Association of β-Amyloid Accumulation With Executive Function in Adults With Unimpaired Cognition

Background and Objectives:The neuropathological changes underlying Alzheimer´s disease (AD) start before overt cognitive symptoms arise, but it is not well-known how they relate to the first subtle cognitive changes. The objective for this study was to examine the independent associations of the AD hallmarks β-amyloid (Aβ), tau, and neurodegeneration with different cognitive domains in cognitively unimpaired (CU) individuals.Methods:In this cross-sectional study, CU participants from the prospective BioFINDER-2 study were included. All had CSF biomarkers (Aβ42 and P-tau181), MRI (cortical thickness of AD-susceptible regions), Aβ-PET (neocortical uptake), tau-PET (entorhinal uptake), and cognitive test data for i) memory, ii) executive function, iii) verbal function, iv), and visuospatial function. Multivariable linear regression models were performed, using either CSF Aβ42, P-tau181 and cortical thickness or Aβ-PET, tau-PET, and cortical thickness, as predictors of cognitive function. The results were validated in an independent cohort (ADNI).Results:316 CU participants were included from the BioFINDER-2 study. Abnormal Aβ-status was independently associated with the executive measure, regardless of modality (CSF Aβ42 β=0.128, p=0.024; Aβ-PET β=0.124, p=0.049), while tau was independently associated with memory (CSF P-tau181 β=0.132, p=0.018; tau-PET β=0.189, p=0.002). Cortical thickness was independently associated with the executive measure and verbal fluency in both models (p=0.005-0.018). To examine the relationships in the earliest stage of preclinical AD, only participants with normal biomarkers of tau and neurodegeneration were included (n=217 CSF-based; n=246 PET-based). Again, Aβ-status was associated with executive function (CSF Aβ42, β=0.189, p=0.005; Aβ-PET, β=0.146, p=0.023), but not with other cognitive domains. The results were overall replicated in the ADNI cohort (n=361).Discussion:These findings suggest that Aβ is independently associated with worse performance on an executive measure but not with memory performance, which instead is associated with tau pathology. This may have implications for early preclinical AD screening and outcome measures in AD trials targeting Aβ pathology.

Mindfulness Practice with a Brain-Sensing Device Improved Cognitive Functioning of Elementary School Children: An Exploratory Pilot Study

This is the first pilot study with children that has assessed the effects of a brain–computer interface-assisted mindfulness program on neural mechanisms and associated cognitive performance. The participants were 31 children aged 9–10 years who were randomly assigned to either an eight-session mindfulness training with EEG-feedback or a passive control group. Mindfulness-related brain activity was measured during the training, while cognitive tests and resting-state brain activity were measured pre- and post-test. The within-group measurement of calm/focused brain states and mind-wandering revealed a significant linear change. Significant positive changes were detected in children’s inhibition, information processing, and resting-state brain activity (alpha, theta) compared to the control group. Elevated baseline alpha activity was associated with less reactivity in reaction time on a cognitive test. Our exploratory findings show some preliminary support for a potential executive function-enhancing effect of mindfulness supplemented with EEG-feedback, which may have some important implications for children’s self-regulated learning and academic achievement.

Cognitive Functioning Mediates the Association of Cognitive Reserve with Health-Related Quality of Life

We investigated whether the relations of the cognitive reserve markers education and cognitive level of work to the physical and the mental component of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) were mediated via cognitive functioning in a large sample of 701 older adults (mean age = 70.36 years, SD = 6.87). HRQoL was measured with the 12-item Short-Form Health Survey. To measure cognitive functioning, we used the COGTEL, which is a cognitive test battery assessing prospective memory, verbal short-term memory, verbal long-term memory, working memory, verbal fluency, and inductive reasoning, combined into a composite score. Individuals reported information on their education and their main profession during their working life. Mediation analyses showed that better cognitive functioning mediated the association of higher values in the cognitive reserve markers (longer education and a high cognitive level of work) with higher HRQoL. In conclusion, the present study suggests that the sustainability of cognitive functioning in old age with the help of cognitive reserve is fundamental for the sustainability of quality of life, presumably particularly for the mental HRQoL component.

