Search results for "Research Report"
showing 10 items of 125 documents
Gamma Oscillations in the Temporal Pole Reflect the Contribution of Approach and Avoidance Motivational Systems to the Processing of Fear and Anger W…
2022
Prior reports suggest that affective effects in visual word processing cannot be fully explained by a dimensional perspective of emotions based on valence and arousal. In the current study, we focused on the contribution of approach and avoidance motivational systems that are related to different action components to the processing of emotional words. To this aim, we compared frontal alpha asymmetries and brain oscillations elicited by anger words associated with approach (fighting) motivational tendencies, and fear words that may trigger either avoidance (escaping), approach (fighting) or no (freezing) action tendencies. The participants’ task was to make decisions about approaching or dis…
Comparison of Shod and Unshod Gait in Patients With Parkinson's Disease With Subthalamic and Nigral Stimulation
2022
Background: The Parkinsonian [i.e., Parkinson's disease (PD)] gait disorder represents a therapeutical challenge with residual symptoms despite the use of deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus (STN DBS) and medical and rehabilitative strategies. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of different DBS modes as combined stimulation of the STN and substantia nigra (STN+SN DBS) and environmental rehabilitative factors as footwear on gait kinematics.Methods: This single-center, randomized, double-blind, crossover clinical trial assessed shod and unshod gait in patients with PD with medication in different DBS conditions (i.e., STIM OFF, STN DBS, and STN+SN DBS) during differe…
Extremely Low Frequency Magnetic Fields Do Not Affect LTP-Like Plasticity in Healthy Humans.
2020
Introduction: Several studies explored, in vitro, the biological effects of extremely low-frequency magnetic fields (ELF-MFs) and reported the induction of functional changes in neuronal activity. In particular, ELF-MFs can influence synaptic plasticity both in-vitro and in animal models. Indeed, some studies reported an increase in long-term potentiation (LTP) whereas others suggested its reduction. However, no specific study has investigated such effect in humans. Aims: To evaluate whether ELF-MFs affect the propensity of the human cortex to undergo LTP-like plasticity. Methods: We designed a randomized, single-blind, sham-controlled, cross-over study on 10 healthy subjects. Cortical plas…
The C-X-C Motif Chemokine Ligand 1 Sustains Breast Cancer Stem Cell Self-Renewal and Promotes Tumor Progression and Immune Escape Programs
2021
Breast cancer (BC) mortality is mainly due to metastatic disease, which is primarily driven by cancer stem cells (CSC). The chemokine C-X-C motif ligand-1 (CXCL1) is involved in BC metastasis, but the question of whether it regulates breast cancer stem cell (BCSC) behavior is yet to be explored. Here, we demonstrate that BCSCs express CXCR2 and produce CXCL1, which stimulates their proliferation and self-renewal, and that CXCL1 blockade inhibits both BCSC proliferation and mammosphere formation efficiency. CXCL1 amplifies its own production and remarkably induces both tumor-promoting and immunosuppressive factors, includingSPP1/OPN,ACKR3/CXCR7,TLR4,TNFSF10/TRAILandCCL18and, to a lesser exte…
Spatial differences and temporal changes in illicit drug use in Europe quantified by wastewater analysis
2014
Aims To perform wastewater analyses to assess spatial differences and temporal changes of illicit drug use in a large European population. Design Analyses of raw wastewater over a 1-week period in 2012 and 2013. Setting and Participants Catchment areas of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) across Europe, as follows: 2012: 25 WWTPs in 11 countries (23 cities, total population 11.50 million); 2013: 47 WWTPs in 21 countries (42 cities, total population 24.74 million). Measurements Excretion products of five illicit drugs (cocaine, amphetamine, ecstasy, methamphetamine, cannabis) were quantified in wastewater samples using methods based on liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrom…
The Impact of Age on the Association Between Physical Activity and White Matter Integrity in Cognitively Healthy Older Adults
2020
Cognition emerges from coordinated processing among distributed cortical brain regions, enabled through interconnected white matter networks. Cortical disconnection caused by age-related decline in white matter integrity (WMI) is likely to contribute to age-related cognitive decline. Physical activity (PA) has been suggested to have beneficial effects on white matter structure. However, its potential to counteract age-related decline in WMI is not yet well established. The present explorative study analyzed if PA was associated with WMI in cognitively healthy older adults and if this association was modulated by age. Forty-four cognitively healthy older individuals (aged 60–88 years) with d…
Reliable Correlational Cuing While Controlling for Most-Recent-Pairing Effects.
2020
Irrelevant aspects of the environment or irrelevant attributes of task-relevant stimuli can have important and reliable effects on behavior. When the specific values of an irrelevant stimulus attribute are correlated with different responses, a correlational-cuing effect is observed: faster and more accurate responses when the correlation is positive than when it is negative. Previous work has shown that this effect is not due to simple differences in how often the specific stimuli are being presented, and most explanations of the effect have stressed the clear parallels with classical associative learning. Very recently, however, evidence in favor of an alternative model has been presented…
The Sense of Belonging to the Country: Integrative Relationships and Spatiotemporal Commitment
2020
The satisfaction of the need to belong reflects in the sense of being an integrative part of the group or social system. There is some lack of empirical evidence for the structure of this sense at the macro level. This study assessed a two-dimensional model of the sense of belonging to the country, which included relational and spatiotemporal components. Participants were 539 university students from 18 to 50 (74% females). Questions regarding involvement, perceived acceptance, sense of commonality, and feeling at home represented the relational component of the sense of belonging. Four temporal categories—the recent past, present, and the near and distant future—were included in the assess…
North/south differences among Italian emerging adults regarding criteria deemed important for adulthood and life satisfaction
2016
The main goal of this study was to compare Northern and Southern Italian emerging adult university students, regarding the importance attributed to criteria for adulthood and the levels of life and education satisfaction. Self-report questionnaires were filled by 475 Northern and Southern Italian University students (Age M = 22.91, 76% females, n = 359). Multivariate analysis of variance revealed that Southern emerging adults were more likely to place importance on family capacities, norm compliance, interdependence and role transitions as criteria for achieving adulthood than Northern emerging adults. Regarding gender differences, females were more likely to believe in the importance of no…
Dreams and Trauma Changes in the Manifest Dreams in Psychoanalytic Treatments - A Psychoanalytic Outcome Measure.
2021
Although psychoanalysts are interested in symptom reduction as an outcome, they are looking for instruments to measure sustaining changes in the unconscious mental functioning. In this article it is discussed that conceptually well-founded transformation of manifest dreams analyzed with precise empirical methods could be considered as a promising indicator for such therapeutic changes. We are summarizing a dream generation model by Moser and von Zeppelin which has integrated a large interdisciplinary knowledge base of contemporary dream and sleep research. Based on this model the authors have developed a valid and reliable coding system for analyzing manifest dreams, the Zurich Dream Proces…