scholarly journals A role for the paravermis in the control of verbal interference: comparison of bilingual and monolingual adults

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
roberto filippi
Keyword(s):  
Brain Structure ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Region Of Interest ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Structure Sensitivity ◽  
Interference Control ◽  
Regional Patterns ◽  
Significant Group ◽  
Linguistic Interference ◽  
Sentence Interpretation

We evaluate brain structure sensitivity to verbal interference in a sentence interpretation task, building on previously reported evidence that those with better control of verbal interference show higher grey matter density in the posterior paravermis of the right cerebellum (Filippi et al., 2011). We compare brain structure sensitivity to verbal interference control across two groups, English monolingual (N = 41) and multilingual (N = 46) adults. Using voxel-based morphometry, our primary goal was to identify and explore differences in regional patterns of grey matter sensitivity to performance on the sentence interpretation task, controlling for group variability in age, nonverbal reasoning and vocabulary knowledge. There was no group difference in performance but there was a significant group effect in grey matter sensitivity to task performance in our region of interest: stronger sensitivity in the paravermis in bilinguals compared to monolinguals in accuracy performance in the high (relative to low) verbal interference condition. This effect was observed when the linguistic interference was presented in an unfamiliar language (Greek) but not when presented in the familiar language (English). Our findings suggest that multilanguage acquisition mediates regional involvement within the language network, conferring enhanced functional plasticity within structures (including the paravermis) in the service of control of linguistic interference.

scholarly journals Neurostructural Correlates of Cannabis Use in Adolescent Bipolar Disorder

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alysha A Sultan ◽  
Kody G Kennedy ◽  
Lisa Fiksenbaum ◽  
Bradley J MacIntosh ◽  
Benjamin I Goldstein
Keyword(s):  
Bipolar Disorder ◽  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Brain Structure ◽  
Social Acceptance ◽  
Region Of Interest ◽  
Cannabis Use ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Intracranial Volume ◽  
Significant Group ◽  
Healthy Control

Abstract Objective Little is known regarding the association of cannabis use with brain structure in adolescents with bipolar disorder (BD). This subject is timely, given expanded availability of cannabis contemporaneously with increased social acceptance and diminished societal constraints to access. Therefore, we set out to examine this topic in a sample of adolescents with BD and healthy control (HC) adolescents. Methods Participants included 144 adolescents (47 BD with cannabis use [BDCB+; including 13 with cannabis use disorder], 34 BD without cannabis use [BDCB-], 63 HC without cannabis use) ages 13-20 years. FreeSurfer-processed 3T MRI with T1-weighted contrast, yielded measures of cortical thickness, surface area (SA), and volume. Region of interest (ROI; amygdala, hippocampus, ventrolateral prefrontal cortex [vlPFC], ventromedial prefrontal cortex [vmPFC], and anterior cingulate cortex [ACC]), analyses and exploratory vertex-wise analysis were undertaken. A general linear model tested for between-group differences, accounting for age, sex, and intracranial volume. Results Vertex-wise analysis revealed significant group effects in frontal and parietal regions. In post-hoc analyses, BDCB+ exhibited larger volume and SA in parietal regions, and smaller thickness in frontal regions, relative to HC and BDCB-. BDCB- had smaller volume, SA and thickness in parietal and frontal regions relative to HC. There were no significant ROI findings after correcting for multiple comparisons. Conclusion This study found that cannabis use is associated with differences in regional brain structure among adolescents with BD. Future prospective studies are necessary to determine the direction of the observed association and to assess for dose effects.

scholarly journals Individual differences in brain structure and self-reported empathy in children

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Olivia Bray ◽  
Elena Pozzi ◽  
Nandita Vijayakumar ◽  
Sally Richmond ◽  
Camille Deane ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Brain Structure ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Region Of Interest ◽  
Preliminary Evidence ◽  
Cognitive Empathy ◽  
Empathic Concern ◽  
Grey Matter Volume ◽  
Matter Volume

