rudyvdbrink/CitationDatabase huggingface dataset:
Naturalizing Responsibility.
Cambridge quarterly of healthcare ethics : CQ : the international journal of healthcare ethics committees, 2016

In the contemporary debate on the use of the neurosciences in ethics and law, numerous arguments have been bandied about among scientists and philosophers looking to uphold or reject the reliability and validity of scientific findings obtained by brain imaging technologies. Among the most vexing questions is, Can we trust that technology? One point of disagreement is whether brain scans offer a window through which to observe the functioning of the mind, in such a way as to enable lawyers, judges, physicians, and lawmakers to detect anomalies in brain function that may account for criminal unconscious behavior. Those who stand behind brain imaging believe that this can indeed be achieved, whereas those in opposition stress that brain scans are highly open to interpretation and that the data they provide is insufficient to establish causal connections. The question essentially comes down to whether technology can reliably be used to determine the intentions of the individual, thus establishing mens rea, for example, and hence responsibility. This article focuses on the latter notion and explores whether we can rely on the neurosciences to shed light on a complex form of moral and legal reasoning, as well as the role of the neurosciences in reawakening a philosophical and legal interest in trying to set responsibility on an empirical basis.
Emerging atypical connectivity networks for processing angry and fearful faces in very preterm born children.
Human brain mapping, 2020

Very preterm born (VPT) children are those born before 32/40 weeks' gestational age and comprise 10% of the 15 million babies born prematurely worldwide each year. Due to advancements in neonatal medicine, the survival rate of VPT birth has increased, but few studies have investigated the nonmedical, social-cognitive morbidities that affect these children. In this study, we examined emotional face processing networks in VPT compared to age and sex matched full-term born (FT) children. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) was used to test VPT and FT born children at 6 years (n = 78) and 8 years (n = 83). Children were assessed using an implicit emotion face-processing task. Happy, fearful, and angry faces were presented for 150 ms, but children were asked to respond by button press to the location of a control pixelated image of the face displayed on the side of the screen opposite to the face. Children rated the valence of the images on a five-point scale. Group differences showed that VPT children rated angry faces more positively than their FT peers. VPT children had reduced connectivity for angry and fearful faces at 8 years in networks including regions such as the bilateral amygdala, superior temporal sulci, and anterior cingulate gyrus. Interventions should target both emotion recognition, as well as higher cognitive processes related to emotional control and thinking about one's own emotions.
Incidental learning of a visuo-motor sequence modulates saccadic amplitude: Evidence from the serial reaction time task.
Journal of experimental psychology. Learning, memory, and cognition, 2020

This study examined the changes in saccadic amplitude associated with learning a visual sequence. The oculomotor system gradually adjusts saccadic parameters when tracking a visual stimulus, which has a predictable trajectory. In these contexts, the change in saccadic amplitudes leads to predictive fixations. That is, fixations made to a position in the visual field, where a visual stimulus is anticipated to appear. This study tested whether learning a sequence of visual target movements on the serial reaction time (SRT) task would affect saccadic amplitudes and in turn lead to predictive fixations. Participants in this study were 40 healthy adults who completed the SRT task. Both manual reaction times (RTs) and eye movements were recorded. Analyses of manual RT data showed that at the group level, the sequence was learnt. Analyses of the oculomotor data revealed saccadic amplitudes decreased, following repeated exposures to the visual sequence. Also, increasingly more accurate predictive fixations were observed, following multiple exposures to the sequence. Additional analyses revealed sequence learning related changes in manual RTs, and saccadic amplitudes were not correlated. This study demonstrates the oculomotor system can acquire information about the sequence on the SRT task to update saccadic amplitudes. The nonsignificant correlation between manual RTs and saccadic amplitudes may be indicating sequences are represented differently by the manual and oculomotor systems. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
Increased C-X-C Motif Chemokine Ligand 12 Levels in Cerebrospinal Fluid as a Candidate Biomarker in Sporadic Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.
International journal of molecular sciences, 2020

Sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (sALS) is a fatal progressive neurodegenerative disease affecting upper and lower motor neurons. Biomarkers are useful to facilitate the diagnosis and/or prognosis of patients and to reveal possible mechanistic clues about the disease. This study aimed to identify and validate selected putative biomarkers in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of sALS patients at early disease stages compared with age-matched controls and with other neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer disease (AD), spinal muscular atrophy type III (SMA), frontotemporal dementia behavioral variant (FTD), and multiple sclerosis (MS). SWATH acquisition on liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for protein quantitation, and ELISA for validation, were used in CSF samples of sALS cases at early stages of the disease. Analysis of mRNA and protein expression was carried out in the anterior horn of the lumbar spinal cord in post-mortem tissue of sALS cases (terminal stage) and controls using RTq-PCR, and Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry, respectively. SWATH acquisition on liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) revealed 51 differentially expressed proteins in the CSF in sALS. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves showed CXCL12 to be the most valuable candidate biomarker. We validated the values of CXCL12 in CSF with ELISA in two different cohorts. Besides sALS, increased CXCL12 levels were found in MS but were not altered in AD, SMA, and FTD. Therefore, increased CXCL12 levels in the CSF can be useful in the diagnoses of MS and sALS in the context of the clinical settings. CXCL12 immunoreactivity was localized in motor neurons in control and sALS, and in a few glial cells in sALS at the terminal stage; CXCR4 was in a subset of oligodendroglial-like cells and axonal ballooning of motor neurons in sALS; and CXCR7 in motor neurons in control and sALS, and reactive astrocytes in the pyramidal tracts in terminal sALS. CXCL12/CXCR4/CXCR7 axis in the spinal cord probably plays a complex role in inflammation, oligodendroglial and astrocyte signaling, and neuronal and axonal preservation in sALS.
Long-term supplementation of dehydroepiandrosterone improved depressive-like behaviors by increasing BDNF expression in the hippocampus in ovariectomized rats.
Heliyon, 2020

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), a precursor of estrogen, partially exhibits its biological effect after conversion to estrogen. Its biological significance in perimenopausal depressive disorder or postpartum depression remains unknown. Here, we observed the effects of long-term supplementation of DHEA on depression-like behaviors in ovariectomized rats.
[Does neuroscience understand dreaming?].
Medecine sciences : M/S, 2020

Sleep is a succession of two stages: slow-wave and rapid eye-movement sleep. The later has mixed characteristics between sleep and wakefulness. Therefore, dreams have been proposed to occur during this stage. This hypothesis is now considered as oversimplified. Dreaming may occur during the two stages though with different characteristics. Deciphering brain structures associated with dreaming is difficult. However, during the two stages, a decrease in low-frequency and an increase in high-frequency electrical activity in posterior cortical regions has been reported that might be the neural correlate of dreaming. The origin of cortex stimulation is under debate, but the mechanisms involved are similar to those acting during wakefulness. Dream function is not known and it might be an epiphenomenon originating from synaptic transmission noise. Depriving subjects of rapid-eye movement sleep for two weeks has no apparent effect on their behavior.
New therapies for neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder.
The Lancet. Neurology, 2021

Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder is an autoimmune disease of the CNS that primarily affects the optic nerves and spinal cord. Most patients have serum antibodies targeting the aquaporin-4 water channel expressed on the end-feet of astrocytes. Although the prevalence of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder is limited to around 1-2 people per 100 000, severe immune-mediated attacks can quickly lead to blindness and paralysis if undiagnosed and untreated. However, diagnosis is straightforward when the highly specific serum aquaporin-4 antibodies are detected with cell-based assays.
EEG distinguishes heroic narratives in ISIS online video propaganda.
Scientific reports, 2020

