scholarly journals Development of functional corticomuscular connectivity from childhood to adulthood during precision grip with the dominant and non-dominant hand

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mikkel Malling Beck ◽  
Meaghan Elizabeth Spedden ◽  
Jesper Lundbye-Jensen

AbstractHow does the neural control of manual movements mature from childhood to adulthood? Here, we investigated developmental differences in functional corticomuscular connectivity using coherence techniques in 91 individuals recruited from four different age groups covering the age range 8-30y. EEG and EMG were recorded while participants performed a unimanual visual force-tracing task requiring fine control of the force produced in a precision grip with both the dominant and non-dominant hand. Using beamforming methods, we reconstructed source activity from EEG data displaying peak coherence with the active FDI muscle during the task in order to assess functional corticomuscular connectivity. Our results revealed that coherence was greater in adolescents and adults than in children and that the difference in coherence between children and adults was driven by a greater magnitude of descending (cortex-to-muscle) coherence. This was paralleled by the observation of a posterior-to-anterior shift in the cortical sources displaying corticomuscular coherence within the contralateral hemisphere from late adolescence. Finally, we observed that corticomuscular coherence was higher on the non-dominant compared to the dominant hand across age groups. These findings provide a detailed characterization of differences in task-related corticomuscular connectivity for individuals at different stages of typical ontogenetic development that may be related to the maturational refinement of dexterous motor control.Key points‐Fine motor control is gradually refined during human motor development, but little is known about the underlying neurophysiological mechanisms.‐Here, we used EEG and EMG to investigate functional corticomuscular connectivity during a precision grip with the dominant and non-dominant hand in 91 typically developed children, adolescents and adults (age range 8-30y).‐We show that older adolescents and adults are characterized by greater levels of corticomuscular coherence compared to children and that this is mainly driven by greater magnitudes of descending coherence (cortex-to-muscle). This is paralleled by a more anterior cortical site of coherence in older adolescents and adults compared to younger individuals.‐These results help us better understand the ontogenetic development of task-related functional connectivity in sensorimotor networks.

eLife ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mikkel Malling Beck ◽  
Meaghan Elizabeth Spedden ◽  
Martin J Dietz ◽  
Anke Ninija Karabanov ◽  
Mark Schram Christensen ◽  
...  

Human dexterous motor control improves from childhood to adulthood, but little is known about the changes in cortico-cortical communication that support such ontogenetic refinement of motor skills. To investigate age-related differences in connectivity between cortical regions involved in dexterous control we analyzed electroencephalographic data from 88 individuals (range 8-30y) performing a visually-guided precision grip task using Dynamic Causal Modelling (DCM) and Parametric Empirical Bayes (PEB). Our results demonstrate that bidirectional coupling in a canonical 'grasping network' is associated with precision grip performance across age groups. We further demonstrate greater backward coupling from higher-order to lower-order sensorimotor regions from late adolescence in addition to differential associations between connectivity strength in a premotor-prefrontal network and motor performance for different age groups. We interpret these findings as reflecting greater use of top-down and executive control processes with development. These results expand our understanding of the cortical mechanisms that support dexterous abilities through development.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Erica D. Chadwick

