scholarly journals Genetic Architecture of Working Memory Cognitive Function of Twins

2020 ◽  
pp. 129-135
Author(s):  
. Annu ◽  
Bimla Dhanda
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Genetic Architecture ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Genetic Material ◽  
Monozygotic Twins ◽  
Deep Understanding ◽  
Heritability Estimate ◽  
Heritability Estimates

The twin research has provided a deep understanding of the influence of genetic and the environment on cognitive functions. The contribution of genetic material accounted for 50-65% in the variations of working memory cognitive functions of twins. To conduct twin study 100 pairs of twins from two districts, namely: Bhiwani (N = 90) and Hisar (N = 110) of Haryana State, were taken. The working memory cognitive functions of twins were measured using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children- Revised (WISC-R). Heritability estimate was used to examine the genes that contributed to shaping the cognitive functions of twins. The result of heritability estimates revealed that the heritability estimates of working memory cognitive functions namely: digit span (62%), maze (58%) and arithmetic (58%) in Bhiwani district and Hisar district, were 57%, 51% and 54% for digit span, maze, and arithmetic respectively. The findings elucidated that the working memory cognitive functions were more influenced by genetic architecture than the environmental factors. The monozygotic twins were more correlated in their general cognitive abilities than the dizygotic twins.

scholarly journals Genetic and environmental factors in the determination of general cognitive abilities: a twin study

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-176
Author(s):  
Annu ◽  
Bimla Dhanda
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Twin Study ◽  
Monozygotic Twins ◽  
Heritability Estimate ◽  
Intelligence Scale ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Heritability Estimates ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors

The present investigation of twin study elucidated the contribution of genetic and environment to a wide range of general cognitive abilities. To conduct twin study 100 pairs of twins from two districts, namely: Bhiwani (n = 90) and Hisar (n = 110) of Haryana State, genetic and environmental influences were assessed in twin study design. The cognitive abilities of twins were measured using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-R). Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) Inventory was taken to examine the home environment of twins. Heritability estimate was used to analyze the genes contributing to shape the cognitive abilities of twins. The result of heritability estimates revealed that the heritability estimates of general cognitive abilities namely: information (62%), similarities (57%), vocabulary (60%) and comprehension (55%) in Bhiwani district and in Hisar district, the heritability estimates were 58 per cent, 55 per cent, 56 per cent and 51 per cent for information, similarities, vocabulary and comprehension general cognitive abilities, respectively. The findings clearly elucidated that the general cognitive abilities were more influenced by genetic background than the environmental factors. The paternal involvement and physical environment were strongly associated with general cognitive abilities of twins. The monozygotic twins were more correlated in their general cognitive abilities than the dizygotic twins.

scholarly journals Study on Contribution of Genetic and Environment to Perceptual Cognitive Skills of Twins

2020 ◽  
pp. 70-76
Author(s):  
Annu . ◽  
Bimla Dhanda
Keyword(s):  
Study Design ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Twin Study ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Block Design ◽  
Monozygotic Twins ◽  
Heritability Estimate ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Picture Completion ◽  
Heritability Estimates

The contribution of genetic was ranging from 50-65% in the variations of perceptual cognitive skills of twins. The current twin study design elucidated the contribution of genetic and environment to a wide range of perceptual cognitive skills. To conduct twin study, 100 pairs of twins from two districts namely; Bhiwani (N = 90) and Hisar (N = 110) of Haryana State were taken. Genetic and environmental influences were assessed in twin study design. The perceptual cognitive skills of twins were measured using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children- Revised (WISC-R). Heritability estimate was used to examine the genes contributed to shape the cognitive skills of twins. The result of heritability estimates revealed that the heritability estimates of perceptual cognitive skills namely picture completion, picture arrangement, block design and object assembly in Bhiwani district were 63%, 57%, 61% and 60% and in Hisar district were 54%, 52%, 58% and 56% respectively. The findings clearly elucidated that the perceptual cognitive skills were more influenced by genetic background than the environmental factors. The monozygotic twins were more correlated in their general cognitive abilities than the dizygotic twins.

