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Scientific Reports Jun 2024Sporting experience plays a pivotal role in shaping exercise habits, with a mutually reinforcing relationship that enhances cognitive performance. The acknowledged...
Sporting experience plays a pivotal role in shaping exercise habits, with a mutually reinforcing relationship that enhances cognitive performance. The acknowledged plasticity of cognition driven by sports necessitates a comprehensive examination. Hence, this study delves into the dynamic intricacies of the prefrontal cortex, exploring the impact of orienteering experience on cognitive performance. Our findings contribute empirical evidence regarding the functional activation of specific brain regions bridging the nexus between experiential factors and cognitive capabilities. In this cross-sectional study, a cohort of forty-nine athletes was enrolled to meticulously examine behavioral variances and prefrontal cortex dynamics among orienteering athletes of varying experience levels across diverse non-specialized scenarios. These investigations involved the utilization of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to detect alterations in oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO2). The high-experience expert group exhibited neurological efficiency, demonstrating significantly diminished brain activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal, left ventral lateral prefrontal, and right orbitofrontal regions compared to the low-experience group. Within the low-experience novice group, superior performance in the spatial memory task was observed compared to the mental rotation task, with consistently lower reaction times across all conditions compared to the high-experience group. Notably, cerebral blood oxygenation activation exhibited a significant reduction in the high-experience expert group compared to the low-experience novice group, irrespective of task type. The dorsolateral prefrontal lobe exhibited activation upon task onset, irrespective of experience level. Correct rates in the spatial memory task were consistently higher than those in the mental rotation task, while brain region activation was significantly greater during the mental rotation task than the spatial memory task." This study elucidates disparities in prefrontal cortex dynamics between highly seasoned experts and neophyte novices, showcasing a cognitive edge within the highly experienced cohort and a spatial memory advantage in the inexperienced group. Our findings contribute to the comprehension of the neural mechanisms that underlie the observed cognitive advantage and provide insights into the forebrain resources mobilized by orienteering experience during spatial cognitive tasks."
Topics: Humans; Prefrontal Cortex; Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared; Cognition; Male; Female; Cross-Sectional Studies; Adult; Young Adult; Athletes; Brain Mapping; Oxyhemoglobins
PubMed: 38942820
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-65747-1 -
Urology Jun 2024To compare the outcomes of Ventral inlay buccal mucosal graft urethroplasty (VIBMGU) with dorsal onlay buccal mucosal graft urethroplasty (DOBMGU) for the treatment of...
OBJECTIVE
To compare the outcomes of Ventral inlay buccal mucosal graft urethroplasty (VIBMGU) with dorsal onlay buccal mucosal graft urethroplasty (DOBMGU) for the treatment of Female urethral stricture (FUS).
MATERIAL AND METHODS
This study included women who underwent either VIBMGU or DOBMGU between January 2016 and June 2023. The preoperative AUA symptom scores, maximal urinary flow rate (Qmax), post-void residual volume (PVR) on ultrasonography, and length and location of the stricture were obtained from a prospectively maintained electronic database. The data obtained from the patient's last visit was compared with the preoperative values for this study. The primary outcome was the success rate. The secondary outcomes were changes in AUA score, PVR, and Qmax. The patient's last follow-up visit was considered for the duration of the follow-up.
RESULTS
Seventy-three patients were treated for BMGU for FUS. Forty-six patients underwent VIBMGU, and 27 patients underwent DOBMGU. The median duration of follow-up was 27.5 11.00-55.00) versus 14 (7.00-17.00) months respectively. The success rates of VIBMGU and DOBMGU were 89.13% and 88.89% respectively. There was a reduction in AUA scores and PVR and an improvement in Qmax postoperatively in both groups. The difference in the reduction in AUA scores between the VIBMGU and DOBMGU groups was statistically significant. The difference was not statistically significant in terms of reduction in PVR and improvement in Qmax between the two groups.
CONCLUSION
The ventral inlay technique can provide equal results to the dorsal technique with the added advantage of vaginal sparing. This is the single largest series in the literature on female urethral stricture with the largest follow-up period of 90 months.
PubMed: 38942390
DOI: 10.1016/j.urology.2024.06.046 -
Biological Psychiatry Jun 2024Striatal hyperdopaminergia is implicated in the pathoetiology of schizophrenia, but how this relates to dopaminergic midbrain activity is unclear. Neuromelanin-sensitive...
BACKGROUND
Striatal hyperdopaminergia is implicated in the pathoetiology of schizophrenia, but how this relates to dopaminergic midbrain activity is unclear. Neuromelanin-sensitive MRI (NM-MRI) provides a marker of long-term dopamine function. We examined if midbrain NM-MRI contrast-to-noise ratio (NM-CNR) was higher in people with schizophrenia relative to controls and if this correlated with dopamine synthesis capacity.
