Annals of Neurosciences最新文献

Background: Electroencephalography (EEG) studies consistently associate alpha-band oscillations with relaxation, internalized attention, and sensory disengagement during meditation. However, limited evidence exists on how Heartfulness Meditation (HM), particularly its unique transmission phases, modulates alpha activity across different experience levels.

Purpose: This study investigated experience-dependent modulation of EEG alpha-band power during multiple phases of HM, with a specific focus on transmission and post-meditation periods.

Method: Thirty-three healthy adults were categorized as long-term meditators (LTMs; n = 12), short-term meditators (STMs; n = 11), and non-meditating controls (CGs; n = 10). High-density EEG (129 channels) was recorded across seven consecutive five-minute phases: baseline, meditation (M1, M2), transmission (T1, T2), and post-rest (P1, P2). EEG data were preprocessed using RANSAC-based bad-channel detection and independent component analysis. Alpha power (8-12 Hz) was computed using Welch's method and analyzed using linear mixed-effects models with false discovery rate correction.

Results: A significant Group × Phase × Region interaction (p_FDR < 0.05) indicated experience- and phase-dependent alpha modulation. Both LTMs and STMs exhibited higher alpha power than controls, particularly in frontal, parietal, and occipital regions during meditation and post-meditation phases. Effect sizes ranged from small to moderate (Cohen's d = 0.34-0.70). Notably, STMs showed alpha enhancements comparable to LTMs during early meditation.

Conclusion: HM induces region- and phase-specific increases in alpha-band EEG activity, reflecting enhanced internal attention and sensory disengagement. Even short-term practice produces measurable neural changes, underscoring the potential neuroplastic effects of HM.

Background: Depression and active smoking are very common situations among the population, which also reduces the positive mental well-being of a person. Smoking is a global issue, and depression and low mental well-being interfere with the daily lives of individuals.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the effect of meditation on an active smoker in terms of depression and psychological well-being (PWB) as variables.

Method: The study used the pre-test and post-test design with 100 participants who were actively engaged in daily smoking. The individuals were divided equally into the two groups, and depression and PWB scores were recorded for both groups in the pre-test period. After recording the scores, the experimental group received meditation practice for one week, while the control group received no treatment. After one week, depression and PWB scores were again tested in the post-test period for both groups and recorded.

Results: Paired-samples t-tests revealed a significant decrease in depression scores from pre-test (M = 54.36, SD = 4.91) to post-test (M = 28.10, SD = 6.05), t(49) = 24.70, p = .01, and a significant increase in PWB scores from pre-test (M = 57.50, SD = 4.91) to post-test (M = 65.88, SD = 4.94), t(49) = 9.96, p = .01. Independent-samples t-tests showed that post-intervention, the experimental group had significantly higher depression scores (M = 55.02, SD = 4.42) compared to the control group (M = 28.10, SD = 6.05), F = 7.14, p = .05, and significantly lower well-being scores (M = 56.60, SD = 4.69) versus (M = 65.88, SD = 4.94), F = 0.017, p = .05.

Conclusion: The intervention was effective in reducing depressive symptoms and enhancing PWB among participants, demonstrating its potential as a beneficial programme for mental health improvement.

Background: Anxiety disorders are increasingly recognized as involving neurocognitive impairments in executive functioning, including working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility. However, Indian research has predominantly emphasized emotional and behavioural manifestations, leaving the neuropsychological correlates of anxiety severity underexplored.

Purpose: To investigate the relationship and differences in executive functioning among individuals with varying levels of anxiety.

Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 60 patients, classified into mild, moderate, or severe anxiety using the PROMIS Anxiety-Adult Short Form. Neuropsychological assessment included the Wechsler Memory Scale (WMI), Stroop Test (inhibitory control), and Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (conceptual processing). Data were analysed using ANOVA, post hoc comparisons, chi-square tests, Pearson's correlations, and linear regression. Ethical approval and informed consent were obtained.

