All posts; Tags Include "Cognitive Neuroscience"
- February 24, 2014
- 08:17 AM
- 758 views
Fish Consumption and Brain Health
by William Yates, M.D. in Brain Posts
I have previously examined outcomes for MRI changes known as brain white matter hyperintensities (WMHI).WMHIs are noted in a minority of adults and are not completely understood. The changes are considered subclinical in nature, meaning they do not reach a threshold for medical significance.However, these subclinical WMHI are linked to higher rates of premature cognitive decline. Absence of WMHI is seen by some as one marker of brain health.Jyrki Virtanen and colleagues from Finl........ Read more »
Virtanen JK, Siscovick DS, Lemaitre RN, Longstreth WT, Spiegelman D, Rimm EB, King IB, & Mozaffarian D. (2013) Circulating omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and subclinical brain abnormalities on MRI in older adults: the Cardiovascular Health Study. Journal of the American Heart Association, 2(5). PMID: 24113325
- February 17, 2014
- 08:02 AM
- 773 views
Acute Brain Response to Exercise in Healthy Young Adults
by William Yates, M.D. in Brain Posts
This month I have been reviewing recent research on the effects of exercise on the brain.Exercise appears to have both acute and chronic effects on brain physiology and function. Newer imaging techniques provide sensitive tools to study exercise and the brain.Bradley Macintosh and colleagues recently paired an aerobic exercise task with measurements of cerebral blood flow and blood oxygen utilization.The key elements of the design of their experiment included the following elements:Subjects........ Read more »
Macintosh BJ, Crane DE, Sage MD, Rajab AS, Donahue MJ, McIlroy WE, & Middleton LE. (2014) Impact of a single bout of aerobic exercise on regional brain perfusion and activation responses in healthy young adults. PloS one, 9(1). PMID: 24416356
- February 13, 2014
- 02:11 PM
- 1,098 views
Creativity in Older Adults: Learning Digital Photography Improves Cognitive Function
by Jalees Rehman in Fragments of Truth
The recent study "The Impact of Sustained Engagement on Cognitive Function in Older Adults: The Synapse Project" published in the journal Psychological Science by the psychology researcher Denise Park and her colleagues at the University of Texas at Dallas is an example of an extremely well-designed study which attempts to tease out the benefits of participating in a structured activity versus receiving formal education and acquiring new skills. The researchers assigned subjects with a mean age ........ Read more »
Park DC, Lodi-Smith J, Drew L, Haber S, Hebrank A, Bischof GN, & Aamodt W. (2014) The impact of sustained engagement on cognitive function in older adults: the synapse project. Psychological science, 25(1), 103-12. PMID: 24214244
- February 13, 2014
- 07:47 AM
- 708 views
Weight Training for Type 2 Diabetes Prevention in Women
by William Yates, M.D. in Brain Posts
This is the fifth in a series of articles examining research findings on exercise and the brain.Type 2 diabetes and obesity can contribute to risk for early cognitive decline and dementia.Strategies that reduce risk of Type 2 diabetes may indirectly contribute to brain health.Aerobic exercise and weight loss are known to reduce Type 2 diabetes risk.However, the role of weight training on diabetes risk is less clear.A recent study has shed some light on the potential role for weight training........ Read more »
Grøntved A, Pan A, Mekary RA, Stampfer M, Willett WC, Manson JE, & Hu FB. (2014) Muscle-Strengthening and Conditioning Activities and Risk of Type 2 Diabetes: A Prospective Study in Two Cohorts of US Women. PLoS medicine, 11(1). PMID: 24453948
- February 12, 2014
- 04:28 PM
- 1,210 views
What happens in the brain when you learn a mnemonic?
by Shelly Fan in Neurorexia
This is part of a series exploring the brains behind exceptional memory: to what extent is it natural and learnt? How fast can a complete...... Read more »
Nyberg L, Sandblom J, Jones S, Neely AS, Petersson KM, Ingvar M, & Bäckman L. (2003) Neural correlates of training-related memory improvement in adulthood and aging. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 100(23), 13728-33. PMID: 14597711
- February 12, 2014
- 12:45 PM
- 1,336 views
Three Seconds: Poems, Cubes and the Brain
by Jalees Rehman in Fragments of Truth
Temporal order can be assessed in a rather straightforward experimental manner. Research subjects can be provided sequential auditory clicks, one to each ear. If the clicks are one second apart, nearly all participants can correctly identify whether or not the click in the right ear came before the one in the left ear. It turns out that this holds true even if the clicks are only 100 milliseconds (0.1 seconds) apart. The threshold for being able to correctly assign a temporal order to such brief........ Read more »
von Steinbüchel N. (1998) Temporal ranges of central nervous processing: clinical evidence. Experimental brain research, 123(1-2), 220-33. PMID: 9835412
- February 12, 2014
- 07:50 AM
- 1,027 views
Tasting With Every Part Of Your Body
by Mark Lasbury in As Many Exceptions As Rules
Lots of recent evidence is demonstrating that lingual taste buds are just the tip of the iceberg. Taste receptors have been identified in parts of the respiratory, gastrointestinal, renal, and nervous systems. Taste receptor functions in non-gustatory tissues are related to feeding and hunger, nutrient sensing, and protective responses.
