Influence Factors for Decision-Making Performance of Suicide Attempters and Suicide Ideators: The Roles of Somatic Markers and Explicit Knowledge

Impaired decision-making has been observed in suicide attempters during the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). Decision-making performance is influenced by somatic markers and explicit knowledge, but it is still unclear of the influencing role on decision-making performance in suicidal individuals. We aimed to investigate whether there is a decision-making deficit in suicide attempters, suicide ideators, as well as the distinct roles of somatic markers and explicit knowledge wherein. Thirteen suicide attempters, 23 suicide ideators, and 19 healthy controls performed the IGT. Both somatic markers (by the skin conductance responses, SCRs) and explicit knowledge (by the subjective experience rating and a list of questions) were recorded. No significant differences were found among the three groups on IGT performance, explicit knowledge, and anticipatory SCRs. IGT Performance of suicide attempters was positively correlated with explicit knowledge index while behavior performance was positively associated with the SCRs in healthy controls. These results indicate that the suicide attempters seem to apply a compensatory strategy by mostly utilizing explicit knowledge to perform normally as healthy controls in the IGT.

EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL THERAPY ON THE LEVEL OF KINESIOPHOBIA, SOMATIC MARKERS OF SARCOPENIA AND INDICATORS OF FALL RISK IN ELDERLY PERSONS WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE

Objective: to assess the effectiveness of the impact of physical therapy on the level of kinesiophobia, somatic markers of sarcopenia and indicators of the of fall risk in elderly people with Parkinson's disease. Methods. The study involved 57 elderly people diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in combination with sarcopenia. They were divided into two groups: 1 (they were engaged according to the principles of polyclinic rehabilitation) and 2 (they were engaged according to the developed program of physical therapy for 6 months, rehabilitation training was carried out three times a week). The aim of the program was to decrease the level of kinesiophobia and increase the compliance of patients with the implementation of active methods of physical therapy (kinesitherapy) and, thus, to maintain general physical activity; increasing muscle strength and flexibility; facilitating the initiation of movements; improving joint mobility; maintaining correct posture; improving walking and maintaining balance; prevention of pain syndromes and contractures; prevention of respiratory disorders; adaptation to the changed conditions of daily activity. The physical therapy program was created taking into account the specifics of each comorbid condition using functional training on the Prosedos platform, therapeutic exercises, massage, elements of occupational therapy, nutrition correction, patient education. We consistently achieved individual short- and long-term goals of rehabilitation in the SMART-format within the patient-centered rehabilitation model. This increased compliance and helped to select such elements of functional training, which made it possible to individually adjust the most affected movements in each patient, and interfere with normal functioning. The control group consisted of 24 people without signs of sarcopenia and Parkinson's disease. The effectiveness of the program was assessed by the dynamics of the Tampa Kinesiophobia Scale, Fall efficacy scale, grip strength, The Short Physical Performance Battery, Timed Up and Go test, Berg Balance Scale. Patients were examined twice - before and after rehabilitation measures (with an interval of 6 months). Results. Elderly patients with Parkinson's disease and sarcopenia were found to have a high level of kinesiophobia, muscle weakness, impaired static and dynamic balance and, as a consequence, a high fall risk. The developed program of physical therapy caused a statistically significant better effect on the state of kinesiophobia, markers of sarcopenia and the fall risk in comparison with the general outpatient program for all the studied parameters (p <0.05). Persons of group 1 found a statistically significant improvement in their repeated results on the parameters of the balance subscale SPPB, TUG-test, Berg Balance Scale (p <0.05), without reaching the corresponding levels of the control group (p> 0.05). For all the studied parameters, during the repeated examination, the persons of group 2 showed a statistically significant improvement relative to the initial indicator (p <0.05) and repeated parameters of the OG1 (p <0.05), without reaching any level of the control group (p> 0.05). Conclusions. Elderly patients with comorbidity Parkinson's disease and sarcopenia require the development of physical therapy programs taking into account and correcting the specificity of each disease, the presence of kinesiophobia and a high fall risk, which will increase the overall efficiency of recovery processes.