The Islamic State (ISIS) was uniquely effective among extremist groups in the Middle East at recruiting Westerners. A major way ISIS accomplished this was by adopting Hollywood-style narrative structures for their propaganda videos. In particular, ISIS utilized a heroic martyr narrative, which focuses on an individual's personal glory and empowerment, in addition to traditional social martyr narratives, which emphasize duty to kindred and religion. The current work presented adult participants (n = 238) video clips from ISIS propaganda which utilized either heroic or social martyr narratives and collected behavioral measures of appeal, narrative transportation, and psychological dispositions (egoism and empathy) associated with attraction to terrorism. Narrative transportation and the interaction between egoism and empathy predicted video recruitment appeal. A subset of adults (n = 80) underwent electroencephalographic (EEG) measurements while watching a subset of the video-clips. Complementary univariate and multivariate techniques characterized spectral power density differences when perceiving the different types of narratives. Heroic videos show increased beta power over frontal sites, and globally increased alpha. In contrast, social narratives showed greater frontal theta, an index of negative feedback and emotion regulation. The results provide strong evidence that ISIS heroic narratives are specifically processed, and appeal to psychological predispositions distinctly from other recruitment narratives.
Fatal acute poisoning from massive inhalation of gasoline vapors: case report and comparison with similar cases.
Journal of forensic sciences, 2013

We describe a case of an acute lethal poisoning with hydrocarbons resulting from massive accidental inhalation of gasoline vapors. The victim, a 50-year-old man was found unconscious inside a control room for the transport of unleaded fuel. Complete autopsy was performed and showed evidence of congestion and edema of the lungs. Toxicological investigation was therefore fundamental to confirm exposure to fumes of gasoline. Both venous and arterial blood showed high values of volatiles in particular for benzene (39.0 and 30.4 μg/mL, respectively), toluene (23.7 and 20.4 μg/mL), and xylene isomers (29.8 and 19.3 μg/mL). The relatively low values found in the lungs are consistent with the fact that the subject, during the rescue, underwent orotracheal intubation followed by resuscitation techniques, while the low concentrations for all substances found in urine and kidneys could point to a death that occurred in a very short time after first contact with the fumes of gasoline.
Cognitive remediation and brain connectivity: A resting-state fMRI study in patients with schizophrenia.
Psychiatry research. Neuroimaging, 2020

Cognitive remediation is able to improve activation patterns in the frontal lobe but only few data on neuroconnectivity has been reported yet. Resting-state approach is a neuroimaging methodology with potentiality for testing neuroconnectivity in the context of cognitive remediation in schizophrenia. A resting-state fMRI data was acquired in part of the sample (n = 26 patients, n = 10 healthy controls) of a partner study (NCT02341131) testing the effects of cognitive remediation. A data-driven approach using independent component analysis (ICA) was used to identify functional brain networks, which were compared between groups and group per time using a dual-regression approach. ICA results revealed reduced functional connectivity between patients and controls in sensorimotor, basal ganglia, default mode and visual networks at baseline (p<0.05 FWE-corrected). After treatment, time per group analyses evidenced increased connectivity in sensorimotor network. Furthermore, group comparison at follow-up showed similar connectivity patterns between patients and healthy controls in sensorimotor network, but also in default mode and basal ganglia networks. No differences between treatment groups were found. Our results add some evidence to the hypothesis of altered connectivity in schizophrenia, and the possibility to modify some aspects of brain connectivity networks after psychological interventions.
Molecular-Targeted Therapy for Childhood Brain Tumors: A Moving Target.
Journal of child neurology, 2020

Molecular-targeted therapy is an attractive therapeutic approach for childhood brain tumors. Unfortunately, with some notable exceptions, such treatment has not yet made a major impact on survival or for that matter quality-of-life for children with brain tumors. Limitations include the specificity of any single agent to inhibit the target, the presence of multiple genetic abnormalities within a tumor, the likely presence of escape mechanisms and the frequent use of molecular-targeted therapies in relatively biologically unselected patient populations. Despite these limitations, the MEK inhibitors and the BRAF V600E inhibitors have already demonstrated efficacy and are being compared to standard therapy in trials of treatment-naïve patients. There is also great enthusiasm for molecular-targeted therapies that target selective gene fusions. Given the plasticity of epigenetic changes, the targeting of epigenetic aberrations is also a promising avenue of therapy. Because molecular-targeted therapies frequently target genes and pathways that are critical in normal brain development, the acute, subacute long-term sequelae of molecular-targeted therapies need to be carefully monitored.
Neural activation during anticipation of monetary gain or loss does not associate with positive subjective response to alcohol in binge drinkers.
Drug and alcohol dependence, 2021

