scholarly journals Subcortical Volume Changes in Early Menopausal Women and Correlation With Neuropsychological Tests

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Si Zhang ◽  
Weijie Fan ◽  
Hao Hu ◽  
Li Wen ◽  
Mingfu Gong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Reaction Time ◽  
Neuropsychological Tests ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Functional Changes ◽  
Memory Accuracy ◽  
Menopausal Women ◽  
Estradiol Levels ◽  
Structural Brain ◽  
Subcortical Volume

Background: The aging process and declining estradiol levels are two important factors that cause structural brain alterations. Many prior studies have investigated these two elements and revealed controversial results in menopausal women. Here, a cross-sectional study was designed to individually evaluate estradiol-related structural changes in the brain.Methods: A total of 45 early menopausal women and 54 age-matched premenopausal controls were enrolled and subjected to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, blood biochemistry tests, and neuropsychological tests. MRI structural images were analyzed using FreeSurfer to detect changes in subcortical and cortical volumes as well as cortical thickness. Finally, structural brain data as well as clinical and neuropsychological data were used for Pearson’s correlation analyses to individually determine estradiol-related structural and functional changes in the brains of early menopausal women.Results: Compared with the premenopausal controls, the early menopausal women showed significant subcortical volumetric loss in the left amygdala and right amygdala, higher serum follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels, more recognizable climacteric and depressive symptoms, decreased quality of sleep, and decreased working memory and executive functions. Simultaneously, FSH levels were related to lower working memory accuracy and longer working memory reaction time. Decreased subcortical volume in the bilateral amygdala was also related to lower working memory accuracy and longer executive reaction time in early menopausal women.Conclusion: The data suggest that estradiol deficiency in early menopausal women can lead to subcortical volume and functional brain changes, which may contribute to further understanding the neurobiological role of declined estradiol levels in early menopausal women.

Early and Late Neurodevelopmental Disturbances in Schizophrenia and Their Functional Consequences

2003 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 399-406 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christos Pantelis ◽  
Christos Pantelis ◽  
Murat Yücel ◽  
Stephen J. Wood ◽  
Patrick D. McGorry ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Structural Changes ◽  
Neurodevelopmental Disorder ◽  
Brain Maturation ◽  
Structural Imaging ◽  
Imaging Studies ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Functional Changes ◽  
Functional Consequences ◽  
Brain Changes ◽  
Structural Brain

Objective: The evidence from structural imaging studies supports the notion that schizophrenia arises from an early abnormality in brain development. In this paper we review the timing of structural changes in schizophrenia and argue that schizophrenia is a neurodevelopmental disorder with limited progressive brain changes occurring during the evolution and early phase of psychosis. Method: The available cross-sectional and longitudinal studies are reviewed, along with data from our own research. Results: The current literature, including our own data, suggests that structural brain changes are apparent premorbidly, consistent with a neurodevelopmental lesion. These are prominent in frontal and cingulate regions, and appear related to premorbid neuropsychological deficits in executive function. However, there appear to be additional brain changes over the transition to illness and beyond. Conclusions: We propose first, that an early neurodevelopmental insult interacts with either normal or abnormal postpubertal brain maturation to produce further (late neurodevelopmental) brain structural and functional changes; and second, that the effect of such neurodevelopmental lesions will have different consequences for functions that normally develop early in life, such as memory, compared with functions developing later, such as executive functions. A model is presented suggesting that the structural and functional abnormalities in schizophrenia can be understood as a consequence of the neurodevelopmental stage at which brain changes occur.

Working Memory Accuracy Micro-controlled through a Tablet Pen

2020 ◽  
Vol 140 (5) ◽  
pp. 502-507
Author(s):  
Masatoshi Takita ◽  
Ryu Kato ◽  
Hiroshi Yokoi
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Memory Accuracy

scholarly journals How do we measure attention? Using factor analysis to establish construct validity of neuropsychological tests

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Treviño ◽  
Xiaoshu Zhu ◽  
Yi Yi Lu ◽  
Luke S. Scheuer ◽  
Eliza Passell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Visual Search ◽  
Object Tracking ◽  
Visual Working Memory ◽  
Neuropsychological Tests ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Digit Symbol ◽  
Attentional Capacity ◽  
Spatial Span

