scholarly journals Cavefish brain atlases reveal functional and anatomical convergence across independently evolved populations

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Jaggard ◽  
Evan Lloyd ◽  
Anders Yuiska ◽  
Adam Patch ◽  
Yaouen Fily ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brain Structure ◽  
Larval Fish ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Behavioral Evolution ◽  
Whole Brain ◽  
Brain Structure And Function ◽  
Brain Atlases

AbstractEnvironmental perturbation can drive the evolution of behavior and associated changes in brain structure and function. The generation of computationally-derived whole-brain atlases have provided insight into neural connectivity associated with behavior in many model systems. However, these approaches have not been used to study the evolution of brain structure in vertebrates. The Mexican tetra, A. mexicanus, comprises river-dwelling surface fish and multiple independently evolved populations of blind cavefish, providing a unique opportunity to identify neuroanatomical and functional differences associated with behavioral evolution. We employed intact brain imaging and image registration on 684 larval fish to generate neuroanatomical atlases of surface fish and three different cave populations. Analyses of brain regions and neural circuits associated with behavioral regulation identified convergence on hypothalamic expansion, as well as changes in transmitter systems including elevated numbers of catecholamine and hypocretin neurons in cavefish populations. To define evolutionarily-derived changes in brain function, we performed whole brain activity mapping associated with feeding and sleep. Feeding evoked neural activity in different sensory processing centers in surface and cavefish. We also identified multiple brain regions with sleep-associated activity across all four populations, including the rostral zone of the hypothalamus and tegmentum. Together, these atlases represent the first comparative brain-wide study of intraspecies variation in a vertebrate model, and provide a resource for studying the neural basis underlying behavioral evolution.

scholarly journals Cavefish brain atlases reveal functional and anatomical convergence across independently evolved populations

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (38) ◽  
pp. eaba3126
Author(s):  
James B. Jaggard ◽  
Evan Lloyd ◽  
Anders Yuiska ◽  
Adam Patch ◽  
Yaouen Fily ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Larval Fish ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Behavioral Evolution ◽  
Hunting Behavior ◽  
Whole Brain ◽  
Evolutionary Changes ◽  
Brain Structure And Function ◽  
Evoked Activity ◽  
And Function

Environmental perturbation can drive behavioral evolution and associated changes in brain structure and function. The Mexican fish species, Astyanax mexicanus, includes eyed river-dwelling surface populations and multiple independently evolved populations of blind cavefish. We used whole-brain imaging and neuronal mapping of 684 larval fish to generate neuroanatomical atlases of surface fish and three different cave populations. Analyses of brain region volume and neural circuits associated with cavefish behavior identified evolutionary convergence in hindbrain and hypothalamic expansion, and changes in neurotransmitter systems, including increased numbers of catecholamine and hypocretin/orexin neurons. To define evolutionary changes in brain function, we performed whole-brain activity mapping associated with behavior. Hunting behavior evoked activity in sensory processing centers, while sleep-associated activity differed in the rostral zone of the hypothalamus and tegmentum. These atlases represent a comparative brain-wide study of intraspecies variation in vertebrates and provide a resource for studying the neural basis of behavioral evolution.

scholarly journals The neuroscience of Romeo and Juliet : an fMRI study of acting

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 181908 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Brown ◽  
Peter Cockett ◽  
Ye Yuan
Keyword(s):  
Brain Activity ◽  
Role Playing ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Multiple Roles ◽  
First Person ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Romeo And Juliet ◽  
Loss Of Self ◽  
Fmri Study ◽  
Mri Study

The current study represents a first attempt at examining the neural basis of dramatic acting. While all people play multiple roles in daily life—for example, ‘spouse' or ‘employee'—these roles are all facets of the ‘self' and thus of the first-person (1P) perspective. Compared to such everyday role playing, actors are required to portray other people and to adopt their gestures, emotions and behaviours. Consequently, actors must think and behave not as themselves but as the characters they are pretending to be. In other words, they have to assume a ‘fictional first-person' (Fic1P) perspective. In this functional MRI study, we sought to identify brain regions preferentially activated when actors adopt a Fic1P perspective during dramatic role playing. In the scanner, university-trained actors responded to a series of hypothetical questions from either their own 1P perspective or from that of Romeo (male participants) or Juliet (female participants) from Shakespeare's drama. Compared to responding as oneself, responding in character produced global reductions in brain activity and, particularly, deactivations in the cortical midline network of the frontal lobe, including the dorsomedial and ventromedial prefrontal cortices. Thus, portraying a character through acting seems to be a deactivation-driven process, perhaps representing a ‘loss of self'.