Results: Significant group differences emerged across all domains (WMI: F = 6.87, p = .002; Stroop: F = 13.09, p < .001; WCST: F = 17.72, p < .001). Post hoc tests showed superior performance in the mild group relative to moderate and severe groups, with no significant differences between the latter two. Anxiety severity correlated negatively with executive functioning (r = -0.45 to -0.61, p < .01). Regression analyses confirmed severity as a significant predictor, explaining 20%-37% of variance in executive performance.

Conclusion: Executive dysfunction worsens with increasing anxiety severity, with cognitive decline plateauing between moderate and severe levels. Strong correlations highlight severity as a critical determinant of working memory, inhibitory control, and conceptual processing. Findings underscore the need to integrate neuropsychological assessment and cognitive rehabilitation into anxiety management in Indian clinical settings.

Background: Eye-hand coordination is an important component of accurate upper limb movement and is frequently compromised following stroke, leading to persistent functional impairments. Existing methods for the assessment and training of eye -hand coordination are resource-intensive and largely limited to research environments. Therefore, affordable sensor-based technologies may represent a feasible and engaging approach for clinical stroke rehabilitation.

Purpose: To evaluate the feasibility and concurrent validity of a gamified eye-hand coordination system using Tobii EyeX and Leap Motion for assessing visuomotor performance in individuals with chronic stroke, and to explore its associations with validated clinical outcome measures.

Methods: Prospective, single-group, longitudinal pilot study conducted at a physiotherapy rehabilitation center in Jodhpur, India. Fifteen community-dwelling individuals with chronic stroke (≥1 year post-event), aged 45 -70 years, underwent 10 weeks of standard physiotherapy, supplemented with biweekly gamified sessions using the HandEye system. Outcome measures included the Fugl-Meyer Assessment for Upper Extremity (FMA-UE), Box and Block Test (BBT), and HandEye game scores. Statistical analyses included repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA), Friedman tests, Spearman correlations, and linear fixed-effects modeling.

Results: Participants demonstrated significant improvements in FMA-UE (mean change = +6.86), BBT (+10.2 blocks), and HandEye scores (+4.62 points) over the 10-week period (p < .001 for all). Strong correlations were observed between HandEye scores and BBT (ρ = 0.726, p < .001), and moderate correlations with FMA-UE (ρ = 0.349, p = .019). Fixed-effects modeling revealed a significant association between HandEye scores and FMA-UE (β = 0.59, p < .001), though not with BBT. System performance remained stable across sessions, with <5% missing data for gaze and hand tracking.

Conclusion: The HandEye system integrating Tobii EyeX and Leap Motion provides a low-cost, feasible approach for assessing visuomotor function in stroke rehabilitation settings. Strong associations with manual dexterity suggest potential as an adjunct assessment tool. However, limitations in study design, low training dosage, and unvalidated sensor accuracy necessitate larger randomized trials for clinical validation.

Background: Neurocognitive dysfunction is the most common neurological complication seen in homozygous sickle cell disease (SCD) patients, and it appears to be associated with the severity of anaemia, indicating hypoxic brain injury as a causative factor, but the studies are limited to the paediatric population.

Purpose: We aimed to investigate the neurocognitive profile in adult homozygous SCD patients by subjective (Montreal Cognitive Assessment [MoCA] questionnaire) as well as objective (P300 event-related potentials [ERPs]) cognitive tests.

Method: Thirty adult homozygous SCD patients and 30 age-matched healthy controls were recruited. The MoCA questionnaire was employed for subjective cognitive status. ERP was recorded by using a modified 3-stimulus auditory oddball paradigm, which contains frequent, rare and novel stimuli. Amplitudes and latencies of corresponding original and difference ERP components were measured and analysed independently. Source analysis was done using sLORETA for P3a and P3b ERP components and compared between healthy controls and SCD patients.

Results: We found a significant reduction in total MoCA scores as well as their domains in SCD patients as compared to controls. For ERP, we found reduced amplitudes and increased latencies of P300 in SCD patients. This phenomenon was further validated in analysis of difference P3 components (P3dT i.e. target minus standard and P3dN i.e. novel minus standard). Additionally, we also found negative correlation between P3a/P3dN latency and attention domain of MoCA. Further, we found a diminished source activity for P3a and P3b in SCD as compared to control subjects.