METHODS
N=154 participants (n=74 individuals with schizophrenia and n=80 healthy controls) underwent NM-MRI of the substantia nigra and ventral tegmental area (SN-VTA). A subset of the schizophrenia group (n=38) also received [18F]-DOPA PET to measure dopamine synthesis capacity (K) in the SN-VTA and striatum.
RESULTS
SN-VTA NM-CNR was significantly higher in patients with schizophrenia relative to controls (effect size=0.38, p=0.019). This effect was greatest for voxels in the medial and ventral SN-VTA. In patients, SN-VTA K positively correlated with SN-VTA NM-CNR (r=0.44, p=0.005) and striatal K (r=0.71, p<0.001). Voxelwise analysis demonstrated that SN-VTA NM-CNR was positively associated with striatal K (r=0.53, p=0.005) and that this relationship appeared strongest between the ventral SN-VTA and associative striatum in schizophrenia.
CONCLUSIONS
Our results suggest that neuromelanin levels are higher in patients with schizophrenia relative to controls, particularly in midbrain regions that project to parts of the striatum which receive innervation from the limbic and association cortices. The direct relationship between measures of neuromelanin and dopamine synthesis suggests that these aspects of schizophrenia pathophysiology are linked. Our findings highlight specific mesostriatal circuits as the loci of dopamine dysfunction in schizophrenia and, thus, potential therapeutic targets.
PubMed: 38942349
DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2024.06.013 -
The Spine Journal : Official Journal of... Jun 2024Extreme Lateral Interbody Fusion (XLIF) has been established as an effective treatment for degenerative disorders of the lumbar spine. Nevertheless, there is a potential...
BACKGROUND CONTEXT
Extreme Lateral Interbody Fusion (XLIF) has been established as an effective treatment for degenerative disorders of the lumbar spine. Nevertheless, there is a potential risk of lumbar plexus damage associated with XLIF, especially during surgeries at the L4-5 segment. Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) evaluates the directional diffusion of water molecules in tissue, providing a more intricate depiction of internal tissue microstructure compared to conventional MRI techniques. The capability of DTI sequences to elucidate the three-dimensional interplay between lumbar nerve pathways and adjacent musculoskeletal structures, potentially reducing the incidence of nerve injury complications related to XLIF, remains to be established.
PURPOSE
This study evaluates the effectiveness of preoperative Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) in reducing neurological complications after Extreme Lateral Interbody Fusion (XLIF) surgeries at the L4-5 level, focusing on the interaction between lumbar nerves and the psoas major muscle.
STUDY DESIGN
Retrospective case-control study.
PATIENT SAMPLE
The study included 128 patients undergoing XLIF surgery for degenerative disorders at the L4-5 segment: 68 in the traditional group and 62 in the DTI group.
OUTCOME MEASURES
The study assessed Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) scores, along with complication rates. It also documented psoas major muscle morphology and its correlation with nerve pathways.
METHODS
A retrospective analysis of 128 patients undergoing XLIF surgery for degenerative disorders at the L4-5 segment between February 2020 and August 2022 was conducted. The cohort was divided into a traditional group (68 patients) receiving pre-surgery MRI scans to identify surgical entry points at the intervertebral space midpoint (Zones II-III junction) and a DTI group (62 patients) who additionally underwent preoperative DTI to customize entry points. The study evaluated VAS and ODI scores, complication rates, psoas major muscle morphology, and its interaction with nerve pathways.
RESULTS
The traditional group uniformly chose the Zone II-III junction for entry. In contrast, the DTI group's entry points varied. Postoperative follow-up revealed significant improvements in VAS and ODI scores in both groups. However, the DTI group experienced fewer immediate postoperative complications such as thigh pain, numbness, and motor disturbances. The study also noted a ventral shift in nerve positioning in patients with elevated psoas muscles.
CONCLUSIONS
Preoperative DTI effectively maps the relationship between the psoas major muscle and lumbar nerves. Tailoring surgical entry points based on DTI results significantly reduces the risk of nerve damage in XLIF surgeries. The study underscores the importance of recognizing variability in lumbar nerve pathways due to differing psoas muscle morphologies, highlighting a higher risk of nerve injury in patients with elevated psoas muscles during XLIF procedures.
PubMed: 38942298
DOI: 10.1016/j.spinee.2024.06.017 -
Science Advances Jun 2024Declined memory is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Experiments in rodents and human postmortem studies suggest that serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) plays a...
