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Frontiers in Neuroscience 2024Visual fatigue resulting from sustained, high-workload visual activities can significantly impact task performance and general wellbeing. So far, however, little is...
INTRODUCTION
Visual fatigue resulting from sustained, high-workload visual activities can significantly impact task performance and general wellbeing. So far, however, little is known about the underlying brain networks of visual fatigue. This study aimed to identify such potential networks using a unique paradigm involving myopia-correcting lenses known to directly modulate subjectively-perceived fatigue levels.
METHODS
A sample of = 31 myopia participants [right eye-SE: -3.77D (SD: 2.46); left eye-SE: -3.75D (SD: 2.45)] performed a demanding visual search task with varying difficulty levels, both with and without the lenses, while undergoing fMRI scanning. There were a total of 20 trials, after each of which participants rated the perceived difficulty and their subjective visual fatigue level. We used representational similarity analysis to decode brain regions associated with fatigue and difficulty, analyzing their individual and joint decoding pattern.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Behavioral results showed correlations between fatigue and difficulty ratings and above all a significant reduction in fatigue levels when wearing the lenses. Imaging results implicated the cuneus, lingual gyrus, middle occipital gyrus (MOG), and declive for joint fatigue and difficulty decoding. Parts of the lingual gyrus were able to selectively decode perceived difficulty. Importantly, a broader network of visual and higher-level association areas showed exclusive decodability of fatigue (culmen, middle temporal gyrus (MTG), parahippocampal gyrus, precentral gyrus, and precuneus). Our findings enhance our understanding of processing within the context of visual search, attention, and mental workload and for the first time demonstrate that it is possible to decode subjectively-perceived visual fatigue during a challenging task from imaging data. Furthermore, the study underscores the potential of myopia-correcting lenses in investigating and modulating fatigue.
PubMed: 38660218
DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2024.1307688 -
BMC Sports Science, Medicine &... Apr 2024Social communication impairments (SCI) is a core symptom of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and is marked by challenges in social interaction. Although physical exercise...
Effects of mini-basketball training program on social communication impairments and regional homogeneity of brain functions in preschool children with autism spectrum disorder.
BACKGROUND
Social communication impairments (SCI) is a core symptom of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and is marked by challenges in social interaction. Although physical exercise has been shown to improve SCI, this finding has not been supported by comprehensive scientific evidence. Existing research has established a strong link between the SCI in children with ASD and abnormalities in regional homogeneity (ReHo). Therefore, investigating the effects of physical exercise on SCI and Reho in patients with ASD may help to elucidate the neurological mechanisms involved.
METHODS
The present study included 30 preschool children diagnosed with ASD, with 15 participants in each group (experimental and control). The experimental group underwent a 12-week mini-basketball training program (MBTP) based on routine behavioral rehabilitation, while the control group only received routine behavioral rehabilitation. The Social Responsiveness Scale-Second Edition (SRS-2) was employed to assess SCI in both groups. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging technology was used to evaluate ReHo in both groups.
RESULTS
After 12-week of MBTP, significant group × time interactions were observed between the experimental and control groups in total SRS-2 scores (F = 14.514, p < 0.001, η = 0.341), as well as in the domains of social cognition (F = 15.620, p < 0.001, η = 0.358), social communication (F = 12.460, p < 0.01, η = 0.308), and autistic mannerisms (F = 9.970, p < 0.01, η = 0.263). No statistical difference was found in the scores for the social awareness subscale and social motivation subscale in the group × time interaction (all p > 0.05). The experimental group exhibited increased ReHo in the right Cerebellum_Crus1 and right parahippocampal gyrus, coupled with decreased ReHo in the left middle frontal gyrus (orbital part), left superior frontal gyrus (dorsolateral), left postcentral gyrus, and right superior parietal gyrus. Furthermore, a decrease in ReHo in the left postcentral gyrus positively correlated with changes in social communication scores in SCI behaviors (p < 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS
Our study underscores the effectiveness of a 12-week MBTP in ameliorating SCI and abnormalities in ReHo among preschool children with ASD.
TRIAL REGISTRATION
The trial is retrospectively registered on the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR1900024973; August 5, 2019).
