@article {1674, title = {Peripheral inflammation related to lower fMRI activation during a working memory task and resting functional connectivity among older adults: a preliminary study.}, journal = {Int J Geriatr Psychiatry}, volume = {32}, year = {2017}, month = {2017 Mar}, pages = {341-349}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: Peripheral inflammation has been associated with adverse effects on cognition and brain structure in late life, a process called {\textquoteright}inflammaging.{\textquoteright} Identifying biomarkers of preclinical cognitive decline is critical in the development of preventative therapies, and peripheral inflammation may be able to serve as an indicator of cognitive decline. However, little is known regarding the relationship between peripheral inflammation and brain structure and function among older adults.

METHODS: Twenty-four older adults (mean age = 78) underwent a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) resting state functional connectivity scan, and a subset (n = 14) completed the n-Back working memory task in the scanner. All participants completed a blood draw, and inflammation was measured with interleukin 6 (IL-6) and C-Reactive Protein (CRP).

RESULTS: Surprisingly, age was unrelated to measures of inflammation (IL-6, CRP) or brain function (default mode network (DMN) connectivity; working memory performance; blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) activation with higher working memory load). However, lower functional connectivity between the left parietal seed and all other DMN regions was associated with higher levels of IL-6 and CRP. Additionally, greater plasma concentration of IL-6 was associated with lower BOLD activation in the left middle frontal gyrus in response to increased working memory load.

CONCLUSIONS: These preliminary findings support the importance of IL-6 and CRP in brain function among older adults. Frontal and parietal regions may be particularly sensitive to the effects of inflammation. Additionally, these findings provide preliminary evidence of inflammatory contributions to level of neural activity, even after accounting for vascular risk factors.

}, keywords = {Aged, Brain Mapping, C-Reactive Protein, Cognition, Cognitive Dysfunction, Female, Frontal Lobe, Humans, Inflammation, Interleukin-6, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Memory, Short-Term, Parietal Lobe, Rest}, issn = {1099-1166}, doi = {10.1002/gps.4482}, author = {Dev, Sheena I and Moore, Raeanne C and Soontornniyomkij, Benchawanna and Achim, Cristian L and Jeste, Dilip V and Eyler, Lisa T} } @article {1681, title = {Marmosets: A Neuroscientific Model of Human Social Behavior.}, journal = {Neuron}, volume = {90}, year = {2016}, month = {2016 04 20}, pages = {219-33}, abstract = {

The common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) has garnered interest recently as a powerful model for the future of neuroscience research. Much of this excitement has centered on the species{\textquoteright} reproductive biology and compatibility with gene editing techniques, which together have provided a path for transgenic marmosets to contribute to the study of disease as well as basic brain mechanisms. In step with technical advances is the need to establish experimental paradigms that optimally tap into the marmosets{\textquoteright} behavioral and cognitive capacities. While conditioned task performance of a marmoset can compare unfavorably with rhesus monkey performance on conventional testing paradigms, marmosets{\textquoteright} social behavior and cognition are more similar to that of humans. For example, marmosets are among only a handful of primates that, like humans, routinely pair bond and care cooperatively for their young. They are also notably pro-social and exhibit social cognitive abilities, such as imitation, that are rare outside of the Apes. In this Primer, we describe key facets of marmoset natural social behavior and demonstrate that emerging behavioral paradigms are well suited to isolate components of marmoset cognition that are highly relevant to humans. These approaches generally embrace natural behavior, which has been rare in conventional primate testing, and thus allow for a new consideration of neural mechanisms underlying primate social cognition and signaling. We anticipate that through parallel technical and paradigmatic advances, marmosets will\ become an essential model of human social behavior, including its dysfunction in neuropsychiatric disorders.