AbstractWe investigated whether standardized neuropsychological tests and experimental cognitive paradigms measure the same cognitive faculties. Specifically, do neuropsychological tests commonly used to assess attention measure the same construct as attention paradigms used in cognitive psychology and neuroscience? We built on the “general attention factor”, comprising several widely used experimental paradigms (Huang et al., 2012). Participants (n = 636) completed an on-line battery (TestMyBrain.org) of six experimental tests [Multiple Object Tracking, Flanker Interference, Visual Working Memory, Approximate Number Sense, Spatial Configuration Visual Search, and Gradual Onset Continuous Performance Task (Grad CPT)] and eight neuropsychological tests [Trail Making Test versions A & B (TMT-A, TMT-B), Digit Symbol Coding, Forward and Backward Digit Span, Letter Cancellation, Spatial Span, and Arithmetic]. Exploratory factor analysis in a subset of 357 participants identified a five-factor structure: (1) attentional capacity (Multiple Object Tracking, Visual Working Memory, Digit Symbol Coding, Spatial Span), (2) search (Visual Search, TMT-A, TMT-B, Letter Cancellation); (3) Digit Span; (4) Arithmetic; and (5) Sustained Attention (GradCPT). Confirmatory analysis in 279 held-out participants showed that this model fit better than competing models. A hierarchical model where a general cognitive factor was imposed above the five specific factors fit as well as the model without the general factor. We conclude that Digit Span and Arithmetic tests should not be classified as attention tests. Digit Symbol Coding and Spatial Span tap attentional capacity, while TMT-A, TMT-B, and Letter Cancellation tap search (or attention-shifting) ability. These five tests can be classified as attention tests.

The effect of caloric restriction on working memory in healthy non-obese adults

CNS Spectrums ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilie Leclerc ◽  
Alisson Paulino Trevizol ◽  
Ruth B. Grigolon ◽  
Mehala Subramaniapillai ◽  
Roger S. McIntyre ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Energy Expenditure ◽  
Sleep Quality ◽  
Caloric Restriction ◽  
Neuropsychological Tests ◽  
Spatial Working Memory ◽  
Multicenter Trial ◽  
Obese Adults ◽  
Parallel Group ◽  
Lower Protein

Objective.We aim to evaluate the effect of caloric restriction (CR) in cognition by comparing performance in neuropsychological tests for working memory between a group of non-obese healthy subjects doing CR for 2 years with another consuming ad libitum diet (AL).Methods.This study was part of a larger multicenter trial called CALERIE that consisted of a randomized clinical trial with parallel-group comparing 2 years of 25% CR and AL in 220 volunteers with a BMI between 22 and 28 kg/m2, across 3 sites. The cognitive tests used were the Cambridge Neuropsychological Tests Automated Battery (CANTAB) for Spatial Working Memory (SWM) including the total number of errors (SWMTE) and strategy (SWMS). Included as possible moderators were sleep quality, mood states, perceived stress, and energy expenditure. Analyses were performed at baseline and months 12 and 24.Results.After adjustments, there was a significantly greater improvement in working memory assessed by the SWM for CR individuals, compared to AL. At month 24, it was related mostly to lower protein intake, compared to other macronutrients. Changes in SWM were moderated by changes in sleep quality, physical activity, and energy expenditure.Conclusion.On the long term, CR in healthy individuals seems to have a slightly positive effect on working memory. The study of brain CR targets opens new possibilities to prevent and treat cognitive deficits.

Abstract P604: Astrocyte-dependent Regulation of Vascular Tone: Role in Hypertension

Hypertension ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 68 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Manuel Ramiro-Diaz ◽  
Ki Jung Kim ◽  
Jessica A Filosa
Keyword(s):  
Vascular Tone ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Neurovascular Unit ◽  
Brain Slices ◽  
Vascular Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Vascular Density ◽  
Aqp4 Expression ◽  
Functional Changes ◽  
Functional Studies ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms

Clinical studies support that untreated hypertension (HT) accelerates the development of vascular cognitive impairment (VCI). Yet, the underlying mechanisms for VCI are not known. In a recent study we demonstrated the role of astrocytes in the regulation of parenchymal arteriole (PA) steady-state vascular tone. Here we hypothesized hypertension results in structural and functional changes to the neurovascular unit resulting in enhanced astrocytic TRPV4 channel-dependent Ca 2+ increases contributing to augmented pressure-induced PA constriction . Functional studies were conducted in brain slices from angiotensin II (AngII) treated mice (600 ng/Kg/min, 28 days). PA arterioles within brain slices were perfused and pressurized and myogenic-evoked diameter changes measured using video microscopy. In addition, using the GLAST-CreERT2 ; R26-lsl-GCaMP3 mice we measure myogenic-evoked Ca 2+ changes in perivascular astrocytes. We demonstrate that HT increases pressure-induced PA tone by 11.14% at 30 mmHg and 12.97% at 60 mmHg (10.88 to 22.02 and 15.46 to 28.43% of tone, P<0.05 and P<0.01, respectively). In ANG II-treated mice, PA myogenic-evoked responses significantly increased astrocytic Ca 2+ oscillations frequency (119.4%, 0.0366 to 0.0803 Hz, P<0.0001). A significant increase in astrocytic Ca 2+ oscillation frequency was also observed after 2 min of AngII (500 nM) bath application (44.8%, 0.0366 to 0.053 Hz, P<0.01) in brain slices from AngII treated mice. Furthermore, using the model of spontaneous hypertensive rat (SHR) we observed that HT differentially increases vascular density and the number of vascular pericytes in cortical layers with highest neuronal densities (L III-V). Finally, while aquaporin 4 (AQP4) expression pattern was not different in the gray matter of SHR compared with WKY rats, a significant increase in unpolarized AQP4 expression was observed in the white matter of SHR. Taken together, this evidence indicates that HT induces functional and structural changes to the neurovascular unit favoring the development of regional brain hypoperfusion likely contributing to the development of VCI.

