Brain and Behavior最新文献

Background: In today's post-truth times, where personal feelings and beliefs have become increasingly important, determining what is accurate knowledge has become an important skill. This is especially important during uncertainty crises (e.g., epidemics and pandemics) because alternative explanations other than scientific knowledge may be disseminated vigorously. Epistemic justification concerns how and in what way the truth of knowledge claims is justified and the criteria for knowledge to be true and/or a fact. Given this backdrop, the present study examined how individuals reacted to conspiracies in an uncertainty crisis (using the COVID-19 pandemic as an example).

Aim: The mediating role of epistemic justification was investigated regarding its relationship between COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs and COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy beliefs.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted incorporating a multifactorial correlational design. Using convenience sampling, 690 participants (55.7% females, M_age = 32.24 years, SD = 9.75) from different regions of Türkiye completed an online survey via Google Forms.

Results: The results demonstrated a strong and statistically significant correlation between beliefs in COVID-19 conspiracy theories and beliefs in COVID-19 vaccination conspiracy theories. The mediating effects of justification by authority and personal justification were statistically significant between COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs and COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy theories.

Conclusion: Using the COVID-19 pandemic as an example, the present results indicated the complex relationships between conspiracy beliefs and epistemic justification. The present results indicate the importance of authorities in taking early action to provide scientific evidence and information to the public to avoid individuals believing false information.

Background: The aim of this review is to synthesize the existing knowledge regarding headaches attributed to external physical stimuli, as classified by the ICHD-3 (Group 4.6). Two forms can be distinguished in this group: (1) headache attributed to external compression and (2) headache attributed to external traction.

Methods: A comprehensive literature review was conducted using the Medline (PubMed) database and other relevant academic sources. All English-language articles were subjected to a relevance assessment.

Results: The prevalence of the two types of headache varies considerably, with a higher incidence observed in women or in the presence of predisposing factors (e.g., work with compulsory helmets or long hair). An external-compression headache is typically described as a pressing sensation, whereas an external-traction headache is characterized by a sensation of pulling. The headaches typically persist for less than an hour after the stimulus has ceased, and the intensity is typically reported as mild to moderate. Apart from avoiding the trigger, which is not always possible, effective therapies have not been established.

Conclusion: Both types of headaches are relatively common, yet they remain underrepresented in the scientific literature. Furthermore, there is a dearth of comprehensive overviews. If the triggering factor cannot be eliminated, both types of headaches can interfere with daily living and working.

Background: Higher cardiorespiratory fitness and cardiovascular endurance (CE) have been shown to be neuroprotective in older adulthood, but the mechanisms underlying this neuroprotection across the adult lifespan are poorly understood. The current study sought to examine the neuroprotective effects of CRF on gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) volumes, and mean cortical thickness (MCT), using a large sample across the adult lifespan. We also examined sex differences in these relationships.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included data from 1691 adults across the adult lifespan (22-100 years) from the Human Connectome Project Young Adults and Aging data. 2-minute walk test performance was used as a proxy of CE. Structural MRI was used to assess total GM volume, WM volume, and MCT. Linear regression models were used to examine the interaction between age and CE on total GM volume, WM volume, and MCT after adjusting for sex, years of education, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, gait speed, and total intracranial volume. Whole-brain surface-based analysis was also performed to investigate regional effects. Finally, interactions between age, sex, and CE were examined to test sex differences. p < 0.05, two-sided test, was designed as statistically significant.

Results: With greater CE, the associations between greater age and lower total and regional GM and WM volumes and MCT were attenuated in whole sample. In men, age was associated with lower total GM volume and MCT regardless of CE level. In women, attenuated negative associations between age and total GM volume and MCT were found in those with high CE.

Conclusion: Greater CE over the adult lifespan is associated with preservation of cortical thickness and brain volume, particularly in women.

Background: Myasthenia gravis (MG) is strongly associated with thymic tumors, but whether it is also associated with extrathymic cancers is debatable or whether MG can be considered a paraneoplastic disorder for extrathymic cancers.

Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of the MG cohort for 23 years' time (January 2000 to May 2023), extracting cancer rates with clinical, electrophysiological, and biochemical cancer associations and the effect of chronic medications.

