rudyvdbrink/CitationDatabase huggingface dataset:
Hardware Acceleration of EEG-Based Emotion Classification Systems: A Comprehensive Survey.
IEEE transactions on biomedical circuits and systems, 2021

Recent years have witnessed a growing interest in EEG-based wearable classifiers of emotions, which could enable the real-time monitoring of patients suffering from neurological disorders such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), or Alzheimer's. The hope is that such wearable emotion classifiers would facilitate the patients' social integration and lead to improved healthcare outcomes for them and their loved ones. Yet in spite of their direct relevance to neuro-medicine, the hardware platforms for emotion classification have yet to fill up some important gaps in their various approaches to emotion classification in a healthcare context. In this paper, we present the first hardware-focused critical review of EEG-based wearable classifiers of emotions and survey their implementation perspectives, their algorithmic foundations, and their feature extraction methodologies. We further provide a neuroscience-based analysis of current hardware accelerators of emotion classifiers and use it to map out several research opportunities, including multi-modal hardware platforms, accelerators with tightly-coupled cores operating robustly in the near/supra-threshold region, and pre-processing libraries for universal EEG-based datasets.
Dissociation of immediate and delayed effects of emotional arousal on episodic memory.
Neurobiology of learning and memory, 2018

Emotionally arousing events are usually better remembered than neutral ones. This phenomenon is in humans mostly studied by presenting mixed lists of neutral and emotional items. An emotional enhancement of memory is observed in these studies often already immediately after encoding and increases with longer delays and consolidation. A large body of animal research showed that the more efficient consolidation of emotionally arousing events is based on an activation of the central noradrenergic system and the amygdala (Modulation Hypothesis; Roozendaal & McGaugh, 2011). The immediately superior recognition of emotional items is attributed primarily to their attraction of attention during encoding which is also thought to be based on the amygdala and the central noradrenergic system. To investigate whether the amygdala and noradrenergic system support memory encoding and consolidation via shared neural substrates and processes a large sample of participants (n = 690) encoded neutral and arousing pictures. Their memory was tested immediately and after a consolidation delay. In addition, they were genotyped in two relevant polymorphisms (α
The role of the subgenual anterior cingulate cortex in dorsomedial prefrontal-amygdala neural circuitry during positive-social emotion regulation.
Human brain mapping, 2020

Positive-social emotions mediate one's cognitive performance, mood, well-being, and social bonds, and represent a critical variable within therapeutic settings. It has been shown that the upregulation of positive emotions in social situations is associated with increased top-down signals that stem from the prefrontal cortices (PFC) which modulate bottom-up emotional responses in the amygdala. However, it remains unclear if positive-social emotion upregulation of the amygdala occurs directly through the dorsomedial PFC (dmPFC) or indirectly linking the bilateral amygdala with the dmPFC via the subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (sgACC), an area which typically serves as a gatekeeper between cognitive and emotion networks. We performed functional MRI (fMRI) experiments with and without effortful positive-social emotion upregulation to demonstrate the functional architecture of a network involving the amygdala, the dmPFC, and the sgACC. We found that effortful positive-social emotion upregulation was associated with an increase in top-down connectivity from the dmPFC on the amygdala via both direct and indirect connections with the sgACC. Conversely, we found that emotion processes without effortful regulation increased network modulation by the sgACC and amygdala. We also found that more anxious individuals with a greater tendency to suppress emotions and intrusive thoughts, were likely to display decreased amygdala, dmPFC, and sgACC activity and stronger connectivity strength from the sgACC onto the left amygdala during effortful emotion upregulation. Analyzed brain network suggests a more general role of the sgACC in cognitive control and sheds light on neurobiological informed treatment interventions.
Impaired lysosomal acidification triggers iron deficiency and inflammation in vivo.
eLife, 2019

Lysosomal acidification is a key feature of healthy cells. Inability to maintain lysosomal acidic pH is associated with aging and neurodegenerative diseases. However, the mechanisms elicited by impaired lysosomal acidification remain poorly understood. We show here that inhibition of lysosomal acidification triggers cellular iron deficiency, which results in impaired mitochondrial function and non-apoptotic cell death. These effects are recovered by supplying iron via a lysosome-independent pathway. Notably, iron deficiency is sufficient to trigger inflammatory signaling in cultured primary neurons. Using a mouse model of impaired lysosomal acidification, we observed a robust iron deficiency response in the brain, verified by in vivo magnetic resonance imaging. Furthermore, the brains of these mice present a pervasive inflammatory signature associated with instability of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), both corrected by supplementation of the mice diet with iron. Our results highlight a novel mechanism linking impaired lysosomal acidification, mitochondrial malfunction and inflammation in vivo.
Making Sense of the World: Infant Learning From a Predictive Processing Perspective.
Perspectives on psychological science : a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, 2020