scholarly journals Retinal functional imager (RFI): Non-invasive functional imaging of the retina

2013 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 250-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sunil Ganekal
Keyword(s):  
Functional Imaging ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Imaging System ◽  
Retinal Blood Flow ◽  
Capillary Perfusion ◽  
Functional Changes ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Retinal Disorders ◽  
Retinal Blood Flow Velocity ◽  
Perfusion Maps

Retinal functional imager (RFI) is a unique non-invasive functional imaging system with novel capabilities for visualizing the retina. The objective of this review was to show the utility of non-invasive functional imaging in various disorders. Electronic literature search was carried out using the websites www.pubmed.gov and www.google.com. The search words were retinal functional imager and non-invasive retinal imaging used in combination. The articles published or translated into English were studied. The RFI directly measures hemodynamic parameters such as retinal blood-flow velocity, oximetric state, metabolic responses to photic activation and generates capillary perfusion maps (CPM) that provides retinal vasculature detail similar to flourescein angiography. All of these parameters stand in a direct relationship to the function and therefore the health of the retina, and are known to be degraded in the course of retinal diseases. Detecting changes in retinal function aid early diagnosis and treatment as functional changes often precede structural changes in many retinal disorders. Nepal J Ophthalmol 2013; 5(10): 250-257 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/nepjoph.v5i2.8738

scholarly journals Hot and cold cognitive disturbances in antidepressant-free patients with major depressive disorder: a NeuroPharm study

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
V. H. Dam ◽  
D. S. Stenbæk ◽  
K. Köhler-Forsberg ◽  
C. Ip ◽  
B. Ozenne ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Major Depressive Disorder ◽  
Reaction Time ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Cognitive Profiles ◽  
Depression Severity ◽  
Major Depressive ◽  
Depressed Patients ◽  
Cognitive Disturbances

Abstract Background Cognitive disturbances are common and disabling features of major depressive disorder (MDD). Previous studies provide limited insight into the co-occurrence of hot (emotion-dependent) and cold (emotion-independent) cognitive disturbances in MDD. Therefore, we here map both hot and cold cognition in depressed patients compared to healthy individuals. Methods We collected neuropsychological data from 92 antidepressant-free MDD patients and 103 healthy controls. All participants completed a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery assessing hot cognition including emotion processing, affective verbal memory and social cognition as well as cold cognition including verbal and working memory and reaction time. Results The depressed patients showed small to moderate negative affective biases on emotion processing outcomes, moderate increases in ratings of guilt and shame and moderate deficits in verbal and working memory as well as moderately slowed reaction time compared to healthy controls. We observed no correlations between individual cognitive tasks and depression severity in the depressed patients. Lastly, an exploratory cluster analysis suggested the presence of three cognitive profiles in MDD: one characterised predominantly by disturbed hot cognitive functions, one characterised predominantly by disturbed cold cognitive functions and one characterised by global impairment across all cognitive domains. Notably, the three cognitive profiles differed in depression severity. Conclusion We identified a pattern of small to moderate disturbances in both hot and cold cognition in MDD. While none of the individual cognitive outcomes mapped onto depression severity, cognitive profile clusters did. Overall cognition-based stratification tools may be useful in precision medicine approaches to MDD.

Airway smooth muscle tone modulates mechanically induced cytoskeletal stiffening and remodeling

2005 ◽  
Vol 99 (2) ◽  
pp. 634-641 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linhong Deng ◽  
Nigel J. Fairbank ◽  
Darren J. Cole ◽  
Jeffrey J. Fredberg ◽  
Geoffrey N. Maksym
Keyword(s):  
Smooth Muscle ◽  
Mechanical Stress ◽  
Applied Stress ◽  
Airway Smooth Muscle ◽  
Cell Activation ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Muscle Tone ◽  
Residual Effects ◽  
Cell Stiffness ◽  
Functional Changes