Declined memory is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Experiments in rodents and human postmortem studies suggest that serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) plays a role in memory, but the underlying mechanisms are unknown. Here, we investigate the role of 5-HT 2C receptor (5-HTR) in regulating memory. Transgenic mice expressing a humanized mutation exhibit impaired plasticity of hippocampal ventral CA1 (vCA1) neurons and reduced memory. Further, 5-HT neurons project to and synapse onto vCA1 neurons. Disruption of 5-HT synthesis in vCA1-projecting neurons or deletion of 5-HTRs in the vCA1 impairs neural plasticity and memory. We show that a selective 5-HTR agonist, lorcaserin, improves synaptic plasticity and memory in an AD mouse model. Cumulatively, we demonstrate that hippocampal 5-HTR signaling regulates memory, which may inform the use of 5-HTR agonists in the treatment of dementia.
Topics: Animals; Humans; Receptor, Serotonin, 5-HT2C; Memory; Mice; Mice, Transgenic; Neuronal Plasticity; Alzheimer Disease; Hippocampus; Serotonin; Disease Models, Animal; CA1 Region, Hippocampal; Neurons; Serotonin 5-HT2 Receptor Agonists
PubMed: 38941473
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adl2675 -
Neurobiology of Language (Cambridge,... 2024In computational models of reading, written words can be read using print-to-sound and/or print-to-meaning pathways. Neuroimaging data associate dorsal stream regions...
In computational models of reading, written words can be read using print-to-sound and/or print-to-meaning pathways. Neuroimaging data associate dorsal stream regions (left posterior occipitotemporal cortex, intraparietal cortex, dorsal inferior frontal gyrus [dIFG]) with the print-to-sound pathway and ventral stream regions (left anterior fusiform gyrus, middle temporal gyrus) with the print-to-meaning pathway. In 69 typical adults, we investigated whether resting state functional connectivity (RSFC) between the visual word form area (VWFA) and dorsal and ventral regions correlated with phonological (nonword reading, nonword repetition, spoonerisms), lexical-semantic (vocabulary, sensitivity to morpheme units in reading), and general literacy (word reading, spelling) skills. VWFA activity was temporally correlated with activity in both dorsal and ventral reading regions. In pre-registered whole-brain analyses, spoonerisms performance was positively correlated with RSFC between the VWFA and left dorsal regions (dIFG, superior parietal and intraparietal cortex). In exploratory region-of-interest analyses, VWFA-dIFG connectivity was also positively correlated with nonword repetition, spelling, and vocabulary. Connectivity between the VWFA and ventral stream regions was not associated with performance on any behavioural measure, either in whole-brain or region-of-interest analyses. Our results suggest that tasks such as spoonerisms and spellings, which are both complex (i.e., involve multiple subprocesses) and have high between-subject variability, provide greater opportunity for observing resting-state brain-behaviour associations. However, the complexity of these tasks limits the conclusions we can draw about the specific mechanisms that drive these associations. Future research would benefit from constructing latent variables from multiple tasks tapping the same reading subprocess.
PubMed: 38939731
DOI: 10.1162/nol_a_00146 -
Cureus May 2024Incisional ventral hernias (IVH) are a common occurrence worldwide. The resolve is fundamentally surgical. In this regard, laparoscopic treatment has become the... (Review)
Review
Incisional ventral hernias (IVH) are a common occurrence worldwide. The resolve is fundamentally surgical. In this regard, laparoscopic treatment has become the standard. This paper aims to review intraperitoneal onlay mesh (IPOM) as a surgical solution for IVH and to explore the limitations and advantages in relation to the technique of mesh fixation, defect suture, seroma formation, and recurrence in accordance with the data published. The article is structured as a narrative review and relies on the Scale for the Assessment of Narrative Review Articles (SANRA) convention. In the analysis, we included articles published in the literature regarding the surgical treatment of ventral hernias (umbilical and incisional) through the IPOM technique. We explored data regarding the mesh fixation technique on the anterior abdominal wall (tacks or sutures), indications and limitations of defect closure, incidence of seroma formation, and recurrence rate. Laparoscopic IPOM is a better option for IVH up to 10 cm than the open technique with regard to aesthetics, length of hospital stay, and postoperative pain. There is no difference in recurrence rates. Suturing of the defect should be done to decrease seroma formation and maintain the functionality of the abdominal wall. Ideally, the suture should be done intraperitoneally or laparoscopically. Regarding pain in mesh fixation, there seems to be an increase in the short-term postoperative pain in the suture groups, but at six months, when compared to the tacks groups, there is no difference. New methods are being developed that include different types of glue but require large prospective, randomized trials if they are to be included in the guidelines.
PubMed: 38939278
DOI: 10.7759/cureus.61199 -
Frontiers in Veterinary Science 2024Dermatophytic pseudomycetoma (DPM), which is a deeper dermal and/or subcutaneous infection of dermatophytes, has been rarely reported in Domestic Korean Short Hair Cats....