For human infants, the first years after birth are a period of intense exploration-getting to understand their own competencies in interaction with a complex physical and social environment. In contemporary neuroscience, the predictive-processing framework has been proposed as a general working principle of the human brain, the optimization of predictions about the consequences of one's own actions, and sensory inputs from the environment. However, the predictive-processing framework has rarely been applied to infancy research. We argue that a predictive-processing framework may provide a unifying perspective on several phenomena of infant development and learning that may seem unrelated at first sight. These phenomena include statistical learning principles, infants' motor and proprioceptive learning, and infants' basic understanding of their physical and social environment. We discuss how a predictive-processing perspective can advance the understanding of infants' early learning processes in theory, research, and application.
Negative affect impairs associative memory but not item memory.
Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.), 2013

The formation of associations between items and their context has been proposed to rely on mechanisms distinct from those supporting memory for a single item. Although emotional experiences can profoundly affect memory, our understanding of how it interacts with different aspects of memory remains unclear. We performed three experiments to examine the effects of emotion on memory for items and their associations. By presenting neutral and negative items with background contexts, Experiment 1 demonstrated that item memory was facilitated by emotional affect, whereas memory for an associated context was reduced. In Experiment 2, arousal was manipulated independently of the memoranda, by a threat of shock, whereby encoding trials occurred under conditions of threat or safety. Memory for context was equally impaired by the presence of negative affect, whether induced by threat of shock or a negative item, relative to retrieval of the context of a neutral item in safety. In Experiment 3, participants were presented with neutral and negative items as paired associates, including all combinations of neutral and negative items. The results showed both above effects: compared to a neutral item, memory for the associate of a negative item (a second item here, context in Experiments 1 and 2) is impaired, whereas retrieval of the item itself is enhanced. Our findings suggest that negative affect impairs associative memory while recognition of a negative item is enhanced. They support dual-processing models in which negative affect or stress impairs hippocampal-dependent associative memory while the storage of negative sensory/perceptual representations is spared or even strengthened.
Identifying mechanisms that underlie links between COMT genotype and aggression in male adolescents with ADHD.
Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines, 2016

There is a known strong genetic contribution to aggression in those with ADHD. In a previous investigation of a large population cohort, impaired 'emotional/social cognitive' processing, assessed by questionnaire, was observed to mediate the link between COMT Val158Met and aggression in individuals with ADHD. We set out to replicate and extend this finding in a clinical sample, using task-based and physiological assessments of emotional and cognitive processing. Our aim was to test the hypothesis that directly assessed emotional processing mediates the link between COMT Val158Met and aggression in young people with ADHD.
Further analysis of KIFAP3 gene in ALS patients from Switzerland and Sweden.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis & frontotemporal degeneration, 2017

A series of studies suggests that susceptibility to ALS may be influenced by variants in multiple genes. While analyses of the 10% of cases of familial origin have identified more than 33 monogenic ALS-causing genetic defects, little is known about genetic factors that influence susceptibility or phenotype in sporadic ALS (SALS). We and others conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) in a cohort of 1014 ALS cases from Western Europe, England and the United States, and identified an intronic single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs1541160 in the KIFAP3 gene that was statistically associated with improved survival. We have now completed an additional survival analysis examining the impact of the rs1541160 genotype in a cohort of 264 ALS and progressive bulbar palsy (PBP) cases. In the combined cohort of 264 patients, the CC, CT and TT genotypes for rs1541160 were detected, respectively, in 8.3% (22), 41.7% (110) and 50.0% (132). This study does not show an influence of KIFAP3 variants on survival in the studied Swiss and Swedish cohort. There was a difference in survival between the US and English patients and the patients from the Netherlands. The effect of KIFAP3 variants may be population specific, or the rs1541160 association reported previously may have been a false-positive.
Hand use predicts the structure of representations in sensorimotor cortex.
Nature neuroscience, 2015

Fine finger movements are controlled by the population activity of neurons in the hand area of primary motor cortex. Experiments using microstimulation and single-neuron electrophysiology suggest that this area represents coordinated multi-joint, rather than single-finger movements. However, the principle by which these representations are organized remains unclear. We analyzed activity patterns during individuated finger movements using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Although the spatial layout of finger-specific activity patterns was variable across participants, the relative similarity between any pair of activity patterns was well preserved. This invariant organization was better explained by the correlation structure of everyday hand movements than by correlated muscle activity. This also generalized to an experiment using complex multi-finger movements. Finally, the organizational structure correlated with patterns of involuntary co-contracted finger movements for high-force presses. Together, our results suggest that hand use shapes the relative arrangement of finger-specific activity patterns in sensory-motor cortex.
Association of Messenger RNA Level With Phenotype in Patients With Choroideremia: Potential Implications for Gene Therapy Dose.
JAMA ophthalmology, 2020