Empathy refers to the understanding and sharing of others’ emotions and comprises cognitive and affective components. Empathy is important for social functioning, and alterations in empathy have been demonstrated in many developmental/psychiatric disorders. While several studies have examined associations between empathy and brain structure in adults, few have investigated this relationship in children. Investigating associations between empathy and brain structure during childhood will help us develop a deeper understanding of the neural correlates of empathy across the lifespan.125 children (66 female, mean age 10 years) underwent MRI brain scans. Grey matter volume and cortical thickness from T1-weighted structural images were examined using the CAT12 toolbox within SPM12. Children completed questionnaire measures of empathy (cognitive empathy, affective empathy: affective sharing, empathic concern, empathic distress).In hypothesised region of interest analyses, individual differences in affective and cognitive empathy were related to grey matter volume in the insula and the precuneus. Although these relationships were of similar strength to those found in previous research, they did not survive correction for the total number of models computed. While no significant findings were detected between grey matter volume and empathy in exploratory whole-brain analysis, associations were found between cortical thickness and empathic concern in the right precentral gyrus.This study provides preliminary evidence that individual differences in self-reported empathy in children may be related to aspects of brain structure. Findings highlight the need for more research investigating the neurobiological correlates of empathy in children.

scholarly journals Brain Structure, Cardiorespiratory Fitness, and Executive Control Changes after a 9-Week Exercise Intervention in Young Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Life ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 292
Author(s):  
Lina Zhu ◽  
Qian Yu ◽  
Fabian Herold ◽  
Boris Cheval ◽  
Xiaoxiao Dong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
Aerobic Exercise ◽  
Cardiorespiratory Fitness ◽  
Executive Control ◽  
Brain Structure ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Exercise Intervention ◽  
Exercise Group ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Younger Adults

Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is assumed to exert beneficial effects on brain structure and executive control (EC) performance. However, empirical evidence of exercise-induced cognitive enhancement is not conclusive, and the role of CRF in younger adults is not fully understood. Here, we conducted a study in which healthy young adults took part in a moderate aerobic exercise intervention program for 9 weeks (exercise group; n = 48), or control condition of non-aerobic exercise intervention (waitlist control group; n = 72). Before and after the intervention period maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) as an indicator of CRF, the Flanker task as a measure of EC performance and grey matter volume (GMV), as well as cortical thickness via structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), were assessed. Compared to the control group, the CRF (heart rate, p < 0.001; VO2max, p < 0.001) and EC performance (congruent and incongruent reaction time, p = 0.011, p < 0.001) of the exercise group were significantly improved after the 9-week aerobic exercise intervention. Furthermore, GMV changes in the left medial frontal gyrus increased in the exercise group, whereas they were significantly reduced in the control group. Likewise, analysis of cortical morphology revealed that the left lateral occipital cortex (LOC.L) and the left precuneus (PCUN.L) thickness were considerably increased in the exercise group, which was not observed in the control group. The exploration analysis confirmed that CRF improvements are linked to EC improvement and frontal grey matter changes. In summary, our results support the idea that regular endurance exercises are an important determinant for brain health and cognitive performance even in a cohort of younger adults.

scholarly journals Online social network size is reflected in human brain structure

2011 ◽  
Vol 279 (1732) ◽  
pp. 1327-1334 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Kanai ◽  
B. Bahrami ◽  
R. Roylance ◽  
G. Rees
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Social Networking ◽  
Real World ◽  
Brain Structure ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Online Social Network ◽  
Network Size ◽  
Matter Density ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Social Network Size

The increasing ubiquity of web-based social networking services is a striking feature of modern human society. The degree to which individuals participate in these networks varies substantially for reasons that are unclear. Here, we show a biological basis for such variability by demonstrating that quantitative variation in the number of friends an individual declares on a web-based social networking service reliably predicted grey matter density in the right superior temporal sulcus, left middle temporal gyrus and entorhinal cortex. Such regions have been previously implicated in social perception and associative memory, respectively. We further show that variability in the size of such online friendship networks was significantly correlated with the size of more intimate real-world social groups. However, the brain regions we identified were specifically associated with online social network size, whereas the grey matter density of the amygdala was correlated both with online and real-world social network sizes. Taken together, our findings demonstrate that the size of an individual's online social network is closely linked to focal brain structure implicated in social cognition.

Early striatal hypertrophy in first-episode psychosis within 3 weeks of initiating antipsychotic drug treatment

2008 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 793-800 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. Chua ◽  
Y. Deng ◽  
E. Y. H. Chen ◽  
C. W. Law ◽  
C. P. Y. Chiu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Antipsychotic Medication ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Region Of Interest ◽  
Brain Morphology ◽  
Group Differences ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Antipsychotic Treatment ◽  
Caudate Nuclei ◽  
The Right