scholarly journals Heterogeneity of EEG resting-state brain networks in absolute pitch

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marielle Greber ◽  
Carina Klein ◽  
Simon Leipold ◽  
Silvano Sele ◽  
Lutz Jäncke
Keyword(s):  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Auditory Cortex ◽  
Resting State ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Absolute Pitch ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Brain Network ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Whole Brain

AbstractThe neural basis of absolute pitch (AP), the ability to effortlessly identify a musical tone without an external reference, is poorly understood. One of the key questions is whether perceptual or cognitive processes underlie the phenomenon as both sensory and higher-order brain regions have been associated with AP. One approach to elucidate the neural underpinnings of a specific expertise is the examination of resting-state networks.Thus, in this paper, we report a comprehensive functional network analysis of intracranial resting-state EEG data in a large sample of AP musicians (n = 54) and non-AP musicians (n = 51). We adopted two analysis approaches: First, we applied an ROI-based analysis to examine the connectivity between the auditory cortex and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) using several established functional connectivity measures. This analysis is a replication of a previous study which reported increased connectivity between these two regions in AP musicians. Second, we performed a whole-brain network-based analysis on the same functional connectivity measures to gain a more complete picture of the brain regions involved in a possibly large-scale network supporting AP ability.In our sample, the ROI-based analysis did not provide evidence for an AP-specific connectivity increase between the auditory cortex and the DLPFC. In contrast, the whole-brain analysis revealed three networks with increased connectivity in AP musicians comprising nodes in frontal, temporal, subcortical, and occipital areas. Commonalities of the networks were found in both sensory and higher-order brain regions of the perisylvian area. Further research will be needed to confirm these exploratory results.

scholarly journals Neuropathology in the North American sudden unexpected death in epilepsy registry

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dominique F Leitner ◽  
Arline Faustin ◽  
Chloe Verducci ◽  
Daniel Friedman ◽  
Christopher William ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dentate Gyrus ◽  
North American ◽  
Focal Cortical Dysplasia ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Sudden Unexpected Death ◽  
Age At Death ◽  
Unexpected Death ◽  
Whole Brain ◽  
The North

Abstract Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy is the leading category of epilepsy-related death and the underlying mechanisms are incompletely understood. Risk factors can include a recent history and high frequency of generalized tonic-clonic seizures, which can depress brain activity postictally, impairing respiration, arousal and protective reflexes. Neuropathological findings in sudden unexpected death in epilepsy cases parallel those in other epilepsy patients, with no implication of novel structures or mechanisms in seizure-related deaths. Few large studies have comprehensively reviewed whole brain examination of such patients. We evaluated 92 North American Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy Registry cases with whole brain neuropathological examination by board-certified neuropathologists blinded to the adjudicated cause of death, with an average of 16 brain regions examined per case. The 92 cases included 61 sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (40 definite, 9 definite plus, 6 probable, 6 possible) and 31 people with epilepsy controls who died from other causes. The mean age at death was 34.4 years and 65.2% (60/92) were male. The average age of death was younger for sudden unexpected death in epilepsy cases than for epilepsy controls (30.0 versus 39.6 years; P = 0.006), and there was no difference in sex distribution respectively (67.3% male versus 64.5%, P = 0.8). Among sudden unexpected death in epilepsy cases, earlier age of epilepsy onset positively correlated with a younger age at death (P = 0.0005) and negatively correlated with epilepsy duration (P = 0.001). Neuropathological findings were identified in 83.7% of the cases in our cohort. The most common findings were dentate gyrus dysgenesis (sudden unexpected death in epilepsy 50.9%, epilepsy controls 54.8%) and focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) (sudden unexpected death in epilepsy 41.8%, epilepsy controls 29.0%). The neuropathological findings in sudden unexpected death in epilepsy paralleled those in epilepsy controls, including the frequency of total neuropathological findings as well as the specific findings in the dentate gyrus, findings pertaining to neurodevelopment (e.g. FCD, heterotopias) and findings in the brainstem (e.g. medullary arcuate or olivary dysgenesis). Thus, like prior studies, we found no neuropathological findings that were more common in sudden unexpected death in epilepsy cases. Future neuropathological studies evaluating larger sudden unexpected death in epilepsy and control cohorts would benefit from inclusion of different epilepsy syndromes with detailed phenotypic information, consensus among pathologists particularly for more subjective findings where observations can be inconsistent, and molecular approaches to identify markers of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy risk or pathogenesis.

