A new approach to mark termites (Cornitermes cumulans (Kollar) Blattodea: Isoptera) for laboratory bioassays

Behavioral lab bioassays involving termites must be promptly performed to allow intended observations prior to death from dissecation, typical of these soft-bodied insects. To this end, topic markers have been proposed as an alternative to histological stains which, while not always toxic are inevitably lengthy to apply. Among recommended topic markers, gouache is easy to apply, dries out quickly, but it is known affect termites in the long run, being suitable only to short-term bioassays. Its alternative, colored glue, is also easy to apply, but it takes long to dry and it is too dense and heavy, being thus prone to affect termite walking patterns. Here we tested a mix of gouache and colored glue aiming to combine the qualities of both into a suitable topical marker for Cornitermes cumulans termites. Similar patterns of survival presented by marked and unmarked termites ruled out concerns about toxicity of this mixture. Such results were consistent across distinct group densities evidencing that the mixture does not interfere with, nor it is affected by, crowding effects. Because crowding regulates interindividual interactions and these underlie most behaviors, the mixture can be thought to be suitable to behavioral studies. We argue that this 1:2 glue:gouache mixture is an excellent alternative to mark termites for lab bioassays. Being atoxic, cheap, easy to apply, and non-invasive, this mixture may happen to be useful not only for termites but also in bioassaying other similarly soft-bodied insects.

Varying Degrees of Animal Reification by Stakeholders in Experimental Research

The attitude towards animals in research depends on both the role of the stakeholder and their personal characteristics. Most studies on the subject have been carried out on stakeholders from biomedical research institutes with comparatively few sociological studies on stakeholders from agricultural research centers. Previous findings suggest that animal caretakers at agricultural research centers felt undervalued by the hierarchy, and that animal reification was present in the sector. This may indicate that a lack of consideration for the animal subjects correlates with an inadequate sensitivity towards humans. Since these findings were published twenty years ago, there has been an increasing emphasis on the importance and actions of ethics committees in research, animal welfare bodies, and public concern for animals, which may have impacted the current perspective. To better understand current degrees of animal reification amongst stakeholders of agricultural research, we conducted semi-directive interviews at a leading agricultural research institute in France (INRAE). The interviews targeted both animal caretakers and researchers who were involved in the study of infectious diseases in livestock, or the behavior of horses and quails. After having transcribed the recorded interviews into text, semi-automatized analyses were carried out to categorize them into distinct groups, from which the most characteristic words and sentences were extracted. Three groups of stakeholders were identified: (i) animal caretakers involved in invasive infectious disease research; (ii) animal caretakers involved in behavioral research; and (iii) researchers. The findings show that animal caretakers felt acknowledged by their hierarchy. It is possible the increased skill criteria for people recruited into this position over the years, combined with greater prospects for continuous learning and development in the profession, may have fostered a more respectful regard across the hierarchy. The animal caretakers clearly expressed that their primary objective was to successfully execute the research protocols and that the animals were viewed as prototypes for research, with which they could, on occasion, develop a bond with. The bond was more important for animal caretakers involved in behavioral studies than for those involved in the study of infectious diseases, where invasive biological sampling and restraining of the animals is required. Researchers prioritized the procurement of robust data to test hypotheses, analyze phenomena, and publish their results. Their concern for the animals rather reflected the views of the general public opposed to thought-out personal opinions on the matter; this is possibly due to their comparatively limited interaction with the animals. They considered the animals in abstract terms that were indicative of reification. This study concludes that animal reification is still present, albeit to varying degrees amongst the stakeholders.

Transient neuronal suppression for exploitation of new sensory evidence

In noisy but stationary environments, decisions should be based on the temporal integration of sequentially sampled evidence. This strategy has been supported by many behavioral studies and is qualitatively consistent with neural activity in multiple brain areas. By contrast, decision-making in the face of non-stationary sensory evidence remains poorly understood. Here, we trained monkeys to identify and respond via saccade to the dominant color of a dynamically refreshed bicolor patch that becomes informative after a variable delay. Animals’ behavioral responses were briefly suppressed after evidence changes, and many neurons in the frontal eye field displayed a corresponding dip in activity at this time, similar to that frequently observed after stimulus onset but sensitive to stimulus strength. Generalized drift-diffusion models revealed consistency of behavior and neural activity with brief suppression of motor output, but not with pausing or resetting of evidence accumulation. These results suggest that momentary arrest of motor preparation is important for dynamic perceptual decision making.