PubMed: 38659073
DOI: 10.1186/s13102-024-00885-7 -
Nature Communications Apr 2024Cognitive maps in the hippocampal-entorhinal system are central for the representation of both spatial and non-spatial relationships. Although this system, especially in...
Cognitive maps in the hippocampal-entorhinal system are central for the representation of both spatial and non-spatial relationships. Although this system, especially in humans, heavily relies on vision, the role of visual experience in shaping the development of cognitive maps remains largely unknown. Here, we test sighted and early blind individuals in both imagined navigation in fMRI and real-world navigation. During imagined navigation, the Human Navigation Network, constituted by frontal, medial temporal, and parietal cortices, is reliably activated in both groups, showing resilience to visual deprivation. However, neural geometry analyses highlight crucial differences between groups. A 60° rotational symmetry, characteristic of a hexagonal grid-like coding, emerges in the entorhinal cortex of sighted but not blind people, who instead show a 90° (4-fold) symmetry, indicative of a square grid. Moreover, higher parietal cortex activity during navigation in blind people correlates with the magnitude of 4-fold symmetry. In sum, early blindness can alter the geometry of entorhinal cognitive maps, possibly as a consequence of higher reliance on parietal egocentric coding during navigation.
Topics: Humans; Blindness; Male; Adult; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Female; Entorhinal Cortex; Brain Mapping; Parietal Lobe; Middle Aged; Spatial Navigation; Young Adult; Visually Impaired Persons; Cognition; Imagination
PubMed: 38658530
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47747-x -
Journal of Asthma and Allergy 2024Only a few studies have focused on the brain mechanisms underlying the itch processing in AD patients, and a neural biomarker has never been studied in AD patients. We...
PURPOSE
Only a few studies have focused on the brain mechanisms underlying the itch processing in AD patients, and a neural biomarker has never been studied in AD patients. We aimed to develop a deep learning model-based neural signature which can extract the relevant temporal dynamics, discriminate between AD and healthy control (HC), and between AD patients who responded well to acupuncture treatment and those who did not.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
We recruited 41 AD patients (22 male, age mean ± SD: 24.34 ± 5.29) and 40 HCs (20 male, age mean ± SD: 26.4 ± 5.32), and measured resting-state functional MRI signals. After preprocessing, 38 functional regions of interest were applied to the functional MRI signals. A long short-term memory (LSTM) was used to extract the relevant temporal dynamics for classification and train the prediction model. Bootstrapping and 4-fold cross-validation were used to examine the significance of the models.
RESULTS
For the identification of AD patients and HC, we found that the supplementary motor area (SMA), posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), temporal pole, precuneus, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex showed significantly greater prediction accuracy than the chance level. For the identification of high and low responder to acupuncture treatment, we found that the lingual-parahippocampal-fusiform gyrus, SMA, frontal gyrus, PCC and precuneus, paracentral lobule, and primary motor and somatosensory cortex showed significantly greater prediction accuracy than the chance level.
CONCLUSION
We developed and evaluated a deep learning model-based neural biomarker that can distinguish between AD and HC as well as between AD patients who respond well and those who respond less to acupuncture. Using the intrinsic neurological abnormalities, it is possible to diagnose AD patients and provide personalized treatment regimens.
PubMed: 38651018
DOI: 10.2147/JAA.S454807 -
PloS One 2024Myelin and iron are major contributors to the cortical MR signal. The aim of this study was to investigate 1. Can MP2RAGE-derived contrasts at 7T in combination with...
BACKGROUND
Myelin and iron are major contributors to the cortical MR signal. The aim of this study was to investigate 1. Can MP2RAGE-derived contrasts at 7T in combination with k-means clustering be used to distinguish between heavily and sparsely myelinated layers in cortical gray matter (GM)? 2. Does this approach provide meaningful biological information?
METHODS
The following contrasts were generated from the 7T MP2RAGE images from 45 healthy controls (age: 19-75, f/m = 23/22) from the ATAG data repository: 1. T1 weighted image (UNI). 2. T1 relaxation image (T1map). 3. INVC/T1map ratio (RATIO). K-means clustering identified 6 clusters/tissue maps (csf, csf/gm-transition, wm, wm/gm transition, heavily myelinated cortical GM (dGM), sparsely myelinated cortical GM (sGM)). These tissue maps were then processed with SPM/DARTEL (volume-based analyses) and Freesurfer (surface-based analyses) and dGM and sGM volume/thickness of young adults (n = 27, 19-27 years) compared to those of older adults (n = 18, 42-75 years) at p<0.001 uncorrected.
