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The Neuroscientist : a Review Journal... Jun 2024
Topics: Animals; Humans; Entorhinal Cortex; Memory, Episodic; Spatial Navigation
PubMed: 38767301
DOI: 10.1177/10738584241250304 -
Frontiers in Neuroscience 2024is an important prerequisite for acupuncture to achieve optimal efficacy. Chinese medicine has long been concerned with the relationship between and the clinical... (Review)
Review
is an important prerequisite for acupuncture to achieve optimal efficacy. Chinese medicine has long been concerned with the relationship between and the clinical efficacy of acupuncture. However, the underlying mechanisms of are complex and there is a lack of systematic summaries of objective quantitative studies of . Acupuncture can achieve the purpose of treating diseases by regulating the interaction of local and neighboring acupoints, brain centers, and target organs. At local and neighboring acupoints, can change their tissue structure, temperature, blood perfusion, energy metabolism, and electrophysiological indicators. At the central brain level, can activate the brain regions of the thalamus, parahippocampal gyrus, postcentral gyrus, insular, middle temporal gyrus, cingulate gyrus, etc. It also has extensive effects on the limbic-paralimbic-neocortical-network and default mode network. The brain mechanisms of vary depending on the acupuncture techniques and points chosen. In addition, 's mechanism of action involves correcting abnormalities in target organs. The mechanisms of acupuncture are multi-targeted and multi-layered. The biological mechanisms of Deqi are closely related to brain centers. This study will help to explore the mechanism of from a local-central-target-organ perspective and provide information for future clinical decision-making.
PubMed: 38765671
DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2024.1386108 -
Epilepsy & Behavior : E&B Jul 2024In this paper we look at non-pharmaceutical treatments for intractable epilepsy based on neurophysiological methods especially with EEG analysis. In summary, there are a... (Review)
Review
In this paper we look at non-pharmaceutical treatments for intractable epilepsy based on neurophysiological methods especially with EEG analysis. In summary, there are a number of limbic and thalamo-cortical related structures involved in the processing of musical emotion (exposure), including the amygdala (arousal, expression of mood, fear), hippocampus (memory, regulation of HPA axis, stress), parahippocampal gyrus (recognition, memory retrieval), insula (valence), temporal poles (connectivity), ventral striatum (expectation and experience of reward), orbitofrontal cortex (valence) and cingulate cortex (autonomic regulation). One method is to audify (a form of sonification) EEG activity to find music by feedback to entrain abnormal EEG activity. We discuss various methods and our use of X-System (https://www.x-system.co.uk/) which is a computational model of the musical brain capable of predicting the neurophysiological effects of music. It models structures and pathways related to responses to music, including the cochlea, brain stem, auditory and motor cortex, as well as basal ganglia, cerebellum and limbic structures. It can predict autonomic and endocrine activity as well as the substrates of electrical activity to select music which can regularise EEG abnormalities to decrease epileptic activity and seizures, especially in those unresponsive to antiepileptic medication or invasive treatments.
Topics: Humans; Epilepsy; Music Therapy; Music; Electroencephalography; Brain; Auditory Perception; Precision Medicine
PubMed: 38761451
DOI: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2024.109829 -
Alzheimer's Research & Therapy May 2024As one major symptom of Alzheimer's disease (AD), anterograde amnesia describes patients with an inability in new memory formation. The crucial role of the entorhinal...
BACKGROUND
As one major symptom of Alzheimer's disease (AD), anterograde amnesia describes patients with an inability in new memory formation. The crucial role of the entorhinal cortex in forming new memories has been well established, and the neuropeptide cholecystokinin (CCK) is reported to be released from the entorhinal cortex to enable neocortical associated memory and long-term potentiation. Though several studies reveal that the entorhinal cortex and CCK are related to AD, it is less well studied. It is unclear whether CCK is a good biomarker or further a great drug candidate for AD.
METHODS
mRNA expressions of CCK and CCK-B receptor (CCKBR) were examined in two mouse models, 3xTg AD and CCK knock-out (CCK) mice. Animals' cognition was investigated with Morris water maze, novel object recognition test and neuroplasticity with in-vitro electrophysiological recording. Drugs were given intraperitoneally to animals to investigate the rescue effects on cognitive deficits, or applied to brain slices directly to explore the influence in inducement of long-term potentiation.