BackgroundWe and others have reported that patients experiencing their first episode of psychosis already have significant structural brain abnormalities. Antipsychotics seem to reverse subcortical volume deficits after months of treatment. However, the early impact of medication on brain morphology is not known.MethodForty-eight individuals in their first episode of psychosis underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scanning. Twenty-six were antipsychotic naive and 22 were newly treated with antipsychotic medication for a median period of 3 weeks. In each group, 80% of subjects received a diagnosis of schizophrenia. The two groups were balanced for age, sex, handedness, ethnicity, height, years of education, paternal socio-economic status (SES) and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) score. Group differences in whole-brain grey matter were compared voxel by voxel, using Brain Activation and Morphological Mapping (BAMM) software. We also conducted testing of group differences with region-of-interest (ROI) measurements of the caudate nucleus.ResultsRelative to the untreated group, those receiving antipsychotic medication for 3–4 weeks had significantly greater grey-matter volumes in the bilateral caudate and cingulate gyri, extending to the left medial frontal gyrus. ROI analysis confirmed that, in treated patients, the right and left caudate nuclei were significantly larger by 10% (p<0.039, two-tailed) and 9% (p<0.048, two-tailed) respectively.ConclusionsEarly striatal grey-matter enlargement may occur within the first 3–4 weeks of antipsychotic treatment. Possible reasons for putative striatal hypertrophy and its implications are discussed.

scholarly journals Relationships between Brain Structure and Metabolic Changes in Schizophrenia Patients Treated with Olanzapine: A Voxel-Based Morphometric Study

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Genevieve Letourneau ◽  
Lahcen Ait Bentaleb ◽  
Benjamin Stip ◽  
David Luck ◽  
Emmanuel Stip
Keyword(s):  
Brain Structure ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Examination ◽  
Morphometric Study ◽  
Metabolic Disturbances ◽  
Cerebral Magnetic Resonance Imaging ◽  
Second Generation Antipsychotics ◽  
Frontal Operculum ◽  
The Right

Introduction. Second-generation antipsychotics treatment is associated with weight gain and metabolic disturbances. Although much research has been done on the topic, the precise mechanisms underlying such side effects are still not well understood.Method. We followed over 16 weeks a group of 17 schizophrenia patients who were treated with olanzapine and monitored biometric, clinical, and metabolic data, including ghrelin and leptin levels. All patients had a structural cerebral magnetic resonance imaging examination during the first week of their followup and at the end of the study.Results. We found positive and negative significant correlations between grey matter volumes of several brain regions and variations of body weight as well as of ghrelin and leptin levels. The right frontal operculum, bilateral precuneus, and bilateral hippocampal regions were found to be significantly associated with those changes.Conclusion. Our results suggest associations between brain structure and metabolic variations in schizophrenia patients taking olanzapine.

A Microscopic Demonstration of the Normal and Pathological Histology of Mesoglia Cells

1900 ◽  
Vol 46 (195) ◽  
pp. 724-724 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ford Robertson
Keyword(s):  
Cell Body ◽  
Brain Structure ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Brain Cells ◽  
Nerve Fibres ◽  
Pathological Conditions ◽  
Exact Function ◽  
Microscopic Demonstration ◽  
A Cell ◽  
The Brain

Dr. Clouston in the unavoidable absence of Dr. Ford Robertson made the following remarks:—The first fact that I have to direct the attention of the meeting to is that Dr. Ford Robertson has devised a new method of examining nerve-tissues by depositing platinum in them. By the use of this platinum method he has demonstrated, amongst other things, that what is called the neuroglia is composed of two sets of elements instead of one, as is generally considered. The neuroglia, as exhibited by this and other methods, is attached to the arteries, to the fibres, and to the brain-cells, forming a generally supporting medium. Dr. Robertson has discovered that in addition to this there is another set of cells, which he has called the mesoglia cells, consisting in a typical form of a cell-body, a nucleus and a number of processes. These processes are in no way connected either with the vascular substance or with the nerve-cells or the nerve-fibres. The mesoglia cells are entirely different from neuroglia cells in appearance, and are found in both the white and grey matter, and in such abundance that Dr. Robertson thinks that there are as many mesoglia cells as there are neuroglia cells existing all through the brain. Sometimes they have no processes, sometimes two processes, but the illustrations show a typical mesoglia cell from the dog and from man. The exact function of these mesoglia cells we certainly do not know, but they certainly do not act in any way as a support to the general brain structure. The mesoglia cells seem to have a phagocyte action in certain pathological conditions. They supply, if not all, at least the greater part of the amyloid bodies which are found in some of the chronic brain degenerations. I think you will agree that it is very important that Dr. Ford Robertson should have discovered a new element in the brain, the particular use of which will doubtless be demonstrated by some of the large number of enthusiastic workers on this subject.