The application of mechanical stresses to the airway smooth muscle (ASM) cell causes time-dependent cytoskeletal stiffening and remodeling (Deng L, Fairbank NJ, Fabry B, Smith PG, and Maksym GN. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 287: C440–C448, 2004). We investigated here the extent to which these behaviors are modulated by the state of cell activation (tone). Localized mechanical stress was applied to the ASM cell in culture via oscillating beads (4.5 μm) that were tightly bound to the actin cytoskeleton (CSK). Tone was reduced from baseline level using a panel of relaxant agonists (10−3 M dibutyryl cAMP, 10−4 M forskolin, or 10−6 M formoterol). To assess functional changes, we measured cell stiffness (G′) using optical magnetic twisting cytometry, and to assess structural changes of the CSK we measured actin accumulation in the neighborhood of the bead. Applied mechanical stress caused a twofold increase in G′ at 120 min. After cessation of applied stress, G′ diminished only 24 ± 6% (mean ± SE) at 1 h, leaving substantial residual effects that were largely irreversible. However, applied stress-induced stiffening could be prevented by ablation of tone. Ablation of tone also inhibited the amount of actin accumulation induced by applied mechanical stress ( P < 0.05). Thus the greater the contractile tone, the greater was applied stress-induced CSK stiffening and remodeling. As regards pathobiology of asthma, this suggests a maladaptive positive feedback in which tone potentiates ASM remodeling and stiffening that further increases stress and possibly leads to worsening airway function.

Myosin thick filament lability induced by mechanical strain in airway smooth muscle

2001 ◽  
Vol 90 (5) ◽  
pp. 1811-1816 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kuo-Hsing Kuo ◽  
Lu Wang ◽  
Peter D. Paré ◽  
Lincoln E. Ford ◽  
Chun Y. Seow
Keyword(s):  
Smooth Muscle ◽  
Airway Smooth Muscle ◽  
Cross Sections ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Isometric Force ◽  
Mechanical Strain ◽  
Thick Filament ◽  
Functional Changes ◽  
Thick Filaments ◽  
Length Changes

Airway smooth muscle adapts to different lengths with functional changes that suggest plastic alterations in the filament lattice. To look for structural changes that might be associated with this plasticity, we studied the relationship between isometric force generation and myosin thick filament density in cell cross sections, measured by electron microscope, after length oscillations applied to the relaxed porcine trachealis muscle. Muscles were stimulated regularly for 12 s every 5 min. Between two stimulations, the muscles were submitted to repeated passive ±30% length changes. This caused tetanic force and thick-filament density to fall by 21 and 27%, respectively. However, in subsequent tetani, both force and filament density recovered to preoscillation levels. These findings indicate that thick filaments in airway smooth muscle are labile, depolymerization of the myosin filaments can be induced by mechanical strain, and repolymerization of the thick filaments underlies force recovery after the oscillation. This thick-filament lability would greatly facilitate plastic changes of lattice length and explain why airway smooth muscle is able to function over a large length range.

scholarly journals Regional synapse gain and loss accompany memory formation in larval zebrafish

2022 ◽  
Vol 119 (3) ◽  
pp. e2107661119
Author(s):  
William P. Dempsey ◽  
Zhuowei Du ◽  
Anna Nadtochiy ◽  
Colton D. Smith ◽  
Karl Czajkowski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Classical Conditioning ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Memory Formation ◽  
Excitatory Synapses ◽  
Microscopy Imaging ◽  
Functional Changes ◽  
Larval Zebrafish ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Synaptic Changes ◽  
With Memory

Defining the structural and functional changes in the nervous system underlying learning and memory represents a major challenge for modern neuroscience. Although changes in neuronal activity following memory formation have been studied [B. F. Grewe et al., Nature 543, 670–675 (2017); M. T. Rogan, U. V. Stäubli, J. E. LeDoux, Nature 390, 604–607 (1997)], the underlying structural changes at the synapse level remain poorly understood. Here, we capture synaptic changes in the midlarval zebrafish brain that occur during associative memory formation by imaging excitatory synapses labeled with recombinant probes using selective plane illumination microscopy. Imaging the same subjects before and after classical conditioning at single-synapse resolution provides an unbiased mapping of synaptic changes accompanying memory formation. In control animals and animals that failed to learn the task, there were no significant changes in the spatial patterns of synapses in the pallium, which contains the equivalent of the mammalian amygdala and is essential for associative learning in teleost fish [M. Portavella, J. P. Vargas, B. Torres, C. Salas, Brain Res. Bull. 57, 397–399 (2002)]. In zebrafish that formed memories, we saw a dramatic increase in the number of synapses in the ventrolateral pallium, which contains neurons active during memory formation and retrieval. Concurrently, synapse loss predominated in the dorsomedial pallium. Surprisingly, we did not observe significant changes in the intensity of synaptic labeling, a proxy for synaptic strength, with memory formation in any region of the pallium. Our results suggest that memory formation due to classical conditioning is associated with reciprocal changes in synapse numbers in the pallium.

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