RESULTS
The resulting maps showed good agreement with histological maps in the literature. Volume- and surface analyses found age-related dGM loss/thinning in the mid-posterior cingulate and parahippocampal/entorhinal gyrus and age-related sGM losses in lateral, mesial and orbitofrontal frontal, insular cortex and superior temporal gyrus.
CONCLUSION
The MP2RAGE derived UNI, T1map and RATIO contrasts can be used to identify dGM and sGM. Considering the close relationship between cortical myelo- and cytoarchitecture, the findings reported here indicate that this new technique might provide new insights into the nature of cortical GM loss in physiological and pathological conditions.
Topics: Young Adult; Humans; Aged; Adult; Middle Aged; Myelin Sheath; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Gray Matter; Aging; Gyrus Cinguli; Brain
PubMed: 38626149
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0299670 -
Nature Communications Apr 2024The hippocampus creates a cognitive map of the external environment by encoding spatial and self-motion-related information. However, it is unclear whether hippocampal...
The hippocampus creates a cognitive map of the external environment by encoding spatial and self-motion-related information. However, it is unclear whether hippocampal neurons could also incorporate internal cognitive states reflecting an animal's exploratory intention, which is not driven by rewards or unexpected sensory stimuli. In this study, a subgroup of CA1 neurons was found to encode both spatial information and animals' investigatory intentions in male mice. These neurons became active before the initiation of exploration behaviors at specific locations and were nearly silent when the same fields were traversed without exploration. Interestingly, this neuronal activity could not be explained by object features, rewards, or mismatches in environmental cues. Inhibition of the lateral entorhinal cortex decreased the activity of these cells during exploration. Our findings demonstrate that hippocampal neurons may bridge external and internal signals, indicating a potential connection between spatial representation and intentional states in the construction of internal navigation systems.
Topics: Male; Mice; Animals; Intention; Space Perception; Hippocampus; Entorhinal Cortex; Cues; Spatial Navigation
PubMed: 38622129
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47570-4 -
Neurobiology of Aging Jul 2024Nucleus Basalis of Meynert (NbM), a crucial source of cholinergic projection to the entorhinal cortex (EC) and hippocampus (HC), has shown sensitivity to neurofibrillary...
Nucleus Basalis of Meynert (NbM), a crucial source of cholinergic projection to the entorhinal cortex (EC) and hippocampus (HC), has shown sensitivity to neurofibrillary degeneration in the early stages of Alzheimer's Disease. Using deformation-based morphometry (DBM) on up-sampled MRI scans from 1447 Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative participants, we aimed to quantify NbM degeneration along the disease trajectory. Results from cross-sectional analysis revealed significant differences of NbM volume between cognitively normal and early mild cognitive impairment cohorts, confirming recent studies suggesting that NbM degeneration happens before degeneration in the EC or HC. Longitudinal linear mixed-effect models were then used to compare trajectories of volume change after realigning all participants into a common timeline based on their cognitive decline. Results indicated the earliest deviations in NbM volumes from the cognitively healthy trajectory, challenging the prevailing idea that Alzheimer's originates in the EC. Converging evidence from cross-sectional and longitudinal models suggest that the NbM may be a focal target of early AD progression, which is often obscured by normal age-related decline.
Topics: Alzheimer Disease; Humans; Disease Progression; Female; Male; Aged; Cross-Sectional Studies; Basal Nucleus of Meynert; Aged, 80 and over; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Cognitive Dysfunction; Entorhinal Cortex; Longitudinal Studies; Organ Size; Hippocampus
PubMed: 38608458
DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2024.03.003 -
Neuroradiology Jun 2024To examine hemodynamic and functional connectivity alterations and their association with neurocognitive and mental health indices in patients with chronic mild...
Functional connectivity-hemodynamic (un)coupling changes in chronic mild brain injury are associated with mental health and neurocognitive indices: a resting state fMRI study.