scholarly journals Developmental Fractionation of Working Memory and Response Inhibition During Childhood

2007 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Satoshi Tsujimoto ◽  
Mariko Kuwajima ◽  
Toshiyuki Sawaguchi
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Response Inhibition ◽  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Neural Systems ◽  
Older Children ◽  
Efficient Processing ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract. The lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) plays a major role in both working memory (WM) and response inhibition (RI), which are fundamental for various cognitive abilities. We explored the relationship between these LPFC functions during childhood development by examining the performance of two groups of children in visuospatial and auditory WM tasks and a go/no-go RI task. In the younger children (59 5- and 6-year-olds), performance on the visuospatial WM task correlated significantly with that in the auditory WM task. Furthermore, accuracy in these tasks correlated significantly with performance on the RI task, particularly in the no-go trials. In contrast, there were no significant correlations among those tasks in older children (92 8- and 9-year-olds). These results suggest that functional neural systems for visuospatial WM, auditory WM, and RI, especially those in the LPFC, become fractionated during childhood, thereby enabling more efficient processing of these critical cognitive functions.

Neural substrate and underlying mechanisms of working memory: insights from brain stimulation studies

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zakia Z Haque ◽  
Ranshikha Samandra ◽  
Farshad Alizadeh Mansouri
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Brain Stimulation ◽  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Electrophysiological Recording ◽  
Great Opportunity ◽  
Neural Substrate ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms

The concept of working memory refers to a collection of cognitive abilities and processes involved in the short-term storage of task-relevant information to guide the ongoing and upcoming behaviour and therefore describes an important aspect of executive control of behaviour for achieving goals. Deficits in working memory and related cognitive abilities have been observed in patients with brain damage or neuropsychological disorders and therefore it is important to better understand neural substrate and underlying mechanisms of working memory. Working memory relies on neural mechanisms that enable encoding, maintenance and manipulation of stored information as well as integrating them with ongoing and future goals. Recently, a surge in brain stimulation studies have led to development of various non-invasive techniques for localized stimulation of prefrontal and other cortical regions in humans. These brain stimulation techniques can potentially be tailored to influence neural activities in particular brain regions and modulate cognitive functions and behaviour. Combined use of brain stimulation with neuroimaging and electrophysiological recording have provided a great opportunity to monitor neural activity in various brain regions and non-invasively intervene and modulate cognitive functions in cognitive tasks. These studies have shed more light on the neural substrate and underlying mechanisms of working memory in humans. Here, we review findings and insight from these brain stimulation studies about the contribution of brain regions, and particularly prefrontal cortex, to working memory.

Transfer of Training between Working Memory Task and Attentional Task

2016 ◽  
pp. 147-165
Author(s):  
Ting Guo ◽  
Yanna Ren ◽  
Xiaotong Zhu ◽  
Hong Chen ◽  
Satoshi Takahashi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Problem Solving ◽  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Cognitive Training ◽  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Cognitive Disorders ◽  
Training Effects ◽  
Attention Memory

The present studies indicate that training effects in a certain domain may result in the acquired skills being transferred to other domains that require similar abilities. Cognitive training involves structured exercises that are prescribed and undertaken with the purpose of enhancing cognitive abilities, such as attention, memory, and problem solving. In contrast to symptomatic pharmacotherapy, non-pharmacological approaches may further improve patients' situations. Our aim was to summarize the empirical evidence for the rehabilitation of individuals with cognitive disorders by using training tasks to enhance specific cognitive functions to combat against cognitive degradation and transfer the benefits to other widely used domains.

scholarly journals Link Between Topographic Memory and the Combined Presentation of ADHD (ADHD-C): A Pilot Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noemi Faedda ◽  
Cecilia Guariglia ◽  
Laura Piccardi ◽  
Giulia Natalucci ◽  
Serena Rossetti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Attention And Memory ◽  
Perseverative Errors ◽  
Spatial Layouts ◽  
Repetition Number ◽  
Visual Materials