<p>I sought to contribute to the understanding of positive health, in particular savoring and wellbeing, by conducting concurrent and longitudinal studies with adolescents and adults. The thesis begins with a review of the literature including savoring theory (Bryant & Veroff, 2007) and the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions (Fredrickson, 2001); these theories led to the key expectations that the psychometric structure of everyday savoring would be similar for adolescents and adults, and that amplifying savoring would positively predict wellbeing. Data obtained from two surveys, a paper-and-pencil survey with New Zealand adolescents (13 to 15 years old) and an internet-based survey with international adults (16 to 88 years old), were investigated in four studies across four empirical chapters (Chapters 2 through 5). Study 1 (Chapter 2) explored the similarities and differences in the psychometric structure of an abridged Ways of Savoring Checklist, labelled everyday savoring, between adolescents (N = 463) and adults (N = 980), as well as mean group differences in adolescents' and adults' degree of savoring. Study 2 (Chapter 3) investigated the concurrent relationships between adolescent and adult everyday savoring and hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing as well as the ability of savoring to moderate wellbeing. Then, Study 3 and Study 4 investigated the relationships between savoring and wellbeing across time for adolescents (N = 265; Study 3, Chapter 4) and adults (N = 1858; Study 4, Chapter 5), including savoring as a mediator of the relationship between everyday positive events and wellbeing (Chapter 4), and orientations to happiness as a moderator of savoring and everyday positive events (Chapter 5). Results indicated that adolescents and adults yielded a similar four-factor structure of everyday savoring: dampening ("I don‘t deserve it"), low arousal ("I tried to slow down"), high arousal ("I jumped up and down"), and self-focus ("I reminded myself how lucky I was") savoring strategies, which proved to be invariant across time. The adolescent group, however, manifested a stronger association between amplifying (i.e. low arousal, high arousal, and self-focused savoring) and dampening savoring. Adolescents also reported higher levels of dampening compared to the adult group, whereas adults reported higher amplifying than adolescents. As expected, high arousal and self-focused savoring were positively, and dampening was negatively, associated with wellbeing indicators for adolescents and adults. However, low arousal savoring was negatively associated with hedonia for adolescents, but positively associated with eudaimonia for adults. The longitudinal analyses indicated that amplifying savoring predicted increases in wellbeing whereas dampening savoring predicted decreases in wellbeing for both age groups. The direction of effect, however, was not always as expected, questioning general assumptions of savoring theory and the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. These exceptions are most noted and explored in the final empirical chapter, Chapter 5. Overall the findings suggest that savoring is similar and similarly important for wellbeing over the age range incorporating adolescence to adulthood, although potential developmental differences are important to consider. The contribution of this thesis to the study of savoring, the field of positive psychology, and positive health development are reviewed in Chapter 6, as are the implications, limitations, and future directions.</p>


2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 178-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rohan Nagare ◽  
Mark S. Rea ◽  
Barbara Plitnick ◽  
Mariana G. Figueiro

The human circadian system is primarily regulated by the 24-h LD cycle incident on the retina, and nocturnal melatonin suppression is a primary outcome measure for characterizing the biological clock’s response to those light exposures. A limited amount of data related to the combined effects of light level, spectrum, and exposure duration on nocturnal melatonin suppression has impeded the development of circadian-effective lighting recommendations and light-treatment methods. The study’s primary goal was to measure nocturnal melatonin suppression for a wide range of light levels (40 to 1000 lux), 2 white light spectra (2700 K and 6500 K), and an extended range of nighttime light exposure durations (0.5 to 3.0 h). The study’s second purpose was to examine whether differences existed between adolescents’ and adults’ circadian sensitivity to these lighting characteristics. The third purpose was to provide an estimate of the absolute threshold for the impact of light on acute melatonin suppression. Eighteen adolescents (age range, 13 to 18 years) and 23 adults (age range, 24 to 55 years) participated in the study. Results showed significant main effects of light level, spectrum, and exposure duration on melatonin suppression. Moreover, the data also showed that the relative suppressing effect of light on melatonin diminishes with increasing exposure duration for both age groups and both spectra. The present results do not corroborate our hypothesis that adolescents exhibit greater circadian sensitivity to short-wavelength radiation compared with adults. As for threshold, it takes longer to observe significant melatonin suppression at lower CS levels than at higher CS levels. Dose-response curves (amount and duration) for both white-light spectra and both age groups can guide lighting recommendations when considering circadian-effective light in applications such as offices, schools, residences, and healthcare facilities.


1989 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 175-183 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pat Mirenda ◽  
Douglas Eicher ◽  
David R. Beukelman

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the preferences of listeners of both sexes in four age groups with regard to natural and computer-generated synthetic speech in six different contexts. The subjects (listeners) for this study included 5 males and 5 females in each of four age groups (6–8 year olds, 10–12 year olds, adolescents, and adults). The listeners rated their preferences for 11 different voices (four natural and seven synthetic) on a 5-point Likert scale. Their preferences were rated for six communication contexts dependent on the potential user of the voice (adult male, adult female, child male, child female, computer, and self). The data were analyzed separately for each of the six communication contexts. In general, female listeners across the age range indicated that only natural female voices (adult or child) were acceptable alternatives to their own speech, thus rejecting the natural male voices as well as the synthetic voices. Male listeners appeared to be somewhat more flexible in terms of gender-appropriateness for themselves and other adult men, but selected female-sounding voices for women and female children. Children preferred to have computers produce synthesized speech, while adults preferred computers with more natural-sounding voices. The results of this investigation raise a number of issues related to the combined effects of age and gender-appropriateness of natural and synthetic speech. These are discussed in terms of their implications for the future development of synthetic speech technology used in communication devices.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mikkel Malling Beck ◽  
Meaghan Elizabeth Spedden ◽  
Jesper Lundbye-Jensen

