Impulsivity

2021 ◽  
pp. 27-31
Author(s):  
Mark Selikowitz
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Therapy ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Behavioural Inhibition ◽  
Management Options ◽  
Impulsive Behaviour ◽  
Limited Success ◽  
The Brain

This chapter describes impulsivity (the difficulty in being able to think before acting) in ADHD. The chapter describes behavioural inhibition mechanisms in the brain and related theories, manifestations of impulsivity (e.g. the tendency to act without thinking, compulsive destruction tendencies, situations or games requiring sharing, cooperation, and restraint), and the management of impulsivity. Management options includes cognitive therapy, which has limited success, and medication, which usually plays a dramatic role in controlling impulsivity. Furthermore, environmental changes and modification of goals are important ways of helping the child with ADHD. Those who come interact with the child with ADHD need to understand that impulsive behaviour is not completely under the child’s control.

scholarly journals Drosophila as a Model for Microbiota Studies of Neurodegeneration

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Fukiko Kitani-Morii ◽  
Robert P. Friedland ◽  
Hideki Yoshida ◽  
Toshiki Mizuno
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Fruit Fly ◽  
Endocrine Regulation ◽  
Nutrient Metabolism ◽  
Host Health ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Lateral Sclerosis

Accumulating evidence show that the gut microbiota is deeply involved not only in host nutrient metabolism but also in immune function, endocrine regulation, and chronic disease. In neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, the gut-brain axis, the bidirectional interaction between the brain and the gut, provides new route of pathological spread and potential therapeutic targets. Although studies of gut microbiota have been conducted mainly in mice, mammalian gut microbiota is highly diverse, complex, and sensitive to environmental changes. Drosophila melanogaster, a fruit fly, has many advantages as a laboratory animal: short life cycle, numerous and genetically homogenous offspring, less ethical concerns, availability of many genetic models, and low maintenance costs. Drosophila has a simpler gut microbiota than mammals and can be made to remain sterile or to have standardized gut microbiota by simple established methods. Research on the microbiota of Drosophila has revealed new molecules that regulate the brain-gut axis, and it has been shown that dysbiosis of the fly microbiota worsens lifespan, motor function, and neurodegeneration in AD and PD models. The results shown in fly studies represents a fundamental part of the immune and proteomic process involving gut-microbiota interactions that are highly conserved. Even though the fly’s gut microbiota are not simple mimics of humans, flies are a valuable system to learn the molecular mechanisms of how the gut microbiota affect host health and behavior.

scholarly journals Pulsed reduced dose-rate radiotherapy for previously irradiated tumors in the brain and spine

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
pp. 280
Author(s):  
Arpan V. Prabhu ◽  
Madison Lee ◽  
Edvaldo Galhardo ◽  
Madison Newkirk ◽  
Analiz Rodriguez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dose Rate ◽  
Cranial Irradiation ◽  
Recurrent Glioblastoma ◽  
Precentral Gyrus ◽  
Management Options ◽  
Thoracic Spinal Cord ◽  
Reduced Dose ◽  
Thoracic Spinal ◽  
The Brain

Background: Patients with unresectable locoregional cancer recurrences have limited management options. Reirradiation increases the risk of toxicity, particularly when perilesional dose-volume constraints are exceeded. We present and discuss two cases of previously irradiated tumors in the central nervous system (CNS) that was reirradiated using the pulsed reduced dose-rate radiotherapy (PRDR) technique. Case Description: A 58-year-old female with a history of metastatic small cell lung cancer to the brain status post multiple rounds of radiation and chemotherapy presented with increasing weakness in her right arm and leg. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a growly peripherally enhancing 1.2 cm mass in the left precentral gyrus that had previously received prophylactic cranial irradiation and stereotactic radiosurgery. The patient was re-irradiated with 35 Gy in 100 fractions over 3 weeks, using PRDR with improved motor function at 3-month follow-up. A 41-year-old male with recurrent glioblastoma of the thoracic spinal cord presented with worsening neurological symptoms, including inability to ambulate due to bilateral leg weakness, causing wheelchair use. MRI thoracic spine revealed a recurrent thoracic lesion 2.2 × 1 × 0.8 cm. In addition to chronic chemotherapy, the patient was retreated palliatively in the same area at 50 Gy in 250 fractions, over 6 weeks, using PRDR. The treated lesion was stable on follow-up imaging, and the patient was able to walk with the assistance of a walker. Conclusion: In our two cases, PRDR proved effective in the treatment of recurrent malignant CNS tumors that were previously irradiated. Prospective studies are needed to delineate the efficacy and toxicity of PRDR.