Dermatophytic pseudomycetoma (DPM), which is a deeper dermal and/or subcutaneous infection of dermatophytes, has been rarely reported in Domestic Korean Short Hair Cats. A 3-year-old, spayed female, domestic Korean Short Hair Cat presented with a history of crusts, nodules, and pruritus for 1 year. At the initial presentation, multifocal ulcerative nodules covered with yellowish grains were noted on her ventral thorax, abdomen, flank, and left hindlimb. Cytology of ulcerative nodules revealed degenerative neutrophils, macrophages, multinucleated giant cells, and hyphae. Histological examination of nodules revealed pyogranulomatous dermatitis with fungal plaques, and and were identified in the culture. Therefore, the cat was diagnosed with DPM with secondary pyoderma. Oral itraconazole (10 mg/kg, once a day) was administered, but no significant improvement was observed. Therefore, intralesional (IL) injection of amphotericin B (0.6 mg/nodule) and oral administration of terbinafine (30 mg/kg, twice a day) were administered to the cat. With these medications, ulceration and the number and size of nodules decreased significantly, although large dome-shaped nodules remained. Skin lesions were treated with oral terbinafine and itraconazole administration for 5 months. However, after 6 months, recurrence of multifocal ulcerative nodules was observed, and the cat died 10 months after initial presentation. In this case, IL amphotericin B and oral terbinafine administration were partially effective in DPM treatment, suggesting that this may be an option for DPM treatment. Further studies to determine dose and frequency of IL amphotericin B in the management of DPM are warranted.
PubMed: 38938913
DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1402691 -
Open Veterinary Journal May 2024Computed tomography (CT) is the gold standard for diagnosing canine nasal diseases. However, it cannot easily detect minor abnormalities in inflammatory diseases because...
BACKGROUND
Computed tomography (CT) is the gold standard for diagnosing canine nasal diseases. However, it cannot easily detect minor abnormalities in inflammatory diseases because they are not accompanied by obvious morphological changes.
AIM
The present study aimed to compare the differences in normal CT findings of turbinate structure and mucosa between breeds to establish criteria for CT diagnosis of inflammatory diseases of the nasal cavity.
METHODS
CT data from 77 dogs of 5 breeds without nasal diseases were retrospectively studied. The nasal air percentage, which reflects the volume of the nasal turbinate structure and mucosa, was measured. The nasal turbinate mucosa was measured for contrast enhancement reflecting blood flow. Measurements were performed in the ventral and ethmoid turbinate (ET) regions. Comparisons were made between breeds and sections.
RESULTS
The air percentage in the ventral and ET regions was significantly different between breeds. Contrast enhancement was significantly different between breeds only in the ET. Moreover, different breeds had different correlations between body weight, age, nose length, and air percentage.
CONCLUSION
In this study, reference values for normal CT findings of the nasal structure and mucosa were obtained, taking into account the breed, measurement section, and patient factors. The results showed that the volume of the turbinate structure and contrast enhancement of nasal mucosa differed depending on the breed. The measured values also differed depending on the cross-sections and patient factors.
Topics: Animals; Dogs; Tomography, X-Ray Computed; Retrospective Studies; Female; Turbinates; Male; Nasal Mucosa; Dog Diseases; Nasal Cavity
PubMed: 38938433
DOI: 10.5455/OVJ.2024.v14.i5.13 -
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2024Although memory challenges in autistic individuals have been characterized recently, the functional connectivity of the hippocampus and ventral temporal lobe, two...
INTRODUCTION
Although memory challenges in autistic individuals have been characterized recently, the functional connectivity of the hippocampus and ventral temporal lobe, two structures important for episodic and semantic memory functions, are poorly understood in autistic individuals. Moreover, age-related differences in the functional connectivity associated with these two memory networks are unrevealed.
METHODS
The current study investigated age-related differences in intrinsic connectivity of the hippocampal and ventral temporal lobe (vTL) memory networks in well-matched ASD ( = 73; age range: 10.23-55.40 years old) and Non-ASD groups ( = 74; age range: 10.46-56.20 years old) from the open dataset ABIDE-I. Both theory-driven ROI-to-ROI approach and exploratory seed-based whole-brain approach were used.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Our findings revealed reduced connectivity in ASD compared to Non-ASD peers, as well as an age-related reduction in the connectivity of hippocampal and vTL networks with triple networks, namely, the default mode network (DMN), the central executive network (CEN), and the salience network (SN), potentially underpinning their challenges in memory, language, and social functions. However, we did not observe reliable differences in age-related effects between the ASD and Non-ASD groups. Our study underscores the importance of understanding memory network dysfunctions in ASD across the lifespan to inform educational and clinical practices.
PubMed: 38938289
DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2024.1394706