AbstractHow does the neural control of fine movements develop from childhood to adulthood? Here, we investigated developmental differences in functional corticomuscular connectivity using coherence analyses in 111 individuals from four different age groups covering the age range 8–30 y. EEG and EMG were recorded while participants performed a uni-manual force-tracing task requiring fine control of force in a precision grip with both the dominant and non-dominant hand. Using beamforming methods, we located and reconstructed source activity from EEG data displaying peak coherence with the EMG activity of an intrinsic hand muscle during the task. Coherent cortical sources were found anterior and posterior to the central sulcus in the contralateral hemisphere. Undirected and directed corticomuscular coherence was quantified and compared between age groups. Our results revealed that coherence was greater in adults (20–30 yo) than in children (8–10 yo) and that this difference was driven by greater magnitudes of descending (cortex-to-muscle), rather than ascending (muscle-to-cortex), coherence. We speculate that the age-related differences reflect maturation of corticomuscular networks leading to increased functional connectivity with age. We interpret the greater magnitude of descending oscillatory coupling as reflecting a greater degree of feedforward control in adults compared to children. The findings provide a detailed characterization of differences in functional sensorimotor connectivity for individuals at different stages of typical ontogenetic development that may be related to the maturational refinement of dexterous motor control.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Erica D. Chadwick

<p>I sought to contribute to the understanding of positive health, in particular savoring and wellbeing, by conducting concurrent and longitudinal studies with adolescents and adults. The thesis begins with a review of the literature including savoring theory (Bryant & Veroff, 2007) and the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions (Fredrickson, 2001); these theories led to the key expectations that the psychometric structure of everyday savoring would be similar for adolescents and adults, and that amplifying savoring would positively predict wellbeing. Data obtained from two surveys, a paper-and-pencil survey with New Zealand adolescents (13 to 15 years old) and an internet-based survey with international adults (16 to 88 years old), were investigated in four studies across four empirical chapters (Chapters 2 through 5). Study 1 (Chapter 2) explored the similarities and differences in the psychometric structure of an abridged Ways of Savoring Checklist, labelled everyday savoring, between adolescents (N = 463) and adults (N = 980), as well as mean group differences in adolescents' and adults' degree of savoring. Study 2 (Chapter 3) investigated the concurrent relationships between adolescent and adult everyday savoring and hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing as well as the ability of savoring to moderate wellbeing. Then, Study 3 and Study 4 investigated the relationships between savoring and wellbeing across time for adolescents (N = 265; Study 3, Chapter 4) and adults (N = 1858; Study 4, Chapter 5), including savoring as a mediator of the relationship between everyday positive events and wellbeing (Chapter 4), and orientations to happiness as a moderator of savoring and everyday positive events (Chapter 5). Results indicated that adolescents and adults yielded a similar four-factor structure of everyday savoring: dampening ("I don‘t deserve it"), low arousal ("I tried to slow down"), high arousal ("I jumped up and down"), and self-focus ("I reminded myself how lucky I was") savoring strategies, which proved to be invariant across time. The adolescent group, however, manifested a stronger association between amplifying (i.e. low arousal, high arousal, and self-focused savoring) and dampening savoring. Adolescents also reported higher levels of dampening compared to the adult group, whereas adults reported higher amplifying than adolescents. As expected, high arousal and self-focused savoring were positively, and dampening was negatively, associated with wellbeing indicators for adolescents and adults. However, low arousal savoring was negatively associated with hedonia for adolescents, but positively associated with eudaimonia for adults. The longitudinal analyses indicated that amplifying savoring predicted increases in wellbeing whereas dampening savoring predicted decreases in wellbeing for both age groups. The direction of effect, however, was not always as expected, questioning general assumptions of savoring theory and the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. These exceptions are most noted and explored in the final empirical chapter, Chapter 5. Overall the findings suggest that savoring is similar and similarly important for wellbeing over the age range incorporating adolescence to adulthood, although potential developmental differences are important to consider. The contribution of this thesis to the study of savoring, the field of positive psychology, and positive health development are reviewed in Chapter 6, as are the implications, limitations, and future directions.</p>


2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 515-527
Author(s):  
V. Nelly Salgado de Snyder ◽  
Deliana Garcia ◽  
Roxana Pineda ◽  
Jessica Calderon ◽  
Dania Diaz ◽  
...  