Effects of a Cognitive-Motor Training on Anticipatory Brain Functions and Sport Performance in Semi-Elite Basketball Players

The aim of this research was to test the possible effects of cognitive–motor training (CMT) on athletes’ sport performance and cognitive functions. Namely, specific athletic tests, brain processes associated with anticipatory event-related potential (ERP) components and behavioral performance during a cognitive discrimination response task were evaluated pre- and post-training. Twenty-four young semi-professional basketball players were recruited for the study and randomly divided into an experimental (Exp) group executing the CMT training and a control (Con) group performing standard motor training. The CMT training protocol included exercises in which participants performed cognitive tasks during dribbling exercises using interactive devices which emitted visual and auditory stimuli, in which athletes’ responses were recorded. Results showed that following training, only the Exp group improved in all sport-specific tests (17%) and more than the Con group (88% vs. 60%) in response accuracy during the cognitive test. At brain level, post-training anticipatory cognitive processes associated with proactive inhibition and top-down attention in the prefrontal cortex were earlier and heightened in the Exp group. Our findings confirm previous studies on clear improved efficacy of CMT training protocols on sport performance and cognition compared to training based on motor exercises only, but extend the literature in showing that these effects might be explained by enhanced anticipatory brain processing in the prefrontal cortex. The present study also suggests that in order to achieve specific athletic goals, the brain adapts cognitive functions by means of neuroplasticity processes.

Crossed Aphasia after Intracranial Hematoma in the Right Temporoparietal Lobe: A Case Report

Purpose: Aphasia in a dextral after right hemisphere injury is called crossed aphasia (CA). We are reporting a first case of transformation of motor aphasia to conduction aphasia after right hemisphere intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) associated with arteriovenous malformation (AVM) with literature reviews.Methods: A case of a man in his 30s with CA following right hemisphere ICH in the temporal-parietal lobe associated with AVM was reviewed. We analyzed his brain images, initial linguistic characteristics, and changes in aphasia for 8 weeks of follow-up.Results: The initial Paradise Korean Western Aphasia Battery Revised (PK-WAB-R) was evaluated as aphasia quotient (AQ) 72, 64%ile; post evaluation was evaluated AQ 95, 98.9%ile after 8 weeks. The post-test repetition score was the patient score range, which can be attributed to impairment in phonological short-term memory. The patient is diagnosed anomalous CA based on Alexander et al., and we could predict that the language ability originates from both hemispheres based on Nagaraja et al. Considering the appearance of Gerstmann syndrome at the beginning of the onset, we could expect that the function of the dominant parietal lobe is partially crossed as well.Conclusion: Changes in aphasia were reported throughout the initial stage to the end of speech therapy. It is also important to note that literature review of Korean studies was analyzed in this study. It will be necessary to conduct a cognitive test in the early stage of onset to understand the language problems of crossed conduction aphasia to know the characteristics of the cognitive process.

Cognitive ageing: 20 years process

Background: People with normal functionality have normal cognitive changes associated with the ageing process while many people age without cognitive decline. The most exact effects of age are cognitive impairments in learning, memory, and problem solving. These age-related effects slightly increase or do not change for many years, and do not affect the daily life activities of the person. Methods: To investigate age-related cognitive effects, detailed cognitive evaluations were compared with 20 years intervals in 7 (seven) elderly individuals at Haydarpaşa Numune Training and Research Hospital in 2019. These individuals are continuing daily life activities and sociocultural relations independently. Mini-mental state examination, verbal memory processes test and visual memory test-Wechsler memory scale for memory processes, digit span test for attention function, verbal fluency, similarities, stroop, and trail-making test for the evaluation of frontal lobe functions, Benton’s line direction determination test for the visuospatial organization have been applied to individuals. Results: In comparison with the cognitive test results applied twenty years ago; immediate memory impairment is evident, abstraction and attention function are relatively less affected. The tests showing the frontal lobe function, the verbal fluency which also reflects the vocabulary information is less affected, while the cognitive impairment is more in consecutive-complex processes. Conclusion: Cognitive functions based on attention, vocabulary and knowledge are substantially preserved with mild improvement in normal ageing. The most important improvement is on executive functions due to the decrease in motor and cognitive processing speed in cases where complex information needs to be processed.