Background: Topographic memory is the ability to reach various places by recognizing spatial layouts and getting oriented in familiar environments. It involves several different cognitive abilities, in particular executive functions (EF), such as attention, working memory, and planning. Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) show impairments in inhibitory control, regulation of attention, planning, and working memory.Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the topographic memory in children with ADHD-combined subtype (ADHD-C).Method: Fifteen children (8–10 years) with a diagnosis of ADHD-C (DSM-5) (ADHD-C group) were compared to 15 children with typical development (TD group) of the same age. All children performed Raven's colored progressive matrices (CPM) test to obtain a measure related with cognitive functioning. The walking Corsi test (WalCT), a large-scale version of the Corsi block-tapping test, was used to assess topographic memory in experimental environment.Results: A higher impairment was observed in ADHD-C than TD with significant differences in the WalCT, in particular on the topographic short-term memory (TSTM) task, on the topographic learning (TL) task, and on the repetition number (RN) task during the TL task. Perseverative errors were reported in performing the square-sequence in the WalCT. Zero-order correlations showed a positive correlation between TSTM and auditory attention, and memory of design of NEPSY-II and digit span of WISC-IV. No statistically significant differences were found between the ADHD-C group and TD group in the TL task in the WalCT condition.Conclusion: In ADHD-C, initial topographic learning was compromised whereas the long-term retention of learned topographical material seemed to not be impaired. In particular, these impairments seem to be linked with difficulties in sustained attention, in spatial memory for novel visual materials, in a poor working memory, and in perseverative behaviors.

Investigating the presumed cognitive advantage of aspiring interpreters

Interpreting ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Rosiers ◽  
Evy Woumans ◽  
Wouter Duyck ◽  
June Eyckmans
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Executive Control ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Working Memory Capacity ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Memory Capacity ◽  
Training Data ◽  
Control Functions ◽  
Study Results

Abstract In complex tasks such as interpreting, the importance of a well-functioning working memory can hardly be overestimated. However, empirical studies have failed to produce consistent results with regard to an interpreter advantage in working memory. Recent studies tend to focus on the executive component of working memory. To our knowledge, no such study has compared the possible cognitive advantage of aspiring interpreters relative to other multilinguals before training takes place, in spite of the fact that excellent cognitive abilities are considered important in many interpreter selection procedures. In this study, we compared the working memory capacity and executive functions of a group of 20 student interpreters with two other groups of advanced language users who were all at the start of their Master’s training. Data were collected on three executive control functions: inhibition, shifting and updating. A forward and a backward digit span task for measuring the participants’ working memory capacity was also included in this study. Results revealed only negligible differences between the three groups at onset of training. The presumed cognitive advantage of aspiring interpreters with regard to executive control was not found.

A-191 How Does Teleneuropsychology Digit Span Measure Up?

2021 ◽  
Vol 36 (6) ◽  
pp. 1246-1246
Author(s):  
Samantha Spagna ◽  
Bailey McDonald ◽  
Justin Burgess ◽  
D'anna Sydow ◽  
Charles Golden
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Pearson Correlation ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Controlled Environment ◽  
Moderate Correlation ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Computerized Tests ◽  
Adult Volunteers