Studies have shown that the pancreas has umami and sweet receptors that work in insulin release. The gut has receptors for fat, umami, sweet and bitter. The........ Read more »
Sundaresan S, Shahid R, Riehl TE, Chandra R, Nassir F, Stenson WF, Liddle RA, & Abumrad NA. (2013) CD36-dependent signaling mediates fatty acid-induced gut release of secretin and cholecystokinin. FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, 27(3), 1191-202. PMID: 23233532
Kyriazis GA, Soundarapandian MM, & Tyrberg B. (2012) Sweet taste receptor signaling in beta cells mediates fructose-induced potentiation of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 109(8). PMID: 22315413
Wauson EM, Zaganjor E, Lee AY, Guerra ML, Ghosh AB, Bookout AL, Chambers CP, Jivan A, McGlynn K, Hutchison MR, Deberardinis RJ, Cobb MH. (2012) The G protein-coupled taste receptor T1R1/T1R3 regulates mTORC1 and autophagy. Mol Cell., 47(6), 851-862. DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2012.08.001
Dehkordi O, Rose JE, Fatemi M, Allard JS, Balan KV, Young JK, Fatima S, Millis RM, & Jayam-Trouth A. (2012) Neuronal expression of bitter taste receptors and downstream signaling molecules in the rat brainstem. Brain research, 1-10. PMID: 22836012
- February 11, 2014
- 08:33 AM
- 653 views
Exercise and a Healthy Hippocampus in Middle Age
by William Yates, M.D. in Brain Posts
The beneficial effects of exercise on the brain has received significant research attention in children and older adults.Fewer research studies target young and middle aged adults.William Killgore and colleagues recently addressed this population in a study published in Scientific Reports.They preformed a cross-sectional correlation study of brain structure and self-reported exercise habits.Sixty one men and women between the ages of 18 and 45 years of age were recruited for the study.Subjects w........ Read more »
Killgore WD, Olson EA, & Weber M. (2013) Physical exercise habits correlate with gray matter volume of the hippocampus in healthy adult humans. Scientific reports, 3457. PMID: 24336512
- February 5, 2014
- 10:18 AM
- 764 views
Exercise Trial for Cognitive Impairment in Older Adults
by William Yates, M.D. in Brain Posts
Current drug treatments for cognitive impairment and dementia show limited effectiveness.Alternative adjunctive treatments in those with early cognitive impairment are needed.In a previous post, I outlined a review of what we know about exercise and cognition in elderly populations.An additional study is relevant to this topic and important.Takao Suzuki and colleagues in Japan conducted a randomized controlled trial of multicomponent exercise in older adults with evidence of mild cognitive impai........ Read more »
Suzuki T, Shimada H, Makizako H, Doi T, Yoshida D, Ito K, Shimokata H, Washimi Y, Endo H, & Kato T. (2013) A randomized controlled trial of multicomponent exercise in older adults with mild cognitive impairment. PloS one, 8(4). PMID: 23585901
- February 3, 2014
- 10:12 AM
- 882 views
Aging, Exercise and Brain Plasticity
by William Yates, M.D. in Brain Posts
Over the next month, I will be focusing on the effects of exercise on the brain.This topic is important for several reasons. Exercise appears to play a preventive role in the effects of brain aging in normal adults.Exercise may aid in the slowing of progression of brain disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.Exercise is a promising adjunct to treatment of a variety of other brain disorders including depression and anxiety disorder.For this post, I want to highlight wh........ Read more »
Erickson KI, Gildengers AG, & Butters MA. (2013) Physical activity and brain plasticity in late adulthood. Dialogues in clinical neuroscience, 15(1), 99-108. PMID: 23576893
- January 26, 2014
- 10:18 PM
- 650 views
Savant syndrome
by neurosci in Neuroscientifically Challenged
Savant syndrome is one of the true mysteries of neuroscience. Many people were first exposed to this curious phenomenon when they watched the movie Rain Man. In it, Dustin Hoffman plays a character named Raymond Babbit, who is loosely based on Kim Peek. Peek was (Peek died in 2009) a savant who had a stunningly prodigious memory and the ability to read a book in an hour, retaining virtually all of the information he took in during that short time. Peek, like most other savants, also suffered fro........ Read more »
Snyder A, Bahramali H, Hawker T, & Mitchell DJ. (2006) Savant-like numerosity skills revealed in normal people by magnetic pulses. Perception, 35(6), 837-45. PMID: 16836048
- January 19, 2014
- 04:45 PM
- 277 views
What happens to our minds and memories in healthy ageing?