Gene therapy is a promising treatment for choroideremia, an X-linked retinal degeneration. The required minimum level of gene expression to ameliorate degeneration rate is unknown. This can be interrogated by exploring the association between messenger RNA (mRNA) levels and phenotype in mildly affected patients with choroideremia.
Engineering domain-inlaid SaCas9 adenine base editors with reduced RNA off-targets and increased on-target DNA editing.
Nature communications, 2020

Precision genome engineering has dramatically advanced with the development of CRISPR/Cas base editing systems that include cytosine base editors and adenine base editors (ABEs). Herein, we compare the editing profile of circularly permuted and domain-inlaid Cas9 base editors, and find that on-target editing is largely maintained following their intradomain insertion, but that structural permutation of the ABE can affect differing RNA off-target events. With this insight, structure-guided design was used to engineer an SaCas9 ABE variant (microABE I744) that has dramatically improved on-target editing efficiency and a reduced RNA-off target footprint compared to current N-terminal linked SaCas9 ABE variants. This represents one of the smallest AAV-deliverable Cas9-ABEs available, which has been optimized for robust on-target activity and RNA-fidelity based upon its stereochemistry.
Reduction of HIP2 expression causes motor function impairment and increased vulnerability to dopaminergic degeneration in Parkinson's disease models.
Cell death & disease, 2018

Huntingtin interaction protein 2 (HIP2) is an E2 ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme associated with neurodegenerative diseases, and HIP2 mRNA has been implicated as a potential blood biomarker for Parkinson's disease (PD). However, it is unclear whether the alteration of HIP2 expression may contribute to the development of PD, and whether the change of HIP2 in blood could reflect its expression in the brain or motor functions in PD patients. In this study, we established a mouse line with HIP2 haploinsufficiency. The reduction of the HIP2 expression led to spontaneous motor function impairment and dopaminergic neuronal loss. Furthermore, HIP2 haploinsufficiency increased the susceptibility of mice to 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) and caused severe loss of dopaminergic neurons. Interestingly, in a 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) mouse model for PD, we observed concurrent, highly correlated decrease of HIP2 expression in the brain and in the blood. Using blood samples from more than 300 patients, we validated the decreased HIP2 mRNA in PD patients, including de novo patients. Finally, in a 1-year, 20-patient study, we observed reversed blood HIP2 mRNA levels accompanying improved motor and overall daily functions in 75% of the PD patients with instructed Tai Chi training. Therefore, our in vivo studies have indicated HIP2 insufficiency as a contributing factor for PD, and functionally validated blood HIP2 as a useful and reversible biomarker for PD.
Going tubular in the rostral migratory stream: neurons remodel astrocyte tubes to promote directional migration in the adult brain.
Neuron, 2010

Newly generated neuroblasts from the subventricular zone of the adult brain migrate as neuronal chains within a network of astroglial tubes in the rostral migratory stream. This highly directed, rapid migration channels new neurons to the olfactory bulb. In this issue of Neuron, Kaneko et al. demonstrate that migrating neurons dynamically remodel the morphology and organization of astroglial tubes to promote long distance, directional migration of neurons in the adult brain.
The α1, α2, α3, and γ2 subunits of GABAA receptors show characteristic spatial and temporal expression patterns in rhombencephalic structures during normal human brain development.
The Journal of comparative neurology, 2016

γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the most abundant inhibitory neurotransmitter in adult mammalian brain, mediating its actions chiefly via a pentameric chloride ion channel, the GABAA receptor. Nineteen different subunits (α1-6, β1-3, γ1-3, δ, ε, π, θ, ρ1-3) can give rise to multiple receptor subtypes that are the site of action of many clinically important drugs. In the developing brain, however, GABAA receptors mediate excitatory actions due to an increased chloride concentration within neurons and seem to control cell proliferation, migration, differentiation, synapse maturation, and cell death. Little is known about the distribution of single subunits in the human brain. Here we describe developmental changes in the immunohistochemical distribution of four subunits (α1, α2, α3, and γ2) in the human rhombencephalon. The γ2 was the most abundant subunit in all rhombencephalic structures during development and in adults, whereas α subunits showed a structure- and age-characteristic distribution. The α1 was expressed prenatally in the molecular and Purkinje cell layer, but only postnatally in the granule cell layer and the dentate nucleus. Expression was completely absent in the inferior olivary nucleus. The α2 gradually increased during development, showing some layer specificity in the cerebellar cortex. The α3-immunoreactivity in the cerebellar cortex was relatively weak, but it was abundantly observed in different cell populations in the subcortical cerebellar structures. Structure- and age-characteristic colocalization between subunits during development suggests differences in GABAA receptor composition. Interestingly, subunit expression in several instances differed between human and rodent brain, underlining the importance of immunohistochemical studies in humans.
The dopamine β-hydroxylase inhibitor, nepicastat, suppresses chocolate self-administration and reinstatement of chocolate seeking in rats.
The British journal of nutrition, 2013