PURPOSE
To examine hemodynamic and functional connectivity alterations and their association with neurocognitive and mental health indices in patients with chronic mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).
METHODS
Resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) and neuropsychological assessment of 37 patients with chronic mTBI were performed. Intrinsic connectivity contrast (ICC) and time-shift analysis (TSA) of the rs-fMRI data allowed the assessment of regional hemodynamic and functional connectivity disturbances and their coupling (or uncoupling). Thirty-nine healthy age- and gender-matched participants were also examined.
RESULTS
Patients with chronic mTBI displayed hypoconnectivity in bilateral hippocampi and parahippocampal gyri and increased connectivity in parietal areas (right angular gyrus and left superior parietal lobule (SPL)). Slower perfusion (hemodynamic lag) in the left anterior hippocampus was associated with higher self-reported symptoms of depression (r = - 0.53, p = .0006) and anxiety (r = - 0.484, p = .002), while faster perfusion (hemodynamic lead) in the left SPL was associated with lower semantic fluency (r = - 0.474, p = .002). Finally, functional coupling (high connectivity and hemodynamic lead) in the right anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)) was associated with lower performance on attention and visuomotor coordination (r = - 0.50, p = .001), while dysfunctional coupling (low connectivity and hemodynamic lag) in the left ventral posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and right SPL was associated with lower scores on immediate passage memory (r = - 0.52, p = .001; r = - 0.53, p = .0006, respectively). Uncoupling in the right extrastriate visual cortex and posterior middle temporal gyrus was negatively associated with cognitive flexibility (r = - 0.50, p = .001).
CONCLUSION
Hemodynamic and functional connectivity differences, indicating neurovascular (un)coupling, may be linked to mental health and neurocognitive indices in patients with chronic mTBI.
Topics: Humans; Male; Female; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Adult; Neuropsychological Tests; Case-Control Studies; Brain Concussion; Hemodynamics; Middle Aged; Chronic Disease; Brain Mapping
PubMed: 38605104
DOI: 10.1007/s00234-024-03352-9 -
Cell Reports Apr 2024Understanding how emotional processing modulates learning and memory is crucial for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders characterized by emotional memory...
Understanding how emotional processing modulates learning and memory is crucial for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders characterized by emotional memory dysfunction. We investigate how human medial temporal lobe (MTL) neurons support emotional memory by recording spiking activity from the hippocampus, amygdala, and entorhinal cortex during encoding and recognition sessions of an emotional memory task in patients with pharmaco-resistant epilepsy. Our findings reveal distinct representations for both remembered compared to forgotten and emotional compared to neutral scenes in single units and MTL population spiking activity. Additionally, we demonstrate that a distributed network of human MTL neurons exhibiting mixed selectivity on a single-unit level collectively processes emotion and memory as a network, with a small percentage of neurons responding conjointly to emotion and memory. Analyzing spiking activity enables a detailed understanding of the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying emotional memory and could provide insights into how emotion alters memory during healthy and maladaptive learning.
Topics: Humans; Emotions; Neurons; Memory; Male; Adult; Female; Temporal Lobe; Amygdala; Entorhinal Cortex; Hippocampus; Young Adult
PubMed: 38592973
DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114071 -
Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience 2024Memory-related impairments in type 2 diabetes may be mediated by insulin resistance and hyperglycemia. Previous cross-sectional studies have controversially suggested a...
Memory-related impairments in type 2 diabetes may be mediated by insulin resistance and hyperglycemia. Previous cross-sectional studies have controversially suggested a relationship between metabolic control and a decrease in hippocampal volumes, but only longitudinal studies can test this hypothesis directly. We performed a longitudinal morphometric study to provide a direct test of a possible role of higher levels of glycated hemoglobin with long term brain structural integrity in key regions of the memory system - hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus and fusiform gyrus. Grey matter volume was measured at two different times - baseline and after ~7 years. We found an association between higher initial levels of HbA and grey matter volume loss in all three core memory regions, even in the absence of mild cognitive impairment. Importantly, these neural effects persisted in spite of the fact that patients had significantly improved their glycemic control. This suggests that early high levels of HbA1c might be irreversibly associated with subsequent long-term atrophy in the medial temporal cortex and that early intensive management is critical.
PubMed: 38590757
DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2024.1367563