Results: We identified 436 patients with MG and 3924 controls. The median age at symptom onset was 64 (5-93 years) for males and 54 (1-87 years) for females. MG symptoms at onset were recorded as ocular (60%), strictly bulbar (10%), or generalized (23%). Extrathymic cancer was found in 32% of MG patients. In 3%, thymic and extrathymic cancers co-occurred. Compared to controls, neurology (12.2%, 159/1308), internal medicine (24.4%, 319/1308), or rheumatology (12%, 157/1308), MG patients had significantly higher rates of extrathymic cancers (p < 0.001). Compared to the rheumatology group, the cancer relative risk of 2.97, CI = 2.5-3.4. Furthermore, the prevalence of extrathymic cancers was significantly increased within the paraneoplastic time window, defined as ±5 years from cancer diagnosis to myasthenia onset (p < 0.01).

Conclusion: MG was significantly associated with an increased risk of extrathymic cancers, particularly within the paraneoplastic time window. These findings suggest that MG might potentially behave as a paraneoplastic disorder.

Background: In Chinese phonogram processing studies, it is widely accepted that both character and non-character semantic radicals could be semantically activated. However, little attention was paid to the underlying workings that enabled the semantic radicals' semantic activation.

Purpose: The present study aimed to address the above issue by conducting two experiments.

Methods: Experiment 1 was committed to confirming whether both character and non-character semantic radicals could be semantically activated when embedded in genuine Chinese phonograms. Experiment 2 was devoted to exploring whether the same semantic radicals could also be semantically activated when incorporated in Chinese pseudo-characters.

Results: Results demonstrated that both character and non-character semantic radicals embedded in the genuine phonograms were semantically activated, but those placed in the pseudo-characters underwent no semantic activation, suggesting that the semantic activation of semantic radicals was genuine-character status-dependent, irrespective of the semantic radicals' characterhood.

Conclusion: It seems that the genuine-character status and the meaning of the host phonogram have strong sway on the semantic activation of semantic radicals.

Background: Neurodegenerative diseases involve progressive neuronal dysfunction and cognitive decline, posing substantial global challenges. Although the precise causes remain unclear, several studies highlight the role of protein metabolism abnormalities in disease development. This study investigates the causal links between variations in mitochondrial protein genes and neurodegenerative diseases, aiming to elucidate their potential contributions to disease progression and identify novel therapeutic strategies.

Methods: Herein, we utilized data from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) on mitochondrial proteins and neurodegenerative diseases. Bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR), employing instrumental variables (IVs), was used to assess causal relationships. The primary method for estimating causal effects was the inverse variance-weighted (IVW) method, supplemented by additional MR approaches.

Results: Bidirectional MR revealed significant associations between mitochondrial protein gene variants and neurodegenerative diseases. Specifically, associations were found with Alzheimer's disease (AD) (three proteins), Parkinson's disease (PD) (four proteins), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) (six proteins), multiple sclerosis (two proteins), and dementia with Lewy bodies (four proteins). Conversely, analyses indicated significant associations of neurodegenerative diseases with mitochondrial protein gene variants, notably with AD, dementia with Lewy bodies, and multiple sclerosis, affecting multiple mitochondrial protein levels. Bidirectional causality was observed between dementia with Lewy bodies and C21orf33.

Conclusions: Using MR, we identified significant links between mitochondrial protein gene mutations and the risk of neurodegenerative diseases. These results highlight reciprocal relationships where certain neurodegenerative diseases influence mitochondrial protein expression levels. These findings underscore the pivotal role of mitochondrial proteins in neurodegenerative diseases, offering critical insights into disease mechanisms and potential therapeutic avenues.

Purpose: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) is a prevalent disease caused by high fat and high cholesterol intake, which leads to systemic deterioration. The aim of this research is to conduct a psychobiological exploration of MASH in adult male rats.

Methods: Subjects who were administered a high-fat and high-cholesterol diet for 14 weeks. Then, we assessed the acoustic startle response and alertness through the prepulse inhibition paradigm as well as the associative learning by the use of the passive avoidance test. Also, we explored the astrocyte density in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus.

Results: Our results showed that, whereas the MASH group did not display an impaired associative learning, a lower exploration rate was found in this group. Moreover, a reduced prepulse inhibition was found in these subjects in the case of the weaker and closer-to-the-stimulus prepulse, which indicates a mild alteration in this process. No differences were found in astrocyte density in the MASH group in comparison with controls.

Conclusion: MASH seems to be linked with cognitive dysfunction. Further research is needed to elucidate the pathway involved in this disease and its underlying mechanism, as well as the potential implication in human health.