RESULTS
Aged 3xTg AD mice exhibited reduced CCK mRNA expression in the entorhinal cortex but reduced CCKBR expression in the neocortex and hippocampus, and impaired cognition and neuroplasticity comparable with CCK mice. Importantly, the animals displayed improved performance and enhanced long-term potentiation after the treatment of CCKBR agonists.
CONCLUSIONS
Here we provide more evidence to support the role of CCK in learning and memory and its potential to treat AD. We elaborated on the rescue effect of a promising novel drug, HT-267, on aged 3xTg AD mice. Although the physiological etiology of CCK in AD still needs to be further investigated, this study sheds light on a potential pharmaceutical candidate for AD and dementia.
Topics: Animals; Alzheimer Disease; Mice; Receptor, Cholecystokinin B; Amnesia, Anterograde; Cholecystokinin; Mice, Transgenic; Disease Models, Animal; Entorhinal Cortex; Male; Mice, Knockout; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Long-Term Potentiation; Hippocampus; Aging
PubMed: 38750512
DOI: 10.1186/s13195-024-01472-1 -
Nature Communications May 2024Visual information is important for accurate spatial coding and memory-guided navigation. As a crucial area for spatial cognition, the medial entorhinal cortex (MEC)...
Visual information is important for accurate spatial coding and memory-guided navigation. As a crucial area for spatial cognition, the medial entorhinal cortex (MEC) harbors diverse spatially tuned cells and functions as the major gateway relaying sensory inputs to the hippocampus containing place cells. However, how visual information enters the MEC has not been fully understood. Here, we identify a pathway originating in the secondary visual cortex (V2) and directly targeting MEC layer 5a (L5a). L5a neurons served as a network hub for visual processing in the MEC by routing visual inputs from multiple V2 areas to other local neurons and hippocampal CA1. Interrupting this pathway severely impaired visual stimulus-evoked neural activity in the MEC and performance of mice in navigation tasks. These observations reveal a visual cortical-entorhinal pathway highlighting the role of MEC L5a in sensory information transmission, a function typically attributed to MEC superficial layers before.
Topics: Animals; Entorhinal Cortex; Visual Cortex; Spatial Navigation; Mice; Neurons; Male; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Photic Stimulation; CA1 Region, Hippocampal; Visual Pathways; Visual Perception
PubMed: 38750027
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48483-y -
Journal of Inflammation Research 2024Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) patients may experience cognitive impairments in Visuospatial Working Memory (VSWM), significantly impacting their quality of life....
BACKGROUND
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) patients may experience cognitive impairments in Visuospatial Working Memory (VSWM), significantly impacting their quality of life. However, the mechanisms underlying these impairments remain poorly understood.
METHODS
We studied functional MRI and graph theory analysis to investigate changes in functional connectivity networks during the Mental Rotation Task (MRT) in IBD patients. Twenty IBD patients (13 males, 7 females; mean age = 34.95 ± 13.80 years; mean disease duration = 2.43 ± 2.37 years) participated in the study. Exclusion criteria encompassed recent use of analgesics, 5-Aminosalicylate, corticosteroids, or immunosuppressants within the past three months. Additionally, we recruited 20 age-, gender-, and education-matched healthy controls for comparison.
RESULTS
Compared to a control group, IBD patients exhibited significantly longer reaction times and reduced accuracy during the MRT. Our analysis revealed abnormalities in multiple nodal attributes within the functional connectivity network, particularly in regions such as the bilateral orbitofrontal cortex, right supplementary motor area, bilateral parahippocampal gyrus, and bilateral anterior temporal lobe. We observed that the nodal efficiency in the left temporal pole is negatively correlated with Red Blood Cell Distribution Width (RDW) and positively correlated with response time of MRT.
CONCLUSION
Our findings revealed notable abnormalities in multiple node attributes among IBD patients during MRT, providing evidence of cognitive impairments in VSWM in IBD patients. This study found RDW maybe can serve as a clinical indicator for predicting early VSWM impairment in patients with IBD.