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) remains an unresolved source of morbidity and mortality. Psychopharmacological challenge studies and neuroimaging experiments are two methods used to identify risk of problematic substance use. The present study combined these two approaches by examining associations between self-reported stimulation, sedation, liking or wanting more after a dose of alcohol and neural-based responses to anticipation of monetary gain and loss.
Cognitive and Neuronal Link With Inflammation: A Longitudinal Study in People With and Without HIV Infection.
Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (1999), 2020

Across many settings, lack of virologic control remains common in people with HIV (PWH) because of late presentation and lack of retention in care. This contributes to neuronal damage and neurocognitive impairment, which remains prevalent. More evidence is needed to understand these outcomes in both PWH and people without HIV (PWOH).
Models of aspects of schizophrenia: behavioral sensitization induced by subchronic phencyclidine administration.
Current protocols in pharmacology, 2009

Presented in this unit is a protocol using subchronically administered phencyclidine (PCP) for establishing a behavioral sensitization model of aspects of schizophrenia. This model is validated using haloperidol and risperidone. The end-point of the assay is locomotor hyperactivity, which is induced by PCP challenge following subchronic treatment with this NMDA receptor antagonist. The antipsychotics haloperidol, risperidone, and quetiapine all reduce hyperactivity in a dose-dependent and selective manner. While the effects of other antipsychotics such as clozapine, olanzapine, and ziprasidone are similar to haloperidol, the interpretation of responses to them is often confounded by nonspecific effects during habituation.
Decreased serum levels of interleukin-17, interleukin-23, TGF-β in pemphigus vulgaris patients, and their association with disease phase.
Dermatologic therapy, 2020

The exact pathogenesis of Pemphigus Vulgaris (PV) has remained unclear, but it seems that cytokines play critical roles in this disease. This study aims to assess the serum levels of interleukin (IL)-6, IL-17, IL-23, and TGF-β in PV patients and compare the results to the healthy controls. Serum levels of IL6, IL-17, IL-23, and TGF-β were successfully determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in 27 newly diagnosed PV, 32 patients in remission, and 29 healthy controls. It was shown that the mean serum levels of IL-17, IL-23, and TGF-β serum are significantly different among the PV patients and healthy controls (P values: <.001, .001, and .003, respectively). It was found that new PV patients have lower serum levels of IL-17, IL-23, and TGF-β as compared to healthy controls (P values: <.001, <.001, and .003, respectively). Regarding IL-6, no significant difference was observed between the healthy controls and the other two groups of patients. IL-17, IL-23, and TGF-β are involved in the pathogenesis of PV. However, more studies are required to clarify their exact roles in the immunopathogenesis of PV.
Magnetic tracking of gastrointestinal motility.
Physiological measurement, 2020

Capsule-based methods for assessment of gastrointestinal (GI) motility have seen great improvements in recent decades. The most recent development is the electromagnetic Motilis 3D-Transit system (3D-Transit). The aim of this paper is to review and discuss the development and technical properties of magnetic tracking of GI motility. We performed a comprehensive literature review on magnetic tracking in GI research. The motility tracking system was the first capsule-based magnetic system to be used in GI motility research. However, the potential of the system was hampered by its stationary and hospitalizing nature. This led to the development of the electromagnetic Motilis 3D-Transit system. The 3D-Transit system is a portable system that allows for assessment of both whole gut and regional transit times and contraction patterns in a fully ambulatory setting in the patients' home environment with only minor restrictions on movements. The spatiotemporal resolution of 3D-Transit allows assessment of segmental colonic transit times and permits an analysis of gastric and colonic movements with a degree of detail unrivalled by other ambulatory methods, such as the wireless motility capsule. Recently, robust normative data on 3D-Transit have been published. This review provides a current perspective on the use of capsule-based magnetic tracking systems in GI research and how they represent a potentially valuable clinical resource for GI physicians and in GI research.
Processing of pragmatic communication in ASD: a video-based brain imaging study.
Scientific reports, 2020