scholarly journals Health news sharing is reflected in distributed reward-related brain activity

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (10) ◽  
pp. 1111-1119
Author(s):  
B P Doré ◽  
C Scholz ◽  
E C Baek ◽  
E B Falk
Keyword(s):  
Health Information ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Whole Brain ◽  
Health News ◽  
Brain Responses ◽  
Reward Value ◽  
Reward Valuation

Abstract Neuroimaging has identified individual brain regions, but not yet whole-brain patterns, that correlate with the population impact of health messaging. We used neuroimaging to measure whole-brain responses to health news articles across two studies. Beyond activity in core reward value-related regions (ventral striatum, ventromedial prefrontal cortex), our approach leveraged whole-brain responses to each article, quantifying expression of a distributed pattern meta-analytically associated with reward valuation. The results indicated that expression of this whole-brain pattern was associated with population-level sharing of these articles beyond previously identified brain regions and self-report variables. Further, the efficacy of the meta-analytic pattern was not reducible to patterns within core reward value-related regions but rather depended on larger-scale patterns. Overall, this work shows that a reward-related pattern of whole-brain activity is related to health information sharing, advancing neuroscience models of the mechanisms underlying the spread of health information through a population.

Beautiful minds (i.e., brains) and the neural basis of intelligence

2007 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard J. Haier ◽  
Rex E. Jung
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Neuroscience ◽  
Brain Structure ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Brain Structure And Function ◽  
And Function ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
New Phase ◽  
Empirical Framework

AbstractThe commentaries address conceptual issues ranging from our narrow focus on neuroimaging to the various definitions of intelligence. The integration of the P-FIT and data from cognitive neuroscience is particularly important and considerable consistency is found. Overall, the commentaries affirm that advances in neuroscience techniques have caused intelligence research to enter a new phase. The P-FIT is recognized as a reasonable empirical framework to test hypotheses about the relationship of brain structure and function with intelligence and reasoning.

scholarly journals Neuroscience Research on Human Visual Path Integration: Empirical Overview and Strategic Considerations

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jimmy Y. Zhong
Keyword(s):  
Path Integration ◽  
Hippocampal Formation ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Neuroscience Research ◽  
Integration Strategies ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain

Over the past two decades, many neuroimaging studies have attempted uncover the brain regions and networks involved in path integration and identify the underlying neurocognitive mechanisms. Although these studies made inroads into the neural basis of path integration, they have yet to offer a full disclosure of the functional specialization of the brain regions supporting path integration. In this paper, I reviewed notable neuroscientific studies on visual path integration in humans, identified the commonalities and discrepancies in their findings, and incorporated fresh insights from recent path integration studies. Specifically, this paper presented neuroscientific studies performed with virtual renditions of the triangle/path completion task and addressed whether or not the hippocampus is necessary for human path integration. Based on studies that showed evidence supporting and negating the involvement of the hippocampal formation in path integration, this paper introduces the proposal that the use of different path integration strategies may determine the extent to which the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex are engaged during path integration. To this end, recent studies that investigated the impact of different path integration strategies on behavioral performance and functional brain activity were discussed. Methodological concerns were raised with feasible recommendations for improving the experimental design of future strategy-related path integration studies, which can cover cognitive neuroscience research on age-related differences in the role of the hippocampal formation in path integration and Bayesian modelling of the interaction between landmark and self-motion cues. The practical value of investigating different path integration strategies was also discussed briefly from a biomedical perspective.

scholarly journals Desikan-Killiany-Tourville Atlas Compatible Version of M-CRIB Neonatal Parcellated Whole Brain Atlas: The M-CRIB 2.0

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bonnie Alexander ◽  
Wai Yen Loh ◽  
Lillian G. Matthews ◽  
Andrea L. Murray ◽  
Chris Adamson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brain Regions ◽  
Brain Atlas ◽  
Whole Brain ◽  
Brain Structure And Function ◽  
Postmenstrual Age ◽  
Mri Scans ◽  
Subcortical Regions ◽  
Cortical Regions ◽  
And Function ◽  
Ventral Diencephalon