Vaccination is the single most important preventive medicine action worldwide. However, there are inequalities in the procurement of vaccines particularly among US ethnic and racial minority males when compared to the rest of the US population. This study explored the reasons given by adult Mexican-origin males residing in Texas, for obtaining or not, immunizations. This was a cross-sectional, exploratory study with a sample of convenience of 401 adult males (age range 18–79) who were invited to participate in the study while waiting their turn to receive administrative services at the Mexican Consulate in Austin Texas. Data was collected in Spanish with a seven-item multiple choice questionnaire, using electronic tablets. The majority of respondents received their last vaccination longer than 5 years earlier. A higher percentage of individuals in the older age groups received a vaccine in the last year, as opposed to their younger counterparts who obtained their last immunization 3 to 5 years earlier. Among the reasons given for not getting vaccinated were lack of time or money, feared injections and side effects, insufficient information, interest or motivation. Others did not get vaccines because they perceived themselves to be healthy and did not feel sick. Findings from this study have important implications for future preventive medicine and vaccination practices that reach socially excluded groups in times of COVID-19. Recommendations are made to facilitate access to vaccines to the target group of this study and other socially disadvantaged populations in the global health context.


Author(s):  
K Yang ◽  
K Reddy ◽  
BH Wang ◽  
A Cenic ◽  
LC Ang ◽  
...  

Calcifying pseudoneoplasm of the neuraxis (CAPNON) is a rare tumefactive lesion with unclear pathogenesis. It is diagnosed by pathological findings of the typical histological features that include granular amorphous cores with palisading spindle to epithelioid cells, variable fibrous stroma, foreign-body reaction with giant cells, and calcification/ossification occasionally with psammoma bodies. However, its histopathology may be variable and currently immunohistochemistry plays a limited role in its diagnosis and understanding the pathogenesis. In this study, we examined 6 cases of CAPNONs including 3 intracranial and 3 spinal epidural lesions (age range: 59–69 years; 3 males and 3 females). Immunohistochemistry revealed that all CAPNON cores contain abundant positive deposits of neurofilament protein (NFP), which was supported by electron microscopy finding of filaments (8–13 nm in diameter). In comparison, no NFP positivity was found in 5 psammomatous/metaplastic meningiomas or 7 intervertebral tissue lesions with calcification/ossification. In addition, CAPNON cellular areas showed variable numbers of CD8+ cytotoxic T-cells with less CD4+ T-cells and a decreased ratio of CD4/CD8+ cells, versus the intervertebral tissue lesions without CD8+ or CD4+ cells. Our findings suggest that NFP may be a principal constituent of CAPNONs, and thus involved in the pathogenesis of CAPNON. Given the decreased CD4/CD8 ratio, the pathogenic process of CAPNON is possibly immune- mediated.LEARNING OBJECTIVESThe presentation will enable the learner to: 1.Discuss histopathological features of calcifying pseudoneoplasm of the neuraxis (CAPNON) with variation of non-core components.2.Explore diagnostic and pathogenic roles of immunohistochemical markers including neurofilament protein and CD4/CD8 in CAPNON.


Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 324
Author(s):  
Ho-Seok Oh ◽  
Sung-Kyu Kim ◽  
Hyoung-Yeon Seo

To investigate the incidence and characteristics of osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures in Korea, we used the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA) database. Patients over 50 years old, who were diagnosed or treated for osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures in all hospitals and clinics, were analyzed between 1 January 2009 and 31 December 2017 by using the HIRA database that contains prescription data and diagnostic codes. These data were retrospectively analyzed by decade and age-specific and gender-specific incidents in each year. We also evaluated other characteristics of patients including medication state of osteoporosis, primary used medical institution, regional-specific incidence of osteoporosis, and incidence of site-specific osteoporotic fractures. The number of osteoporosis patients over 50 years old, as diagnosed by a doctor, steadily increased from 2009 to 2017. The number of osteoporosis patients was notably greatest in the 60′s and 70′s age groups in every study period. Patients undergoing treatment for osteoporosis increased significantly (96%) from 2009 to 2017. Among the patients diagnosed with osteoporosis, the proportion who experienced osteoporotic fracture increased gradually (60%) from 2009 to 2017. The number of patients with osteoporotic fractures of the spine and hip was highest in the 70 to 90 age range, and the number of patients with osteoporotic fractures in the upper and lower extremities was highest in the 50 to 70 age range. Understanding the trends of osteoporosis in Korea will contribute to manage the increased number of patients with osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures.


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