Introduction: Considerable evidence suggests a pathophysiological role of neuroinflammation in psychiatric disorders. Lumbar puncture and positron emission tomography (PET) show increased levels of inflammation in psychiatric disorders. However, the invasive nature of these techniques, as well as their expense, make them undesirable for routine use in patients. Electroencephalography (EEG) is noninvasive, affordable and shows potential as a clinical tool for detection of neuroinflammation.

Methods: In this randomized, crossover design, placebo-controlled, double-blind study, typhoid vaccine was administered to 20 healthy volunteers to induce a low level of neuroinflammation. EEG was recorded before and after placebo/vaccine administration during resting-state and during performance of the Attention Network Test (ANT). Resting-state EEG was analyzed using spectral power analysis, and time-frequency analysis was used for the EEG from the ANT. Behavioral data were assessed using linear mixed models and Spearman's correlations.

Results: Behavioral results from the ANT showed no decrement in performance following the vaccine, consistent with previous studies. During eyes-open resting, there was a relative decrease in right-frontal delta power in the vaccine condition compared to placebo. There was a trend toward greater alpha power suppression in the alerting response of the attentional network; however, this finding did not reach significance.

Conclusion: Decreased resting-state delta power may reflect an unpleasant internal state conferred by the vaccine. Inflammation did not significantly affect attention networks. The absence of significant alterations may be due to an insufficient inflammatory response. Further studies are needed to assess the feasibility of EEG as a technique for detection of neuroinflammation.

Background: Adult glioblastomas (GBMs) are associated with high recurrence and mortality. Personalized treatment based on molecular markers may help improve the prognosis. We aimed to evaluate whether apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) histogram analysis can better predict MGMT and TERT molecular characteristics and to determine the prognostic relevance of genetic profile in patients with GBM.

Materials and methods: MRI, clinical, and pathological data of 79 patients with GBM were retrospectively collected. The ADC values based on histogram analysis were described using 10th percentile (p10), 90th percentile (p90), mean, median, minimum, maximum, skewness, kurtosis, and entropy. The independent-sample t test, linear correlation analysis, receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis, Kaplan-Meier analysis, and Cox proportional hazard regression were performed.

Results: MGMT promoter methylation and TERT promoter mutation were detected in 53.2% and 44.3% of GBM patients, respectively. The ADC_p10 in MGMT promoter unmethylated group was significantly lower than that in the MGMT promoter methylated group (p = 0.005). There were significant differences in ADC_min, ADC_p10, ADC_mean, and entropy between TERT promoter mutant and wild-type groups. Entropy showed the best diagnostic performance in differentiating between positive and negative TERT groups (AUC = 0.722, p = 0.001). Overall survival (OS) showed a positive correlation with ADC_min. The TERT promoter mutation was the only independent prognostic factor for GBM.

Conclusions: ADC histogram analysis may be a potential noninvasive biomarker for differentiating MGMT and TERT molecular markers and providing prognostic information for GBM patients.

Background: Respirator failure (RF) is a severe malignant complication in both lateral medullary infarction (LMI) and medial medullary infarction (MMI) patients. However, the differences in clinical and radiological manifestations associated with RF between patients with LMI and MMI have not been fully elucidated.

Methods: A total of 435 consecutive patients with MI within 7 days of onset in our institute were retrospectively enrolled from January 2017 to January 2024. Lesions were categorized both rostral-caudally and horizontally, and clinical characteristics were collected to evaluate the correlation between them and RF that occurred within 10 days of stroke onset.

Results: Among the 435 patients, 33 patients developed RF, with 19 exhibiting LMI and 12 exhibiting MMI. Multisegment involvement was more common among LMI patients experiencing RF compared to those without (52.6% vs. 23.9%, p = 0.012). However, this difference was not observed among MMI patients. Large (n = 12, 63.2%, p = 0.014) and typical (n = 6, 31.6%, p = 0.016) lesions were more common among LMI patients with RF. In MMI patients with RF, nine (75.0%) patients had long lesions extending from the ventral to the dorsal medulla, with six of these cases involving bilateral lesions, as V-shape or heart-shape on MRI. Univariate analysis of clinical symptoms revealed that bulbar symptoms, urinary retention, and pulmonary infection were significantly more common in both the LMI and MMI groups with RF.

Conclusions: Specific lesion patterns, such as large and typical infarctions in LMI patients or long lesions, particularly those with bilateral infarctions, as V-shape or heart-shape on MRI in MMI patients, appear to correlate with a higher incidence of RF, while clinical symptoms associated with RF are similar in LMI and MMI.