Arteriovenous Malformation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison Spinelli ◽  
Liang Huang
Keyword(s):  
Arteriovenous Malformation ◽  
Interventional Neuroradiology ◽  
Endovascular Embolization ◽  
Young Population ◽  
Management Options ◽  
Stereotactic Radiation ◽  
The Past ◽  
Radiation Management ◽  
Arteries And Veins ◽  
The Brain

Arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is an abnormal connection between arteries and veins, bypassing the capillary system, which may occur in the brain or the spinal cord. AVMs are challenging to diagnose, and the symptoms may be subtle or dramatic. The location and extent of the lesion will determine its potential for morbidity as these lesions also affect a young population. Most importantly, the technology and evolution of treatment for AVMs has changed dramatically over the past two decades and now incorporates interventional neuroradiology and stereotactic radiation. Management options include conservative management, surgical resection, endovascular embolization, and stereotactic surgery. This chapter’s discussion will cover surgical and interventional modes of treatment of cerebral AVMs.

scholarly journals Daily Rhythms of the Body and the Biological Clock

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamar Shochat ◽  
Eran Tauber
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Biological Clock ◽  
External Environment ◽  
Light Level ◽  
The Body ◽  
Modern World ◽  
Daily Rhythms ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Daily Cycles ◽  
The Brain

Earth’s rotation creates a cycle of day and night, which is observed as changes in light levels and temperature. During evolution, plants and animals adapted to these cycles, developing daily cycles of physical and behavioral processes that are driven by a central biological clock, also known as the circadian clock. Even in the absence of changes in light between day and night, the biological clock creates cycles called circadian rhythms. The nervous system transfers information about the external light level to the biological clock in the brain, which matches the clock’s cycle to the external environment. The biological clock prepares the body for environmental changes. The modern world has created disruptions in the circadian clock’s timing, because of electrical lighting, flights to other time zones, and work during the night. The study of chronobiology studies the mechanisms of the biological clock and the clock’s influence on human health.

scholarly journals Pathophysiology of severe traumatic brain injury and management of intracranial hypertension

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 62-71
Author(s):  
Raimondas Juškys ◽  
Vaiva Hendrixson
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Intracranial Hypertension ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Current Treatment ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Management Options ◽  
Treatment Protocols ◽  
Improved Outcomes ◽  
The Brain

It is well recognized that severe traumatic brain injury causes major health and socioeconomic burdens for patients their families and society itself. Over the past decade, understanding of secondary brain injury processes has increased tremendously, permitting implementation of new neurocritical methods of care that substantially contribute to improved outcomes of such patients. The main objective of current treatment protocols is to optimize different physiological measurements that prevent secondary insults and reinforce the ability of the brain to heal. The aim of this literature review is to uncover the pathophysiological mechanisms of severe traumatic brain injury and their interrelationship, including cerebral metabolic crisis, disturbances of blood flow to the brain and development of edema, putting emphasis on intracranial hypertension and its current management options.

scholarly journals Emergence of qualia from brain activity or from an interaction of proto-consciousness with the brain: which one is the weirder? Available evidence and a research agenda

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrizio Tressoldi
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Therapy ◽  
Placebo Effect ◽  
Neural Activity ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Body Experiences ◽  
Brain Changes ◽  
The Brain

Abstract This contribution to the science of consciousness aims at comparing how two different theories can explain the emergence of different qualia experiences: meta-awareness, meta-cognition, the placebo effect, out-of-body experiences, cognitive therapy, meditation-induced brain changes, etc. The first theory postulates that qualia experiences derive from specific neural patterns, and the second one that qualia experiences derive from the interaction of a proto-consciousness with the brain’s neural activity. From this comparison, it will be possible to judge which one seems to better explain the different qualia experiences and to offer a more promising research agenda.

Neural and Molecular Mechanisms of Biological Embedding of Social Interactions

2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-128
Author(s):  
Ian M. Traniello ◽  
Gene E. Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Complex Environments ◽  
Social Stimuli ◽  
Multiple Levels ◽  
Social Decision Making ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Subsequent Modification

Animals operate in complex environments, and salient social information is encoded in the nervous system and then processed to initiate adaptive behavior. This encoding involves biological embedding, the process by which social experience affects the brain to influence future behavior. Biological embedding is an important conceptual framework for understanding social decision-making in the brain, as it encompasses multiple levels of organization that regulate how information is encoded and used to modify behavior. The framework we emphasize here is that social stimuli provoke short-term changes in neural activity that lead to changes in gene expression on longer timescales. This process, simplified—neurons are for today and genes are for tomorrow—enables the assessment of the valence of a social interaction, an appropriate and rapid response, and subsequent modification of neural circuitry to change future behavioral inclinations in anticipation of environmental changes. We review recent research on the neural and molecular basis of biological embedding in the context of social interactions, with a special focus on the honeybee.