by Michael Ramscar in The Importance of Being Wrong
In our recent paper, The myth of cognitive decline, my colleagues and I suggest that the answer to this question is, “it’s complicated.” And if you think that the answer involves a steady deterioration of cognitive function, we present a series of findings that may make you think again. Take, for instance, our ability to […]... Read more »
Ramscar M, Hendrix P, Shaoul C, Milin P, & Baayen H. (2014) The myth of cognitive decline: non-linear dynamics of lifelong learning. Topics in Cognitive Science, 6(1), 5-42. PMID: 24421073
- January 15, 2014
- 08:20 AM
- 762 views
Pump Up Your Brain
by Mark Lasbury in As Many Exceptions As Rules
Exercise increases brainpower, but do you know how? Many recent studies document the results of exercise on executive function, memory, processing speed, and attention, but some are also investigating just how these changes in cognitive function are brought about.
In particular a 2013 study shows that preadolescents who begin exercise score better on a cognitive assessment not unlike an IQ test. They also perform better on a math test, even though no additional math instruction was given. On ........ Read more »
Patten AR, Sickmann H, Hryciw BN, Kucharsky T, Parton R, Kernick A, & Christie BR. (2013) Long-term exercise is needed to enhance synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus. Learning , 20(11), 642-7. PMID: 24131795
Cassilhas RC, Lee KS, Fernandes J, Oliveira MG, Tufik S, Meeusen R, & de Mello MT. (2012) Spatial memory is improved by aerobic and resistance exercise through divergent molecular mechanisms. Neuroscience, 309-17. PMID: 22155655
Davis CL, Tomporowski PD, McDowell JE, Austin BP, Miller PH, Yanasak NE, Allison JD, & Naglieri JA. (2011) Exercise improves executive function and achievement and alters brain activation in overweight children: a randomized, controlled trial. Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association, 30(1), 91-8. PMID: 21299297
Tam ND. (2013) Improvement of Processing Speed in Executive Function Immediately following an Increase in Cardiovascular Activity. Cardiovascular psychiatry and neurology, 212767. PMID: 24187613
- January 14, 2014
- 09:20 AM
- 611 views
Weight Loss Drug Combo Improves Sleep Apnea
by William Yates, M.D. in Brain Posts
Obesity is a risk factor for obstructive sleep apnea. Use of a positive airway pressure (PAP) device is the standard treatment for sleep apnea.However, PAP commonly is only moderately effective in reducing sleep disruption and day time fatigue. A significant number of individuals fail to use their PAP devices due to inconvenience or mask problems.Weight loss alone can improve sleep in those developing sleep apnea. Winslow and colleagues at the Kentucky Research conducted a randomi........ Read more »
Winslow DH, Bowden CH, DiDonato KP, & McCullough PA. (2012) A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of an oral, extended-release formulation of phentermine/topiramate for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea in obese adults. Sleep, 35(11), 1529-39. PMID: 23115402
- January 13, 2014
- 08:49 PM
- 919 views
Using Ultrasound to Boost Brain Performance
by Jason Carr in Wired Cosmos
Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute scientists have demonstrated that ultrasound directed to a specific region of the brain can boost performance in sensory discrimination. Whales, bats, and even praying mantises use ultrasound as a sensory guidance system — and now a new study has found that ultrasound can modulate brain activity to heighten sensory perception … Read More →... Read more »
Wynn Legon, Tomokazu F Sato, Alexander Opitz, Jerel Mueller, Aaron Barbour, Amanda Williams, & William J Tyler. (2014) Transcranial focused ultrasound modulates the activity of primary somatosensory cortex in humans. Nature Neuroscience. info:/10.1038/nn.3620
- January 7, 2014
- 09:37 AM
- 712 views
Weight Loss Surgery Improves Memory and Cognition
by William Yates, M.D. in Brain Posts