AbstractOur recently published M-CRIB atlas comprises 100 neonatal brain regions including 68 compatible with the widely-used Desikan-Killiany adult cortical atlas. A successor to the Desikan-Killiany atlas is the Desikan-Killiany-Tourville atlas, in which some regions with unclear boundaries were removed, and many existing boundaries were revised to conform to clearer landmarks in sulcal fundi. Our first aim here was to modify cortical M-CRIB regions to comply with the Desikan-Killiany-Tourville protocol, in order to offer: a) compatibility with this adult cortical atlas, b) greater labelling accuracy due to clearer landmarks, and c) optimisation of cortical regions for integration with surface-based infant parcellation pipelines. Secondly, we aimed to update subcortical regions in order to offer greater compatibility with subcortical segmentations produced in FreeSurfer. Data utilized were the T2-weighted MRI scans in our M-CRIB atlas, for ten healthy neonates (postmenstrual age at MRI 40-43 weeks, 4 female), and corresponding parcellated images. Edits were performed on the parcellated images in volume space using ITK-SNAP. Cortical updates included deletion of frontal and temporal poles and ‘Banks STS’, and modification of boundaries of many other regions. Changes to subcortical regions included the addition of ‘ventral diencephalon’, and deletion of ‘subcortical matter’ labels. A detailed updated parcellation protocol was produced. The resulting whole-brain M-CRIB 2.0 atlas comprises 94 regions altogether. This atlas provides comparability with adult Desikan-Killiany-Tourville-labelled cortical data and FreeSurfer-labelled subcortical data, and is more readily adaptable for incorporation into surface-based neonatal parcellation pipelines. As such, it offers the ability to help facilitate a broad range of investigations into brain structure and function both at the neonatal time point and developmentally across the lifespan.

Neural Basis of Apathy

2021 ◽  
pp. 174-190
Author(s):  
Ingrid Agartz ◽  
Lynn Mørch-Johnsen
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging ◽  
Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Positron Emission ◽  
White Matter Microstructure ◽  
Brain Structure And Function ◽  
And Function

This chapter introduces structural neuroimaging methods and presents results from brain imaging studies of the clinical apathy syndrome in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, mild cognitive impairment, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and stroke, and also in schizophrenia, today considered a neurodevelopmental disease. The main method used has been magnetic resonance imaging, which also holds many innovative possibilities for future development. Scientific studies so far have pointed to structural differences in frontal, striatal, anterior cingulate, and parietal brain regions, and of white matter microstructure and connectivity changes as being involved in the apathy syndrome. No single circuit connected to apathy has so far been identified. Brain structure and function, studied at the systems network level, and integrative multimodal imaging approaches, which combine different high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging, magnetic resonance diffusion, and positron emission tomography techniques, can be helpful in resolving future questions.

The Neural Basis of Successful Word Reading in Aphasia

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 514-525 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara B. Pillay ◽  
William L. Gross ◽  
William W. Graves ◽  
Colin Humphries ◽  
Diane S. Book ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Word Reading ◽  
Functional Neuroimaging ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Angular Gyrus ◽  
Bold Signal ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Successful Performance

Understanding the neural basis of recovery from stroke is a major research goal. Many functional neuroimaging studies have identified changes in brain activity in people with aphasia, but it is unclear whether these changes truly support successful performance or merely reflect increased task difficulty. We addressed this problem by examining differences in brain activity associated with correct and incorrect responses on an overt reading task. On the basis of previous proposals that semantic retrieval can assist pronunciation of written words, we hypothesized that recruitment of semantic areas would be greater on successful trials. Participants were 21 patients with left-hemisphere stroke with phonologic retrieval deficits. They read words aloud during an event-related fMRI paradigm. BOLD signals obtained during correct and incorrect trials were contrasted to highlight brain activity specific to successful trials. Successful word reading was associated with higher BOLD signal in the left angular gyrus. In contrast, BOLD signal in bilateral posterior inferior frontal cortex, SMA, and anterior cingulate cortex was greater on incorrect trials. These data show for the first time the brain regions where neural activity is correlated specifically with successful performance in people with aphasia. The angular gyrus is a key node in the semantic network, consistent with the hypothesis that additional recruitment of the semantic system contributes to successful word production when phonologic retrieval is impaired. Higher activity in other brain regions during incorrect trials likely reflects secondary engagement of attention, working memory, and error monitoring processes when phonologic retrieval is unsuccessful.

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