Conclusion: These results indicate impaired neurocognitive abilities in cognitive domains of adult homozygous SCD patients like attention, executive functions and working memory, and reduced source activities of P300 components which may be due to chronic cerebral hypoxia in these patients.

Background: Studies suggest that obesity is linked to both autonomic nervous system dysfunction and cognitive impairment, but the specific quantitative associations are not well explored.

Purpose: This study was proposed to explore the quantification of different neurocognitive signatures and heart rate variability (HRV) parameters with increasing body weight among metabolically healthy obese participants for better analytical predictors.

Methods: The present research is a cross-sectional study, including a total of 101 (n = 101) participants. Out of the total, 71 were metabolically healthy obese or overweight individuals (body mass index [BMI] = 23.0-30.0 kg/m²; age 36-55 years; both genders) and 30 participants were enrolled as the control group. All the participants completed various neurological and psychological assessments, including the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), serum levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and cardio-autonomic tone by HRV analysis.

Results: Significant changes were observed for neurocognitive performances and HRV indices for the metabolically healthy obese group compared with the control group. With the association heatmaps, BMI was found to be significantly negatively associated with the BDNF and high-frequency band (HF band, ms²). In socio-demographic-adjusted models, the analysis showed a substantial decline (p < .05) in the HF band, ms² with an increase in BMI, emphasising its significant effect on vagal tone among the obese group. Also, a noteworthy association between BDNF levels and the standard deviation of all normal-to-normal intervals (SDNN)-HRV indices have confirmed the robustness of the findings for obese participants when compared with the control group.

Conclusion: The findings of the present study support that HRV could be a valuable early non-invasive tool for future cognitive decline in a population with metabolically healthy obesity.

Clinical trial registry: The study was registered at Clinical Trial Registry of India (CTRI/2022/10/046935).

Background: Depression is a prevalent mental health disorder and a significant contributor to disability adjusted life years. It is also associated with increased cardiovascular risk, often not adequately addressed by current treatments, leading to significant gaps in the treatment. Yoga practices like Vamana Dhauti could be a potential adjunct therapy to standard treatments by balancing doshas and positively influencing vagal tone.

Objective: This pilot randomised controlled trial aimed to assess the feasibility and tolerability of Vamana Dhauti in depression patients and its effects on Heart Rate Variability (HRV). Clinical changes were evaluated using the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D).

Methods: The study was conducted at the Department of Integrative Medicine, NIMHANS, Bengaluru. Patients with depression, aged 18-50 years, both genders, and no contraindications to Vamana Dhauti, were randomly assigned to Vamana Dhauti + Shavasana (n = 12) or Shavasana rest only (n = 12) groups using online software, which also included allocation concealment. Outcome measures include feasibility (acceptability, demand, practicality, adaptation, integration, perceived ease, and difficulty), tolerability (adverse events), HRV and HAM-D.

Results: Vamana Dhauti was found feasible and tolerable in patients diagnosed with depression. Vamana Dhauti was well-accepted, could be completed within the given setting and time, and was found to be easy to practice by participants (VAS = 2 ± 1.65; 0 being very easy and 10 being very difficult) with few mild adverse events (n = 2/12). Notably, a significant group × time interaction was observed in HRV, low-frequency measures [F (1,22) = 8.168; p = .009)]. Both groups saw an increase in Low-frequency during the first 10 minutes of Shavasana (control > intervention), but after 20 minutes, only the intervention group returned to baseline values, showing improved resilience. Clinical outcomes measured by HAM-D showed a significant improvement in both groups.

Conclusion: Vamana Dhauti is feasible and well-tolerated by patients diagnosed with depression, suggesting its potential integration into depression-focused Yoga modules.

Background: Orphan adolescents face multiple vulnerabilities, including a lack of parental guidance, poor educational opportunities, socio-economic disadvantages and peer pressure, making them prone to unhealthy behaviours, risk-taking, anxiety and depression. Despite these challenges, they often exhibit resilience, though forming stable social bonds remains difficult. The use of Anapanasati meditation in orphanages is a low-cost, easy and convenient solution to facilitating holistic growth, encouraging positive psychosocial performance and enhancing internal locus of control.