Craving for chocolate is a common phenomenon, which may evolve to an addictive-like behaviour and contribute to obesity. Nepicastat is a selective dopamine β-hydroxylase (DBH) inhibitor that suppresses cocaine-primed reinstatement of cocaine seeking in rats. We verified whether nepicastat was able to modify the reinforcing and motivational properties of a chocolate solution and to prevent the reinstatement of chocolate seeking in rats. Nepicastat (25, 50 and 100 mg/kg, intraperitoneal) produced a dose-related inhibition of operant self-administration of the chocolate solution in rats under fixed-ratio 10 (FR10) and progressive-ratio schedules of reinforcement, measures of the reinforcing and motivational properties of the chocolate solution, respectively. The effect of nepicastat on the reinstatement of chocolate seeking was studied in rats in which lever-responding had been extinguished by removing the chocolate solution for approximately 8 d. Nepicastat dose-dependently suppressed the reinstatement of lever-responding triggered by a 'priming' of the chocolate solution together with cues previously associated with the availability of the reward. In a separate group of food-restricted rats trained to lever-respond for regular food pellets, nepicastat reduced FR10 lever-responding with the same potency as for the chocolate solution. Spontaneous locomotor activity was not modified by nepicastat doses that reduced self-administration of the chocolate solution and regular food pellets and suppressed the reinstatement of chocolate seeking. The results indicate that nepicastat reduces motivation to food consumption sustained by appetite or palatability. Moreover, the results suggest that DBH inhibitors may be a new class of pharmacological agents potentially useful in the prevention of relapse to food seeking in human dieters.
New laboratory predictive tools in deep neck space infections.
Acta otorhinolaryngologica Italica : organo ufficiale della Societa italiana di otorinolaringologia e chirurgia cervico-facciale, 2020

Deep neck space infections (DNSIs) are a group of infective suppurative diseases involving deep neck spaces and cervical fascia. Necrotising and septic evolutions are rare, but severe complications can dramatically affect the prognosis and should be promptly managed. Clinical examination often has low sensitivity, although instrumental diagnosis may delay te treatment. We investigated two laboratory tools, LRINEC (Laboratory Risk Indicator for the Necrotizing fasciitis) and NLR (neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio), in the expectation to find a rapidly available predictive indicator that may help in distinguishing necrotising complications and/or systemic septic involvement.
Characterization of the CA1 pyramidal neurons in rat model of hepatic cirrhosis: insights into their electrophysiological properties.
Metabolic brain disease, 2017

Although the key contributors of altering neurological function in hepatic encephalopathy are relatively well known, the electrophysiological mechanism of CA1 damage, a key vulnerable area during hyperammonemia, have not yet been defined. Therefore, here we focus on the electrophysiological mechanisms of cognitive impairments following bile duct ligation (BDL). We performed patch-clamp recordings from the CA1 pyramidal neurons in hippocampus of male Wistar rats, which underwent sham or BDL surgery. A striking electrophysiological change of hippocampal neurons in experimental model of BDL was observed in the present study. Spontaneous firing frequency and rate of action potential (AP) rebound was decreased and afterhyperpolarization amplitude (AHP) was increased significantly in hippocampal cells of BDL animals compared to sham group. Together, the results suggest that altered intrinsic properties of the hippocampal neurons may contribute to the cognitive abnormalities during hepatic encephalopathy (HE), highlighting the electrophysiological mechanisms for providing new treatments against HE.
Socioeconomic consequences of multiple sclerosis-A systematic literature review.
Acta neurologica Scandinavica, 2021

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a challenging and disabling condition, predominantly affecting individuals in their early life, and has an impact functionally, financially, and on quality of life. However, there is a lack of systematic approach towards assessing socioeconomic consequences of MS. Our objective was to systematically review observational analytical studies investigating the socioeconomic consequences of MS. We conducted a systematic review on socioeconomic consequences of MS with a focus on employment-, income-, work ability- and relationship-related outcomes between MS and the general population. Additionally, the educational characteristics were extracted. From 4958 studies identified, 187 were assessed for eligibility and a total of 27 studies from eight countries were included in this qualitative assessment; 32 different outcomes were identified. All studies indicated pronounced differences between MS patients and the general population, for example 15%-30% lower employment, lower earnings and higher social benefits, higher absenteeism and presenteeism proportions, higher work disability (eg, sick-leave days) among MS patients. Some studies also indicated differences in the family or relationship characteristics. There were no apparent differences with regard to educational level. In conclusion, socioeconomic data can serve as robust outcome measures to study various aspects of MS reflecting the broader consequences of the disease.