scholarly journals Responses of neurogenesis and neuroplasticity related genes to elevated CO 2 levels in the brain of three teleost species

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 20170240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Floriana Lai ◽  
Cathrine E. Fagernes ◽  
Nicholas J. Bernier ◽  
Gabrielle M. Miller ◽  
Philip L. Munday ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mrna Expression ◽  
Gasterosteus Aculeatus ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Nuclear Antigen ◽  
Mrna Levels ◽  
Continuous Increase ◽  
Expression Levels ◽  
Specific Regulation ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Mrna Expression Levels

The continuous increase of anthropogenic CO 2 in the atmosphere resulting in ocean acidification has been reported to affect brain function in some fishes. During adulthood, cell proliferation is fundamental for fish brain growth and for it to adapt in response to external stimuli, such as environmental changes. Here we report the first expression study of genes regulating neurogenesis and neuroplasticity in brains of three-spined stickleback ( Gasterosteus aculeatus ), cinnamon anemonefish ( Amphiprion melanopus ) and spiny damselfish ( Acanthochromis polyacanthus ) exposed to elevated CO 2 . The mRNA expression levels of the neurogenic differentiation factor (NeuroD) and doublecortin (DCX) were upregulated in three-spined stickleback exposed to high-CO 2 compared with controls, while no changes were detected in the other species. The mRNA expression levels of the proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) remained unaffected in the high-CO 2 exposed groups compared to the control in all three species. These results indicate a species-specific regulation of genes involved in neurogenesis in response to elevated ambient CO 2 levels. The higher expression of NeuroD and DCX mRNA transcripts in the brain of high-CO 2 –exposed three-spined stickleback, together with the lack of effects on mRNA levels in cinnamon anemonefish and spiny damselfish, indicate differences in coping mechanisms among fish in response to the predicted-future CO 2 level.

Vulnerability to global environmental changes in Argentina: opportunities for upgrading regional water resources management strategies

2005 ◽  
Vol 51 (5) ◽  
pp. 97-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
P.J. Bereciartua
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Water Resources ◽  
Climate Variability ◽  
Water Resources Management ◽  
Natural Resource ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
Management Options ◽  
Resources Management ◽  
Global Environmental

There is evidence of the increasing economic losses from extreme natural events during the last decades. These facts, thought to be triggered by environmental changes coupled with inefficient management and policies, highlight particularly exposed and vulnerable regions worldwide. Argentina faces several challenges associated with global environmental change and climate variability, especially related to water resources management including extreme floods and droughts. At the same time, the country's production capacity (i.e. natural resource-based commodities) and future development opportunities are closely tied to the sustainable development of its natural resource endowments. Given that vulnerability is registered not only by exposure to hazards (perturbations and stresses), but also resides in the sensitivity and resilience of the system experiencing such hazards, Argentina will need to improve its water management capacities to reduce its vulnerability to climate variability and change. This paper presents the basic components of the vulnerability analysis and suggests how it can be used to define efficient water management options.

Mechanisms of genetic epilepsies

e-Neuroforum ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
U. Hedrich ◽  
S. Maljevic ◽  
H. Lerche
Keyword(s):  
Ion Channels ◽  
Review Article ◽  
Secondary Effects ◽  
Therapeutic Approaches ◽  
Structural Alterations ◽  
Neuronal Populations ◽  
Limited Success ◽  
Genetic Epilepsies ◽  
The Brain

AbstractEpilepsy is one of the most common neuro­logical disorders. As early as the time of Hip­pocrates (460-370 BC), it was reported on as the “holy disease”. Today it is known that an epileptic seizure is a consequence of synchro­nous discharges of neuronal populations in the brain, which abruptly and usually without an observable cause evoke involuntary be­havioural dysfunction or impaired conscious­ness. Epilepsies can have various causes and lead to extensive implications for the every­day life of affected patients. Up to 50% of all epilepsies are caused by genetic defects, in particular the so-called idiopathic epilep­sies, which occur without easily observable structural alterations in the brain. Genetical­ly caused dysfunctions of neuronal ion chan­nels play a central role in the formation of such epilepsies. The ion channels control the ion flux over the cell membrane of neurons and thus present the basis for the excitabili­ty of these neurons. Therefore, medications used in epilepsy treatment affect predomi­nantly ion channels. However, common an­ticonvulsants have limited success, not only because one third of epilepsy patients exhibit pharmacoresistance, but also because of the secondary effects which can dramatically af­fect their quality of life. Furthermore, current therapeutic approaches are mainly symp­tomatic and do not act on the epileptogenic mechanisms, which are still largely unknown. In this review article we will highlight the cur­rent main topics of our research on genetical­ly caused epilepsies, their pathomechanisms and therapeutic options.

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