PubMed: 38737113
DOI: 10.2147/JIR.S462268 -
Pediatric Neurology Jul 2024Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) affects the microstructure of white matter in preterm infants, but its influence on the changes of the brain structural network has not...
BACKGROUND
Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) affects the microstructure of white matter in preterm infants, but its influence on the changes of the brain structural network has not been elaborated. This study aims to investigate the connectivity characteristics of the brain structural network of BPD by using diffusion tensor imaging.
METHODS
Thirty-three infants with BPD and 26 infants without BPD were enrolled in this study. Brain structural networks were constructed utilizing automated anatomic labeling mapping by tracing the fibers between each pair of regions in individual space. We calculated network metrics such as global efficiency, local efficiency, clustering coefficients, characteristic path length, and small-worldness. Then we compared the network metrics of these infants with those of 57 healthy term infants of comparable postmenstrual age at magnetic resonance imaging scan. Finally, network-based statistics was used to analyze the differences in brain network connectivity between the groups with and without BPD.
RESULTS
Preterm infants with BPD had higher local efficiency and clustering coefficient, lower global efficiency, and longer characteristic path length. Also, preterm infants with BPD had decreased strength of limbic connections mainly in four brain regions: the left lingual gyrus, the left calcarine fissure and surrounding cortex, the right parahippocampal gyrus, and the left precuneus.
CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggest that preterm infants with BPD have lower network integration and higher segregation at term-equivalent age, which may reflect a compensatory mechanism. In addition, BPD affects brain regions involved in visual as well as cognitive functions; these findings provide a new approach to diagnose potential brain damage in preterm infants with BPD.
Topics: Humans; Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia; Infant, Premature; Male; Female; Infant, Newborn; Diffusion Tensor Imaging; Brain; Nerve Net; Neural Pathways; Magnetic Resonance Imaging
PubMed: 38733855
DOI: 10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2024.04.012 -
Clinical Neurophysiology : Official... Jul 2024We investigated the role of transverse temporal gyrus and adjacent cortex (TTG+) in facial expressions and perioral movements.
OBJECTIVE
We investigated the role of transverse temporal gyrus and adjacent cortex (TTG+) in facial expressions and perioral movements.
METHODS
In 31 patients undergoing stereo-electroencephalography monitoring, we describe behavioral responses elicited by electrical stimulation within the TTG+. Task-induced high-gamma modulation (HGM), auditory evoked responses, and resting-state connectivity were used to investigate the cortical sites having different types of responses on electrical stimulation.
RESULTS
Changes in facial expressions and perioral movements were elicited on electrical stimulation within TTG+ in 9 (29%) and 10 (32%) patients, respectively, in addition to the more common language responses (naming interruptions, auditory hallucinations, paraphasic errors). All functional sites showed auditory task induced HGM and evoked responses validating their location within the auditory cortex, however, motor sites showed lower peak amplitudes and longer peak latencies compared to language sites. Significant first-degree connections for motor sites included precentral, anterior cingulate, parahippocampal, and anterior insular gyri, whereas those for language sites included posterior superior temporal, posterior middle temporal, inferior frontal, supramarginal, and angular gyri.
CONCLUSIONS
Multimodal data suggests that TTG+ may participate in auditory-motor integration.
SIGNIFICANCE
TTG+ likely participates in facial expressions in response to emotional cues during an auditory discourse.
Topics: Humans; Male; Female; Adult; Facial Expression; Middle Aged; Auditory Cortex; Emotions; Evoked Potentials, Auditory; Electroencephalography; Aged; Young Adult; Electric Stimulation
PubMed: 38729074
DOI: 10.1016/j.clinph.2024.04.017 -
NPJ Systems Biology and Applications May 2024Connectome studies have shown how Alzheimer's disease (AD) disrupts functional and structural connectivity among brain regions. But the molecular basis of such...
