Search results for "Original Research Article"
showing 10 items of 137 documents
The generation of oligodendroglial cells is preserved in the rostral migratory stream during aging
2013
The subventricular zone (SVZ) is the largest source of newly generated cells in the adult mammalian brain. SVZ-derived neuroblasts migrate via the rostral migratory stream (RMS) to the olfactory bulb (OB), where they differentiate into mature neurons. Additionally, a small proportion of SVZ-derived cells contribute to the generation of myelinating oligodendrocytes. The production of new cells in the SVZ decreases during aging, affecting the incorporation of new neurons into the OB. However, the age-related changes that occur across the RMS are not fully understood. In this study we evaluate how aging affects the cellular organization of migrating neuroblast chains, the proliferation, and th…
Effects of low frequency electric fields on synaptic integration in hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons: implications for power line emissions
2014
The possible cognitive effects of low frequency external electric fields, such as those generated by power lines, are poorly understood. Their functional consequences for mechanisms at the single neuron level are very difficult to study and identify experimentally, especially in vivo. The major open problem is that experimental investigations on humans have given inconsistent or contradictory results, making it difficult to estimate the possible effects of external low frequency electric fields on cognitive functions. Here we investigate this issue with a realistic model of hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons. The model suggests how and why external electric fields, with environmentally obser…
Music and speech prosody: a common rhythm
2013
Disorders of music and speech perception, known as amusia and aphasia, have traditionally been regarded as dissociated deficits based on studies of brain damaged patients. This has been taken as evidence that music and speech are perceived by largely separate and independent networks in the brain. However, recent studies of congenital amusia have broadened this view by showing that the deficit is associated with problems in perceiving speech prosody, especially intonation and emotional prosody. In the present study the association between the perception of music and speech prosody was investigated with healthy Finnish adults (n = 61) using an on-line music perception test including the Scal…
Hunting for the beat in the body: on period and phase locking in music-induced movement.
2014
Music has the capacity to induce movement in humans. Such responses during music listening are usually spontaneous and range from tapping to full-body dancing. However, it is still unclear how humans embody musical structures to facilitate entrainment. This paper describes two experiments, one dealing with period locking to different metrical levels in full-body movement and its relationships to beat- and rhythm-related musical characteristics, and the other dealing with phase locking in the more constrained condition of sideways swaying motions. Expected in Experiment 1 was that music with clear and strong beat structures would facilitate more period-locked movement. Experiment 2 was assum…
An investigation of the neural circuits underlying reaching and reach-to-grasp movements: from planning to execution
2014
Experimental evidence suggests the existence of a sophisticated brain circuit specifically dedicated to reach-to-grasp planning and execution, both in human and non-human primates (Castiello, 2005). Studies accomplished by means of neuroimaging techniques suggest the hypothesis of a dichotomy between a "reach-to-grasp" circuit, involving the anterior intraparietal area, the dorsal and ventral premotor cortices (PMd and PMv - Castiello and Begliomini, 2008; Filimon, 2010) and a "reaching" circuit involving the medial intraparietal area and the superior parieto-occipital cortex (Culham et al., 2006). However, the time course characterizing the involvement of these regions during the planning …
Cognitive Deficits in Chronic Stroke Patients: Neuropsychological Assessment, Depression, and Self-Reports
2017
<b><i>Background:</i></b> Following stroke, clinicians are challenged to detect and untangle symptoms of cognitive dysfunction and mood disorders. Additionally, they need to evaluate the informative value of self-reports to identify patients in need of further attendance. <b><i>Aims:</i></b> To examine the association between neuropsychological measures, symptoms of depression, and self-reported cognitive function. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> One-hundred and five chronic stroke patients underwent assessment covering 6 cognitive domains and answered the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the Memory and Thinking Scale f…
Postgraduate Students’ Experience of Using a Learning Management System to Support Their Learning: A Qualitative Descriptive Study
2021
Introduction Educational institutions worldwide have implemented learning management systems (LMSs) to centralise and manage learning resources, educational services, learning activities and institutional information. LMS has mainly been used by teachers as storage and transfer of course material. To effectively utilise digital technologies in education, there is a need for more knowledge of student experiences with digital technology, such as LMSs and especially regarding how LMSs can contribute to student engagement and learning. Objective This study aimed to gain knowledge about postgraduate nursing students’ experiences with the use of LMS in a subject in an advanced practice nursing ma…
BDNF-induced nitric oxide signals in cultured rat hippocampal neurons: time course, mechanism of generation, and effect on neurotrophin secretion
2014
BDNF and nitric oxide signaling both contribute to plasticity at glutamatergic synapses. However, the role of combined signaling of both pathways at the same synapse is largely unknown. Using NO imaging with diaminofluoresceine in cultured hippocampal neurons we analyzed the time course of neurotrophin-induced NO signals. Application of exogenous BDNF, NT-4, and NT-3 (but not NGF) induced NO signals in the soma and in proximal dendrites of hippocampal neurons that were sensitive to NO synthase activity, TrkB signaling, and intracellular calcium elevation. The effect of NO signaling on neurotrophin secretion was analyzed in BDNF-GFP, and NT-3-GFP transfected hippocampal neurons. Exogenous ap…
Regulating the blink: Cognitive reappraisal modulates attention
2014
Our brain is unable to fully process all the sensory signals we encounter. Attention is the process that helps selecting input from all available information for detailed processing and it is largely influenced by the affective value of the stimuli. This study examined if attentional bias towards emotional stimuli can be modulated by cognitively changing their emotional value. Participants were presented with negative and neutral images from four different scene-categories depicting humans (‘Reading’, ‘Working’, ‘Crying’ and ’Violence’). Using cognitive reappraisal subjects decreased and increased the negativity of one negative (e.g., ‘Crying’) and one neutral (e.g., ‘Reading’) category res…
Comparison of anterior cingulate vs. insular cortex as targets for real-time fMRI regulation during pain stimulation
2014
© 2014 Emmert Breimhorst Bauermann Birklein Van De Ville and Haller. Real time functional magnetic resonance imaging (rt fMRI) neurofeedback allows learning voluntary control over specific brain areas by means of operant conditioning and has been shown to decrease pain perception. To further increase the effect of rt fMRI neurofeedback on pain we directly compared two different target regions of the pain network notably the anterior insular cortex (AIC) and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). Participants for this prospective study were randomly assigned to two age matched groups of 14 participants each (7 females per group) for AIC and ACC feedback. First a functional localizer using bloc…