scholarly journals Mapping migraine to a common brain network

Brain ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 143 (2) ◽  
pp. 541-553 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew J Burke ◽  
Juho Joutsa ◽  
Alexander L Cohen ◽  
Louis Soussand ◽  
Danielle Cooke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Visual Cortex ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Mixed Model ◽  
Linear Mixed Model ◽  
Region Of Interest ◽  
Generalized Linear Mixed Model ◽  
Brain Network ◽  
Grey Matter Volume ◽  
Matter Volume ◽  
Network Mapping

Abstract Inconsistent findings from migraine neuroimaging studies have limited attempts to localize migraine symptomatology. Novel brain network mapping techniques offer a new approach for linking neuroimaging findings to a common neuroanatomical substrate and localizing therapeutic targets. In this study, we attempted to determine whether neuroanatomically heterogeneous neuroimaging findings of migraine localize to a common brain network. We used meta-analytic coordinates of decreased grey matter volume in migraineurs as seed regions to generate resting state functional connectivity network maps from a normative connectome (n = 1000). Network maps were overlapped to identify common regions of connectivity across all coordinates. Specificity of our findings was evaluated using a whole-brain Bayesian spatial generalized linear mixed model and a region of interest analysis with comparison groups of chronic pain and a neurologic control (Alzheimer’s disease). We found that all migraine coordinates (11/11, 100%) were negatively connected (t ≥ ±7, P &lt; 10−6 family-wise error corrected for multiple comparisons) to a single location in left extrastriate visual cortex overlying dorsal V3 and V3A subregions. More than 90% of coordinates (10/11) were also positively connected with bilateral insula and negatively connected with the hypothalamus. Bayesian spatial generalized linear mixed model whole-brain analysis identified left V3/V3A as the area with the most specific connectivity to migraine coordinates compared to control coordinates (voxel-wise probability of ≥90%). Post hoc region of interest analyses further supported the specificity of this finding (ANOVA P = 0.02; pairwise t-tests P = 0.03 and P = 0.003, respectively). In conclusion, using coordinate-based network mapping, we show that regions of grey matter volume loss in migraineurs localize to a common brain network defined by connectivity to visual cortex V3/V3A, a region previously implicated in mechanisms of cortical spreading depression in migraine. Our findings help unify migraine neuroimaging literature and offer a migraine-specific target for neuromodulatory treatment.

scholarly journals Recent glacier mass changes in the Gulf of Alaska region from GRACE mascon solutions

2008 ◽  
Vol 54 (188) ◽  
pp. 767-777 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott B. Luthcke ◽  
Anthony A. Arendt ◽  
David D. Rowlands ◽  
John J. McCarthy ◽  
Christopher F. Larsen
Keyword(s):  
Region Of Interest ◽  
Gulf Of Alaska ◽  
Rate Data ◽  
Regional Patterns ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
Range Rate ◽  
Global Sea Level ◽  
Processing Techniques ◽  
Gravity Recovery

AbstractThe mass changes of the Gulf of Alaska (GoA) glaciers are computed from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) inter-satellite range-rate data for the period April 2003–September 2007. Through the application of unique processing techniques and a surface mass concentration (mascon) parameterization, the mass variations in the GoA glacier regions have been estimated at high temporal (10 day) and spatial (2 × 2 arc-degrees) resolution. The mascon solutions are directly estimated from a reduction of the GRACE K-band inter-satellite range-rate data and, unlike previous GRACE solutions for the GoA glaciers, do not exhibit contamination by leakage from mass change occurring outside the region of interest. The mascon solutions reveal considerable temporal and spatial variation within the GoA glacier region, with the largest negative mass balances observed in the St Elias Mountains including the Yakutat and Glacier Bay regions. The most rapid losses occurred during the 2004 melt season due to record temperatures in Alaska during that year. The total mass balance of the GoA glacier region was −84 ± 5 Gt a−1 contributing 0.23 ± 0.01 mm a−1 to global sea-level rise from April 2003 through March 2007. Highlighting the large seasonal and interannual variability of the GoA glaciers, the rate determined over the period April 2003–March 2006 is −102 ± 5 Gt a−1, which includes the anomalously high temperatures of 2004 and does not include the large 2007 winter balance-year snowfall. The mascon solutions agree well with regional patterns of glacier mass loss determined from aircraft altimetry and in situ measurements.

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