Connectome studies have shown how Alzheimer's disease (AD) disrupts functional and structural connectivity among brain regions. But the molecular basis of such disruptions is less studied, with most genomic/transcriptomic studies performing within-brain-region analyses. To inspect how AD rewires the correlation structure among genes in different brain regions, we performed an Inter-brain-region Differential Correlation (Inter-DC) analysis of RNA-seq data from Mount Sinai Brain Bank on four brain regions (frontal pole, superior temporal gyrus, parahippocampal gyrus and inferior frontal gyrus, comprising 264 AD and 372 control human post-mortem samples). An Inter-DC network was assembled from all pairs of genes across two brain regions that gained (or lost) correlation strength in the AD group relative to controls at FDR 1%. The differentially correlated (DC) genes in this network complemented known differentially expressed genes in AD, and likely reflects cell-intrinsic changes since we adjusted for cell compositional effects. Each brain region used a distinctive set of DC genes when coupling with other regions, with parahippocampal gyrus showing the most rewiring, consistent with its known vulnerability to AD. The Inter-DC network revealed master dysregulation hubs in AD (at genes ZKSCAN1, SLC5A3, RCC1, IL17RB, PLK4, etc.), inter-region gene modules enriched for known AD pathways (synaptic signaling, endocytosis, etc.), and candidate signaling molecules that could mediate region-region communication. The Inter-DC network generated in this study is a valuable resource of gene pairs, pathways and signaling molecules whose inter-brain-region functional coupling is disrupted in AD, thereby offering a new perspective of AD etiology.
Topics: Alzheimer Disease; Humans; Gene Regulatory Networks; Brain; Connectome; Transcriptome; Gene Expression Profiling; Male; Female; Aged
PubMed: 38724582
DOI: 10.1038/s41540-024-00376-y -
In Vivo Reactive Astrocyte Imaging in Patients With Schizophrenia Using Fluorine 18-Labeled THK5351.JAMA Network Open May 2024In vivo imaging studies of reactive astrocytes are crucial for understanding the pathophysiology of schizophrenia because astrocytes play a critical role in glutamate...
IMPORTANCE
In vivo imaging studies of reactive astrocytes are crucial for understanding the pathophysiology of schizophrenia because astrocytes play a critical role in glutamate imbalance and neuroinflammation.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate in vivo reactive astrocytes in patients with schizophrenia associated with positive symptoms using monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B)-binding fluorine 18 ([18F])-labeled THK5351 positron emission tomography (PET).
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS
In this case-control study, data were collected from October 1, 2021, to January 31, 2023, from the internet advertisement for the healthy control group and from the outpatient clinics of Seoul National University Hospital in Seoul, South Korea, for the schizophrenia group. Participants included patients with schizophrenia and age- and sex-matched healthy control individuals.
MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES
Standardized uptake value ratios (SUVrs) of [18F]THK5351 in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and hippocampus as primary regions of interest (ROIs), with other limbic regions as secondary ROIs, and the correlation between altered SUVrs and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) positive symptom scores.
RESULTS
A total of 68 participants (mean [SD] age, 32.0 [7.0] years; 41 men [60.3%]) included 33 patients with schizophrenia (mean [SD] age, 32.3 [6.3] years; 22 men [66.7%]) and 35 healthy controls (mean [SD] age, 31.8 [7.6] years; 19 men [54.3%]) who underwent [18F]THK5351 PET scanning. Patients with schizophrenia showed significantly higher SUVrs in the bilateral ACC (left, F = 5.767 [false discovery rate (FDR)-corrected P = .04]; right, F = 5.977 [FDR-corrected P = .04]) and left hippocampus (F = 4.834 [FDR-corrected P = .04]) than healthy controls. Trend-level group differences between the groups in the SUVrs were found in the secondary ROIs (eg, right parahippocampal gyrus, F = 3.387 [P = .07]). There were positive correlations between the SUVrs in the bilateral ACC and the PANSS positive symptom scores (left, r = 0.423 [FDR-corrected P = .03]; right, r = 0.406 [FDR-corrected P = .03]) in patients with schizophrenia.
CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE
This case-control study provides novel in vivo imaging evidence of reactive astrocyte involvement in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Reactive astrocytes in the ACC may be a future target for the treatment of symptoms of schizophrenia, especially positive symptoms.
Topics: Humans; Schizophrenia; Male; Female; Adult; Astrocytes; Case-Control Studies; Positron-Emission Tomography; Fluorine Radioisotopes; Gyrus Cinguli; Hippocampus
PubMed: 38722627
DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.10684