Social and pragmatic difficulties in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are widely recognized, although their underlying neural level processing is not well understood. The aim of this study was to examine the activity of the brain network components linked to social and pragmatic understanding in order to reveal whether complex socio-pragmatic events evoke differences in brain activity between the ASD and control groups. Nineteen young adults (mean age 23.6 years) with ASD and 19 controls (mean age 22.7 years) were recruited for the study. The stimulus data consisted of video clips showing complex social events that demanded processing of pragmatic communication. In the analysis, the functional magnetic resonance imaging signal responses of the selected brain network components linked to social and pragmatic information processing were compared. Although the processing of the young adults with ASD was similar to that of the control group during the majority of the social scenes, differences between the groups were found in the activity of the social brain network components when the participants were observing situations with concurrent verbal and non-verbal communication events. The results suggest that the ASD group had challenges in processing concurrent multimodal cues in complex pragmatic communication situations.
High density carbon fiber arrays for chronic electrophysiology, fast scan cyclic voltammetry, and correlative anatomy.
Journal of neural engineering, 2020

Multimodal measurements at the neuronal level allow for detailed insight into local circuit function. However, most behavioral studies focus on one or two modalities and are generally limited by the available technology.
Perceptual reasoning skills mediate the relationship between attention and math proficiency in individuals with a neurodevelopmental condition.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2021

An important component of academic success in typically developing students is the development of math skills, which is associated with attention and perceptual reasoning (PR) skills. For children with a neurodevelopmental condition (NDC), the relationship is confounded by diagnostic-specific cognitive characteristics. Specifically, enhanced PR is specific to individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
A taxonomy of clinical response to mood stabilizers.
Bipolar disorders, 2021

Although clinical practice guidelines (CPG) identify first, second- and third-line mood stabilizer (MS) treatments, they rarely define clinical response to prophylaxis or the core issues to be considered. This project aimed to develop a template for describing how clinical response may be classified and a framework to assist decision-making and monitoring of response in day-to-day practice.
Nitric Oxide and Opioids Involvement in Isobolographic Nsaids Antinociception.
Drug research, 2019

Different NSAIDs are used as antinociceptive in various analgesic assays, among which should be mentioned: ibuprofen, ketorolac , ketoprofen, meloxicam , paracetamol and others. It has been shown that NSAIDs possess antinociceptive activity by blocking cyclooxygenase enzymes (COXs). The present study was designed to evaluate the possible involvement of the nitridergic pathway due to L-NAME and the opioidergic route by NTX in the antinoception induced by NSAIDs using a murine pain model the tail flick test in an automatic tail flick algesiometer. The antinociception was evaluated by means of isobolographic analysis. The interaction between the combination of NSAIDs, via i.p., on basis of their ED
DNA Methylation as a Potential Molecular Mechanism in X-linked Dystonia-Parkinsonism.
Movement disorders : official journal of the Movement Disorder Society, 2020

X-linked dystonia-parkinsonism is a neurodegenerative movement disorder. The underlying molecular basis has still not been completely elucidated, but likely involves dysregulation of TAF1 expression. In X-linked dystonia-parkinsonism, 3 disease-specific single-nucleotide changes (DSCs) introduce (DSC12) or abolish (DSC2 and DSC3) CpG dinucleotides and consequently sites of putative DNA methylation. Because transcriptional regulation tightly correlates with specific epigenetic marks, we investigated the role of DNA methylation in the pathogenesis of X-linked dystonia-parkinsonism.