}, keywords = {Animals, Animals, Genetically Modified, Brain, Callithrix, Cognition, Disease Models, Animal, Eye Movements, Haplorhini, Humans, Models, Animal, Rodentia, Social Behavior, Social Behavior Disorders, Vocalization, Animal}, issn = {1097-4199}, doi = {10.1016/j.neuron.2016.03.018}, author = {Miller, Cory T and Freiwald, Winrich A and Leopold, David A and Mitchell, Jude F and Silva, Afonso C and Wang, Xiaoqin} } @article {1673, title = {Distinct neural correlates of emotional and cognitive empathy in older adults.}, journal = {Psychiatry Res}, volume = {232}, year = {2015}, month = {2015 Apr 30}, pages = {42-50}, abstract = {

Empathy is thought to be a mechanism underlying prosocial behavior across the lifespan, yet little is known about how levels of empathy relate to individual differences in brain functioning among older adults. In this exploratory study, we examined the neural correlates of affective and cognitive empathy in older adults. Thirty older adults (M=79 years) underwent fMRI scanning and neuropsychological testing and completed a test of affective and cognitive empathy. Brain response during processing of cognitive and emotional stimuli was measured by fMRI in a priori and task-related regions and was correlated with levels of empathy. Older adults with higher levels of affective empathy showed more deactivation in the amygdala and insula during a working memory task, whereas those with higher cognitive empathy showed greater insula activation during a response inhibition task. Our preliminary findings suggest that brain systems linked to emotional and social processing respond differently among older adults with more or less affective and cognitive empathy. That these relationships can be seen both during affective and non-emotional tasks of "cold" cognitive abilities suggests that empathy may impact social behavior through both emotional and cognitive mechanisms.

}, keywords = {Affect, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Aging, Brain, Brain Mapping, Cognition, Emotions, Empathy, Female, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Neuropsychological Tests, Social Behavior, Social Perception}, issn = {1872-7123}, doi = {10.1016/j.pscychresns.2014.10.016}, author = {Moore, Raeanne C and Dev, Sheena I and Jeste, Dilip V and Dziobek, Isabel and Eyler, Lisa T} } @article {195, title = {Rat performance on visual detection task modeled with divisive normalization and adaptive decision thresholds.}, journal = {J Vis}, volume = {11}, year = {2011}, month = {2011}, abstract = {

Performance on any perceptual task depends on both the perceptual capacity and the decision strategy of the subject. We provide a model to fit both aspects and apply it to data from rats performing a detection task. When rats must detect a faint visual target, the presence of other nearby stimuli ("flankers") increases the difficulty of the task. In this study, we consider two specific factors. First, flankers could diminish the sensory response to the target via spatial contrast normalization in early visual processing. Second, rats may treat the sensory signal caused by the flankers as if it belonged to the target. We call this source confusion, which may be sensory, cognitive, or both. We account for contrast normalization and source confusion by fitting model parameters to the likelihood of the observed behavioral data. We test multiple combinations of target and flanker contrasts using a yes/no detection task. Contrast normalization was crucial to explain the rats{\textquoteright} flanker-induced detection impairment. By adding a decision variable to the contrast normalization framework, our model provides a new tool to assess differences in visual or cognitive brain function between normal and abnormal rodents.

}, keywords = {Adaptation, Physiological, Animals, Choice Behavior, Cognition, Conditioning (Psychology), Contrast Sensitivity, Male, Models, Neurological, Photic Stimulation, Psychomotor Performance, Rats, Rats, Long-Evans, Visual Perception}, issn = {1534-7362}, doi = {10.1167/11.9.1}, author = {Meier, Philip and Reinagel, Pamela} } @article {148, title = {Cognitive consonance: complex brain functions in the fruit fly and its relatives.}, journal = {Trends Neurosci}, volume = {27}, year = {2004}, month = {2004 Dec}, pages = {707-11}, abstract = {

The fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, has become a model for the study of a growing number of human characteristics because of the power of its genetics. Higher cognitive functions, however, might be assumed to be out of reach for the little fly. But the cumulative history of cognitive studies in insects and some of their arachnid relatives, as well as specific probing of the capabilities of fruit flies, suggests that even in this ethereal realm these creatures have much to contribute. What are the degrees of sophistication in cognitive behavior displayed by these organisms, how have they been demonstrated, and what is their potential for understanding how our own brains work?

}, keywords = {Animals, Bees, Behavior, Animal, Brain, Cognition, Drosophila melanogaster, Humans, Perception, Spiders}, issn = {0166-2236}, doi = {10.1016/j.tins.2004.10.002}, author = {Greenspan, Ralph J and van Swinderen, Bruno} }