Purpose: The objective of the current study was to find the effectiveness of Anapanasati meditation on the internal locus of control, psychological well-being, resilience and altruism among orphan adolescents.

Method: A sample of 108 adolescents (54 orphan and 54 non-orphan adolescents) comprising of equal number of male and female participants in the age group of 13-17 years was included in the study. Data was collected from orphan adolescents residing in institutions in Pune, Maharashtra.

Results: For the present study, t-test and Bonferroni and Holm's (post-hoc) were calculated. Cohen's d was also calculated to find the effect size of the intervention. There were significant changes in the experimental group compared to the control group. The three-month intervention was found to be effective from the second month onwards.

Conclusion: The results of the current study indicate that meditation programmes can be practically applied in schools, orphanages and residential care facilities. Anapanasati meditation, which is relatively simple, economically and culturally non-intensive, seems particularly suitable in resource-restrained settings.

Background: The human body is a highly integrated biological system in which the gut flora wields regulatory control beyond simple digestion. Intestinal bacteria control neuronal and behavioral processes via the gut-brain axis; microbial gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) synthesis seems to be an essential controller of sleep and central nervous system activity. Increasing data show that neuroactive substances produced from bacteria influence mental health results, circadian rhythm, and sleep structure.

Summary: This review investigates the function of gut-derived GABA in sleep control, the part that particular bacterial taxa play, and the translational value of salivary GABA as a non-invasive indicator. Literature discussing microbial pathways for GABA production, gut-brain signalling mechanisms, food modulation, and ELISA-based salivary GABA determination was reviewed. Important GABA-producing genera including Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii were investigated. Available data indicates that gut bacteria may contribute up to thirty percent of systemic GABA; metabolites of gut microbes like butyrate improve GABAergic signalling via epigenetic and receptor-mediated pathways. Diets high in probiotics and fermentable fibre are continuously linked to better sleep quality, less sleep latency, and greater sleep continuity. Using ELISA, salivary GABA levels between 0.1 and 1 µmol/L can be measured and show circadian fluctuation, thereby favoring saliva as a useful substitute for total neurochemical activity.

Key message: Salivary GABA is a promising, drug-free biomarker connecting CNS performance, sleep regulation, and gut microbial activity. Its non-invasive character permits extensive clinical and community-based study, therefore supporting longitudinal monitoring of gut-brain interactions. Integration of psychobiotic treatments, AI-guided diet, and point-of-care biosensors may eventually change the stomach to be an organ.

Background: Emotions are crucial in advertising by shaping consumer attention, memory, and decision-making. Love and excitement are popular emotional themes used in marketing communications, and while they are leveraged by marketers, other underlying neural responses to these stimuli have not been well studied. It is important to map how various emotional appeals are processed in the brain for valuable contributions to consumer neuroscience and neuromarketing.

Purpose: This research seeks to investigate and compare the neural responses elicited by love-based and excitement-based advertisements through electroencephalography (EEG) and thus assess their unique cognitive and emotional engagement patterns.

Methods: During this pilot study, EEG was recorded from adult viewers when they watched a series of advertisements sorted according to two emotional themes: love and excitement. Parameters in the EEG measured were amplitude fluctuation, levels of arousal, cognitive load, and frontal lobe activation patterns. Real-time neural activity was examined to establish the engagement provoked by each of the emotional themes.

Results: Emotion-based ads produced fast, sharp EEG waveforms, indicative of increased arousal, cognitive load, and strong reward expectation. Such responses were largely lateralised to the left frontal cortex and implicated in goal-directed motivation. Love-based ads, by contrast, produced smooth, stable neural activity implicated in empathy, affective resonance, and introspection. Interestingly, this condition also engaged the medial prefrontal cortex, a region involved in emotional attachment and trust.

Conclusion: The results indicate that excitement-peddling advertisements elicit instant attention and strong cognitive activation, while love-themed content invokes more profound emotional involvement and enduring affective influence. EEG is a valuable method for cracking open unconscious consumer responses, which provides strategic implications for marketing content optimisation. Based on the small sample size, this initial study offers a basis for further research in emotionally intelligent advertising and neuromarketing interventions.