SEALNET: Facial recognition software for ecological studies of harbor seals

Methods for long-term monitoring of coastal species such as harbor seals, are often costly, time-consuming, and highly invasive, underscoring the need for improved techniques for data collection and analysis. Here, we propose the use of automated facial recognition technology for identification of individual seals and demonstrate its utility in ecological and population studies. We created a software package, SealNet, that automates photo identification of seals, using a graphical user interface (GUI) software to identify, align and chip seal faces from photographs and a deep convolutional neural network (CNN) suitable for small datasets (e.g., 100 seals with five photos per seal). We piloted the SealNet technology with a population of harbor seals located within Casco Bay on the coast of Maine, USA. Across two-years of sampling, 2019 and 2020, at seven haul-out sites in Middle Bay, we processed 1529 images representing 408 individual seals and achieved 88% (93%) rank-1 accuracy in closed set (open set) seal identification. We identified four seals that were photographed in both years at neighboring haul-out sites, suggesting that some harbor seals exhibit site fidelity within local bays across years, and that there may be evidence of spatial connectivity among haul-out sites. Using capture-mark-recapture (CMR) calculations, we obtained a rough preliminary population estimate of 4386 seals in the Middle Bay area. SealNet software outperformed a similar face recognition method developed for primates, PrimNet, in identifying seals following training on our seal dataset. The ease and wealth of image data that can be processed using SealNet software contributes a vital tool for ecological and behavioral studies of marine mammals in the emerging field of conservation technology.

Gender differences in guilt aversion in Korea and the United Kingdom

Guilt aversion, which describes the tendency to reduce the discrepancy between a partner’s expectation and his/her actual outcome, is a key driving force for cooperation in both the East and the West. A recent study based on functional magnetic resonance imaging and online behavioral experiments reported that men show stronger guilt aversion than women and also suggested that men’s predominance in guilt aversion arises from stronger sensitivity to social norms. However, since the participants of that study were all Japanese, it remains unaddressed how common the gender difference in guilt aversion is. Here, we conducted online behavioral studies on people from Korea and the U.K. (Korea; n = 294, U.K.; n = 347) using the same trust game. We confirmed that men exhibit stronger guilt aversion than women in both countries. Furthermore, consistent with the Japanese study, our Lasso regression analysis for U.K. participants revealed that Big Five Conscientiousness (rule-based decision) correlated with guilt aversion in men. In contrast, guilt aversion in Korean men correlated with Big Five Neuroticism. Thus, our results suggest that gender differences in guilt aversion is universal but the underlying cognitive processes may be influenced by cultural differences.

Neural processing associated with Cognitive Empathy in Pedophilia and Child Sexual Offending

Behavioral studies found evidence for superior cognitive empathy (CE) in pedophilic men without a history of child sexual offending (P-CSO) compared to pedophilic men with a history of CSO (P+CSO). Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies also point to differences between P-CSO and P+CSO. Neural processing associated with CE has not yet been investigated. Therefore, the present study aimed to explore the neural correlates of CE in subjects with pedophilia with (P+CSO) and without (P-CSO) child sexual offending. 15 P+CSO, 15 P-CSO, and 24 teleiophilic male controls (TC) performed a CE task during fMRI. We observed reduced activation in the left precuneus (Pcu) and increased activation in the left anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) in P-CSO compared to P+CSO. P-CSO also showed stronger connectivity between these regions, which might reflect a top-down modulation of the Pcu by the ACC toward an increased self-focused emotional reaction in social situations. There was also evidence for increased right superior temporal gyrus activation in P-CSO that might constitute a potentially compensatory recruitment due to the dampened Pcu activation. These findings provide first evidence for altered neural processing of CE in P-CSO and underline the importance of addressing CE in pedophilia and CSO in order to uncover processes relevant to effective prevention of child sexual abuse.

