attention, so we can best direct our efforts in the future. In 2009, eBay banned almost all ivory sales, yet campaign groups suggest illegal sales still take place on the site... Our intelligence suggests people do use false descriptions such as “faux ivory” or “ox bone” and other tactics to get around the ban, but we don’t yet know to what extent. If we identify that it’s a common practice on eBay – or other sites – we’ll work with those organisations to encourage them to develop preventative measures. The UK pulled out of an Interpol report on the European online ivory trade released last month. Why? The report collated information about online ivory adverts, both lawful and unlawful, but leaned towards implying a lot of it was unlawful. This does not reflect what we believe to be the case because a lot of the trade is in antique items. Interview by Nic Fleming Tracking the illegal trade in endangered species is no simple matter, explains the UK online wildlife law enforcement officer PAUL GROVER/REX PrOfiLe Christie Alldridge is an internet intelligence adviser at the UK’s National Wildlife Crime Unit, devising new tactics to fight unlawful online trading of plants and animals