Listener Detection of Objectively Validated Acoustic Features of Speech in Huntington’s Disease

Background: Subtle progressive changes in speech motor function and cognition begin prior to diagnosis of Huntington’s disease (HD). Objective: To determine the nature of listener-rated speech differences in premanifest and early-stage HD (i.e., PreHD and EarlyHD), compared to neurologically healthy controls. Methods: We administered a speech battery to 60 adults (16 people with PreHD, 14 with EarlyHD, and 30 neurologically healthy controls), and conducted a cognitive test of processing speed/visual attention, the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT) on participants with HD. Voice recordings were rated by expert listeners and analyzed for acoustic and perceptual speech features. Results: Listeners perceived subtle differences in the speech of PreHD compared to controls, including abnormal pitch level and speech rate, reduced loudness and loudness inflection, altered voice quality, hypernasality, imprecise articulation, and reduced naturalness of speech. Listeners detected abnormal speech rate in PreHD compared to healthy speakers on a reading task, which correlated with slower speech rate from acoustic analysis and a lower cognitive performance score. In early-stage HD, continuous speech was characterized by longer pauses, a higher proportion of silence, and slower rate. Conclusion: Differences in speech and voice acoustic features are detectable in PreHD by expert listeners and align with some acoustically-derived objective speech measures. Slower speech rate in PreHD suggests altered oral motor control and/or subtle cognitive deficits that begin prior to diagnosis. Speakers with EarlyHD exhibited more silences compared to the PreHD and control groups, raising the likelihood of a link between speech and cognition that is not yet well characterized in HD.

Constructing and Standardizing Cognitive Test in Artist Competition Rule for Epee Referees

The research aimed at constructing and standardizing a cognitive test in competition rules for epee referees as well as identifying the validity of these tests. The problem of the research lies in the lack of cognitive tests made for fencing referees. The researchers used the descriptive method on (50) referees and the pilot study was conducted on (3) while constructing subjects (47) and standardizing subjects were (45). The test was distributed, collected, and treated using proper statistical operations to conclude that there are differences between referees in their level that proves the validity of this test to measure cognitive knowledge of competition rules.

Preliminary Support for a Cognitive Remediation Intervention for Women During the Menopausal Transition: A Pilot Study

Background: Menopause is associated with physical and emotional symptoms, and subjective cognitive concerns that are generally not borne out on objective cognitive measures. This discrepancy suggests that a psychological rather than biological mechanism likely mediates the cognitive concerns of women in menopause. The current study assessed the feasibility and effectiveness of a cognitive remediation intervention with the goal of reducing subjective perceptions of cognitive difficulty during the menopause.Methods: Twenty-seven menopausal women (M age = 53.74, SD = 4.14) completed a 5-week group-based intervention (with a post-group booster) consisting of 2-h weekly sessions. Participants completed pre- and post-intervention measures capturing subjective cognitive ability, mood, anxiety, stress, personality, and objective cognitive tests. The primary variable of interest was self-reported cognitive confidence measured by the Memory and Cognitive Confidence Scale (MACCS).Results: All but one MACCS subscale significantly decreased over the course of treatment (with lower scores associated with higher confidence) and effect sizes ranged from small to large (d = −0.39 to −0.91) with gains maintained at 1-month follow-up. Interestingly, no change in objective cognitive test performance was observed, indicating increases in subjective cognitive confidence in the absence of objective cognitive improvement. There was no change in mood, anxiety, or stress scores. Two-level HLM analyses revealed that those with higher baseline neuroticism, as measured by the NEO Personality Inventory, had smaller decreases in post-group MACCS High Standards subscale relative to those with lower baseline neuroticism (p = 0.027, d = −0.45). Those with higher baseline depression scores on the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21) had a smaller decrease in post-intervention MACCS Total Score relative to those with lower depression ratings.Conclusion: To our knowledge, this is the first feasibility study of its kind targeting perceptions of cognitive impairment during menopause. Although generally well-tolerated, recruitment and scheduling difficulties were flagged as challenges to engagement while a small sample size and lack of control group limit conclusions about efficacy. Providing current results could be replicated with enhanced methods, these results provide support that cognitive remediation is a feasible and credible treatment, and may improve quality of life for women in menopause.Clinical Trial Registration:www.ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT03311880.