Gender differences in guilt aversion in Korea and the United Kingdom

Guilt aversion, which describes the tendency to reduce the discrepancy between a partner’s expectation and his/her actual outcome, is a key driving force for cooperation in both the East and the West. A recent study based on functional magnetic resonance imaging and online behavioral experiments reported that men show stronger guilt aversion than women and also suggested that men’s predominance in guilt aversion arises from stronger sensitivity to social norms. However, since the participants of that study were all Japanese, it remains unaddressed how common the gender difference in guilt aversion is. Here, we conducted online behavioral studies on people from Korea and the U.K. (Korea; n = 294, U.K.; n = 347) using the same trust game. We confirmed that men exhibit stronger guilt aversion than women in both countries. Furthermore, consistent with the Japanese study, our Lasso regression analysis for U.K. participants revealed that Big Five Conscientiousness (rule-based decision) correlated with guilt aversion in men. In contrast, guilt aversion in Korean men correlated with Big Five Neuroticism. Thus, our results suggest that gender differences in guilt aversion is universal but the underlying cognitive processes may be influenced by cultural differences.

A BCI-Based Study on the Relationship Between the SSVEP and Retinal Eccentricity in Overt and Covert Attention

Covert attention aids us in monitoring the environment and optimizing performance in visual tasks. Past behavioral studies have shown that covert attention can enhance spatial resolution. However, electroencephalography (EEG) activity related to neural processing between central and peripheral vision has not been systematically investigated. Here, we conducted an EEG study with 25 subjects who performed covert attentional tasks at different retinal eccentricities ranging from 0.75° to 13.90°, as well as tasks involving overt attention and no attention. EEG signals were recorded with a single stimulus frequency to evoke steady-state visual evoked potentials (SSVEPs) for attention evaluation. We found that the SSVEP response in fixating at the attended location was generally negatively correlated with stimulus eccentricity as characterized by Euclidean distance or horizontal and vertical distance. Moreover, more pronounced characteristics of SSVEP analysis were also acquired in overt attention than in covert attention. Furthermore, offline classification of overt attention, covert attention, and no attention yielded an average accuracy of 91.42%. This work contributes to our understanding of the SSVEP representation of attention in humans and may also lead to brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) that allow people to communicate with choices simply by shifting their attention to them.

ImmunoCharge: Phase 4 Clinical Trial App for Pandemic Vaccination

Immuno-Charge is an application that focuses on collecting clinical data forclinical trial purposes and helps to fix appointments for vaccination. The application acts asa bridge between the user and pharmaceutical company as it provides required data to thecompany and provides an easy interface to use, both for user and company. It also keepsrecords and track of vaccines taken by users. Users must fill in the data that is provided tothem in a question-and-answer format. The limitation is that the authentication of the user'smedical data & symptoms is not done. The progress of immunization can be a long, complexprocess that regularly lasts 10-15 years and includes a combination of public and privateenterprise involvement. Vaccines are designed, tested, and directed in a really similar way toother drugs. Clinical trials are research studies or observations done in clinical research.Such planned biomedical or behavioral studies on human members are designed to answerspecific questions about biomedical or behavioral interventions, including new treatments(such as novel vaccines, drugs etc) and known intercessions that warrant encouragingthought about and comparison. Clinical studies provide information about measurement,safety, and feasibility.

Melatonin inhibits the up-regulation of N-type calcium channel in neuropathic pain by activating the MT2 receptor in rats

The aim of the study was to clarify the effect of melatonin on neuropathic pain by N-type calcium channel (Cav2.2) inhibition in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons after spared nerve injury (SNI) surgery. Immunofluorescence was used to identify the co-expression of Cav2.2 and the MT2 receptor and detect the changes in Cav2.2 expression in DRG neurons. Western-blot was also performed to detect the expression of Cav2.2 in DRG neurons. The action potential and current of Cav2.2 channels in DRG neurons were detected using whole-cell patch clamp analysis. Behavioral studies were conducted using thermal stimulation and acetone after melatonin was injected intraperitoneally. The results revealed that Cav2.2 and the MT2 receptor were co-expressed in medium and small sized DRG neurons, and the intensity of Cav2.2 increased after SNI. Injection of melatonin activated the MT2 receptor and relieved nociceptive pain through decreased the Cav2.2 expression and current in DRG neurons. Melatonin can significantly decrease the increase in Cav2.2 current density and excitability after SNI. In addition, the Cav2.2 activation curve shifted to the left after SNI, but there was no change in inactivation. 10 μM melatonin significantly inhibited the excitability of DRG neurons and Cav2.2 current, the inactivation curve of Cav2.2 current shifted significantly to the left. However, the MT2 receptor antagonist 4-P-PDOT reversed the inhibition of melatonin on Cav2.2 current. We conclude that melatonin inhibits the increased Cav2.2 expression and current; on the other hand, it reduces the excitability of DRG neurons after SNI surgery via the MT2 receptor pathway.