Abstract Objective To see how strongly performance on a computerized visual digit span task correlates with non-computerized digit span subtests. Method The data were chosen from a de-identified database. Undiagnosed adult volunteers (n = 105) took the WAIS-IV Digit Span and TMB Digit Span subtests. Demographic characteristics were as follows: Age (M = 28.5, SD = 11.2), education (M = 16.2, SD = 1.9), gender (60% Female), race (69.8% White). A Pearson correlation was run on the TMB and WAIS-IV longest digit span forward (ldsf) and longest digit span backward (ldsb) raw scores of the same individuals. Results Results suggest a moderate correlation between WAIS-IV ldsf (M = 7.14, SD = 1.31) and TMB (M = 6.90, SD = 1.29) ldsf raw scores, r = 0.45, p > 0.01. Moreover, results indicated a moderate correlation between WAIS-IV ldsb (M = 7.69, SD = 1.43) and TMB (M = 5.66, SD = 1.81) ldsb raw scores, r = 0.38, p > 0.01. 73.1% of participants had the same or were within one digit on ldsf scores on both assessments, while 93% were within two digits. 63.8% of participants had the same ldsb scores on both assessments, while 81.9% were within two digits. Conclusion Clinicians must note the risk of assuming computerized tests measure the same cognitive functions as standardized paper-and-pencil tests. These results underscore this point. Future studies should continue to assess how well in-person tests align with other computerized tests purporting to measure the same cognitive abilities by examining other variables (i.e., auditory vs. visual, controlled vs. non-controlled environment).

Effect of modafinil on cognitive functions in alcohol dependent patients: A randomized, placebo-controlled trial

2013 ◽  
Vol 27 (11) ◽  
pp. 998-1006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leen Joos ◽  
Anna E Goudriaan ◽  
Lianne Schmaal ◽  
Wim van den Brink ◽  
Bernard GC Sabbe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Treatment Outcome ◽  
Stroop Task ◽  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Alcohol Dependent

Cognitive deficits are highly prevalent in alcohol-dependent (AD) patients and may have a detrimental impact on treatment response and treatment outcome. Enhancing cognitive functions may improve treatment success. Modafinil is a promising compound in this respect. Therefore, a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial was conducted with modafinil (300 mg/d) or placebo in 83 AD patients for 10 weeks. Various cognitive functions (digit span task, Tower of London task, Stroop task) were measured at baseline, during and after treatment. Compared to placebo, modafinil improved verbal short-term memory (number of forward digit spans) ( p=0.030), but modafinil exerted a negative effect on the working memory score of the digit span task ( p=0.003). However, subgroup analyses revealed that modafinil did improve both working memory and verbal short-term memory in AD patients with a poor working memory ability at baseline (25% worst performers), whereas no significant treatment effect of modafinil was found on these two dependent variables in patients with good working memory skills at baseline (25% best performers). No effect of modafinil was found on measures of planning (Tower of London task) and selective attention (Stroop task). Further research is needed to better understand the relationship between cognitive remediation and treatment outcome in order to design targeted treatments.

scholarly journals Duration judgements in patients with schizophrenia

2003 ◽  
Vol 33 (7) ◽  
pp. 1249-1261 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. ELVEVÅG ◽  
T. McCORMACK ◽  
A. GILBERT ◽  
G. D. A. BROWN ◽  
D. R. WEINBERGER ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Time Estimation ◽  
Standard Duration ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
Intelligence Scores ◽  
Temporal Bisection Task ◽  
Timing Processes

Background. The ability to encode time cues underlies many cognitive processes. In the light of schizophrenic patients' compromised cognitive abilities in a variety of domains, it is noteworthy that there are numerous reports of these patients displaying impaired timing abilities. However, the timing intervals that patients have been evaluated on in prior studies vary considerably in magnitude (e.g. 1 s, 1 min, 1 h etc.).Method. In order to obviate differences in abilities in chronometric counting and place minimal demands on cognitive processing, we chose tasks that involve making judgements about brief durations of time (<1 s).Results. On a temporal generalization task, patients were less accurate than controls at recognizing a standard duration. The performance of patients was also significantly different from controls on a temporal bisection task, in which participants categorized durations as short or long. Although time estimation may be closely intertwined with working memory, patients' working memory as measured by the digit span task did not correlate significantly with their performance on the duration judgement tasks. Moreover, lowered intelligence scores could not completely account for the findings.Conclusions. We take these results to suggest that patients with schizophrenia are less accurate at estimating brief time periods. These deficits may reflect dysfunction of biopsychological timing processes.

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