I have reviewed some research evidence documenting the adverse effect of obesity on cognition.Dementia rates do appear increased in obese populations but the mechanism and issue of causality is unclear.If there is a direct effect of obesity on brain function, one might expect weight loss to improve cognition.There have been a series of papers examining changes in cognition following bariatric weight loss surgery using the Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery study.At baseline, about one ........ Read more »
Gunstad J, Strain G, Devlin MJ, Wing R, Cohen RA, Paul RH, Crosby RD, & Mitchell JE. (2011) Improved memory function 12 weeks after bariatric surgery. Surgery for obesity and related diseases : official journal of the American Society for Bariatric Surgery, 7(4), 465-72. PMID: 21145295
Alosco ML, Galioto R, Spitznagel MB, Strain G, Devlin M, Cohen R, Crosby RD, Mitchell JE, & Gunstad J. (2013) Cognitive function after bariatric surgery: evidence for improvement 3 years after surgery. American journal of surgery. PMID: 24119892
- December 30, 2013
- 10:24 PM
- 756 views
Electroconvulsive Therapy Impairs Memory Reconsolidation
by The Neurocritic in The Neurocritic
** This post is meant to be read in tandem with its more critical cousin, How Can We Forget? at The Neurocritic. **Thymatron® System IV (Somatics, LLC)“Memories are constantly changing, each time we recall them they're physically different.”- me, July 7, 2006The precision of memory over time is a quaint idea. A large body of research shows us that memories are not fixed entities (Alberini & Ledoux, 2013). Every time a specific memory “trace” is reactivated, it enters a transiently u........ Read more »
Kroes MC, Tendolkar I, van Wingen GA, van Waarde JA, Strange BA, & Fernández G. (2013) An electroconvulsive therapy procedure impairs reconsolidation of episodic memories in humans. Nature neuroscience. PMID: 24362759
Schiller D, Monfils MH, Raio CM, Johnson DC, Ledoux JE, & Phelps EA. (2010) Preventing the return of fear in humans using reconsolidation update mechanisms. Nature, 463(7277), 49-53. PMID: 20010606
- December 27, 2013
- 05:15 AM
- 1,218 views
Autistic brains: Under- or over-connected?
by Jon Brock in Cracking the Enigma
SourceFor a while now, the prevailing view has been that the brains of people with autism are "underconnected" and that this lack of communication between different parts of the brain causes at least some of the features of autism. It's an intuitively plausible idea but it was always likely to be an over-simplification.Recently, a number of studies have pointed to the exact opposite - an increase in connectivity in autism. The emerging story is that kids with autism have "hyper connected" b........ Read more »
García Domínguez L, Stieben J, Pérez Velázquez JL, & Shanker S. (2013) The imaginary part of coherency in autism: differences in cortical functional connectivity in preschool children. PloS one, 8(10). PMID: 24098409
Supekar K, Uddin LQ, Khouzam A, Phillips J, Gaillard WD, Kenworthy LE, Yerys BE, Vaidya CJ, & Menon V. (2013) Brain hyperconnectivity in children with autism and its links to social deficits. Cell reports, 5(3), 738-47. PMID: 24210821
- December 17, 2013
- 09:32 AM
- 743 views
Does control of cognition have to be conscious?
by Janet Kwasniak in Neuro-patch
What are the functions of consciousness in cognition? In fact, are there any? Over many experiments, it has been shown that unconscious information processing is common, powerful, sophisticated and not completely unlike ‘conscious processing’. Unconscious processing can reach higher semantic levels. But many theories, some very widely accepted such as the Global Neuronal Workspace, contain […]... Read more »
Desender K, Van Lierde E, & Van den Bussche E. (2013) Comparing conscious and unconscious conflict adaptation. PloS one, 8(2). PMID: 23405242
- December 15, 2013
- 06:45 AM
- 564 views
fMR-Why? Bad Science Meets Chocolate and Body Envy
by Rebecca Schwarzlose in Garden of the Mind
An experiment on bulimia goes awry: an example of less-than-exemplary research.... Read more »
Van den Eynde F, Giampietro V, Simmons A, Uher R, Andrew CM, Harvey PO, Campbell IC, & Schmidt U. (2013) Brain responses to body image stimuli but not food are altered in women with bulimia nervosa. BMC Psychiatry, 13(1), 302. PMID: 24238299
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