Increased Prevalence of Minor Physical Anomalies Among the Healthy First-Degree Relatives of Bipolar I Patients – Results With the Méhes Scale

Minor physical anomalies are somatic markers of aberrant neurodevelopment, so the higher prevalence of these signs among the relatives of bipolar I patients can confirm minor physical anomalies as endophenotypes. The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of minor physical anomalies in first-degree healthy relatives of patients with bipolar I disorder compared to normal control subjects. Using a list of 57 minor physical anomalies (the Méhes Scale), 20 first-degree unaffected relatives of patients with the diagnosis of bipolar I disorder and as a comparison 20 matched normal control subjects were examined. Minor physical anomalies were more common in the ear, head, mouth and trunk regions among the relatives of bipolar I patients compared to normal controls. By the differentiation of minor malformations and phenogenetic variants, we have found that both minor malformations and phenogenetic variants were more common among the relatives of bipolar I patients compared to the control group, while individual analyses showed, that one minor malformation (sole crease) and one phenogenetic variant (high arched palate) were more prevalent in the relative group. This is the first report in literature on the increased prevalence of minor physical anomalies among the first-degree unaffected relatives of bipolar I patients. The study support the concept, that minor physical anomalies can be endophenotypic markers of bipolar I affective disorder.

Augmenting aesthetic chills using a wearable prosthesis improves their downstream effects on reward and social cognition

Previous studies on aesthetic chills (i.e., psychogenic shivers) demonstrate their positive effects on stress, pleasure, and social cognition. We tested whether we could artificially enhance this emotion and its downstream effects by intervening on its somatic markers using wearable technology. We built a device generating cold and vibrotactile sensations down the spine of subjects in temporal conjunction with a chill-eliciting audiovisual stimulus, enhancing the somatosensation of cold underlying aesthetic chills. Results suggest that participants wearing the device experienced significantly more chills, and chills of greater intensity. Further, these subjects reported sharing the feelings expressed in the stimulus to a greater degree, and felt more pleasure during the experience. These preliminary results demonstrate that emotion prosthetics and somatosensory interfaces offer new possibilities of modulating human emotions from the bottom-up (body to mind). Future challenges will include testing the device on a larger sample and diversifying the type of stimuli to account for negatively valenced chills and intercultural differences. Interoceptive technologies offer a new paradigm for affective neuroscience, allowing controlled intervention on conscious feelings and their downstream effects on higher-order cognition.

Framework for Incorporating Artificial Somatic Markers in the Decision-Making of Autonomous Agents

The somatic marker hypothesis proposes that when a person faces a decision scenario, many thoughts arise and different “physical consequences” are fleetingly observable. It is generally accepted that affective dimension influences cognitive capacities. Several proposals for including affectivity within artificial systems have been presented. However, to the best of our knowledge, a proposal that considers the incorporation of artificial somatic markers in a disaggregated and specialized way for the different phases that make up a decision-making process has not been observed yet. Thus, this research work proposes a framework that considers the incorporation of artificial somatic markers in different phases of the decision-making of autonomous agents: recognition of decision point; determination of the courses of action; analysis of decision options; decision selection and performing; memory management. Additionally, a unified decision-making process and a general architecture for autonomous agents are presented. This proposal offers a qualitative perspective following an approach of grounded theory, which is suggested when existing theories or models cannot fully explain or understand a phenomenon or circumstance under study. This research work represents a novel contribution to the body of knowledge in guiding the incorporation of this biological concept in artificial terms within autonomous agents.

Zero Degree Affects

This essay seeks a new approach between philosophy and neuroscience inspired by the recent ontological turn to think about one of the affects modulations across the contemporary sociopolitical scenario. In this regard, it theoretically triangulates the appropriation of Spinoza's philosophy by neuroscientist Antonio Damasio and the reception of Damasio's neuroscience by philosopher Catherine Malabou, taking Gilles Deleuze as a connecting point between these perspectives. It proposes to think the concept of destructive plasticity as a metamorphosis in the organism that, shocked by some traumatic event, turns to a new configuration that deactivates its somatic markers and ends up taking a form of disaffection. Finally, it concludes by bringing this figure closer to what Achille Mbembe, taking the death drive as central concept for thinking necropolitics, names as "lumpenradical".