Arcuate dopaminergic/GABAergic neurons project within the hypothalamus and to the median eminence.

Cotransmission, meaning the release of multiple neurotransmitters from one synapse, allows for increased diversity of signaling in the brain. Dopamine (DA) and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) are known to coexpress in many regions such as the olfactory bulb and the ventral tegmental area. Tuberoinfundibular dopaminergic neurons (TIDA) in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus (Arc) project to the median eminence (ME) and regulate prolactin release from the pituitary, and prior work suggests dopaminergic Arc neurons also cotransmit GABA.

Sensory Symptoms Across the Lifespan in People With Cerebral Palsy.

Background: To estimate the prevalence of sensory symptoms in people with cerebral palsy (CP) across the lifespan.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, the self-reported Sensory Processing Scale Inventory (SPS-I) was administered via Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) between February 1, 2022, and August 15, 2022, to people with CP or their caregivers enrolled in the online MyCP Community Registry. We determined the association between SPS-I scores and age (Pearson correlation) and functional status as assessed using five validated functional classification systems for CP (analysis of variance [ANOVA]).

The Impact of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Sleep Problems in Autistic Children with Co-occurring Anxiety.

Purpose: This study seeks to examine the relationship between anxiety-symptom severity and sleep behaviors in autistic children receiving cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).

Methods: We conducted a secondary-data analysis from a sample of 93 autistic youth, 4 to 14 years, participating in 24 weeks of CBT. Clinicians completed the Pediatric Anxiety Rating Scale (PARS) and parents completed the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire, Abbreviated/Short Form (CSHQ-SF) at baseline, mid-treatment, post-treatment and 3 months post-treatment.

A structured, journal-led peer-review mentoring program enhances peer review training.

Background: Peer review is essential to the advancement of knowledge. However, training on how to conduct peer review is limited, unorganized, and not well studied. Thus, we sought to determine if a structured mentored peer-review program improved peer review training as measured by multiple quantitative and qualitative assessments.

Sensory experiences questionnaire unravels differences in sensory profiles between MECP2-related disorders.

The methyl CpG-binding protein-2 (MECP2) gene is located on the Xq28 region. Loss of function mutations or increased copies of MECP2 result in Rett syndrome (RTT) and MECP2 duplication syndrome (MDS), respectively. Individuals with both disorders exhibit overlapping autism symptoms, yet few studies have dissected the differences between these gene dosage sensitive disorders.

Co-transmitting interneurons in the mouse olfactory bulb regulate olfactory detection and discrimination.

Co-transmission of multiple neurotransmitters from a single neuron increases the complexity of signaling information within defined neuronal circuits. Superficial short-axon cells in the olfactory bulb release both dopamine and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), yet the specific targets of these neurotransmitters and their respective roles in olfaction have remained unknown. Here, we implement intersectional genetics in mice to selectively block GABA or dopamine release from superficial short-axon cells to identify their distinct cellular targets, impact on circuit function, and behavioral contribution of each neurotransmitter toward olfactory behaviors.

Cluster Analysis of Short Sensory Profile Data Reveals Sensory-Based Subgroups in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Autism spectrum disorder is a common, heterogeneous neurodevelopmental disorder lacking targeted treatments. Additional features include restricted, repetitive patterns of behaviors and differences in sensory processing. We hypothesized that detailed sensory features including modality specific hyper- and hypo-sensitivity could be used to identify clinically recognizable subgroups with unique underlying gene variants.

Sensory Processing Phenotypes in Phelan-McDermid Syndrome and -Related Intellectual Disability.

Sensory processing differences are an established feature of both syndromic and non-syndromic Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs). Significant work has been carried out to characterize and classify specific sensory profiles in non-syndromic autism. However, it is not known if syndromic autism disorders, such as Phelan-McDermid Syndrome (PMD) or -related Intellectual Disability (-ID), have unique sensory phenotypes.

A systematic-review of olfactory deficits in neurodevelopmental disorders: From mouse to human.

Olfactory impairment is a common clinical motif across neurodevelopmental disorders, suggesting olfactory circuits are particularly vulnerable to disease processes and can provide insight into underlying disease mechanisms. The mouse olfactory bulb is an ideal model system to study mechanisms of neurodevelopmental disease due to its anatomical accessibility, behavioral relevance, ease of measuring circuit input and output, and the feature of adult neurogenesis. Despite the clinical relevance and experimental benefits, olfactory testing across animal models of neurodevelopmental disease has been inconsistent and non-standardized.

The Pediatric Neurology 2020 Research Workforce Survey: Optimism in a Time of Challenge.

Background: The past decades have seen a transformational shift in the understanding and treatment for neurological diseases affecting infants and children. These advances have been driven in part by the pediatric neurology physician-scientist workforce and its efforts. However, pediatric neurology research faces substantial challenges from internal and external forces including work-life balance demands, COVID-19 pandemic effects, and research funding.

Early Identification of Pediatric Neurology Patients With Palliative Care Needs: A Pilot Study.

Palliative care services are beneficial for pediatric neurology patients with chronic, life-limiting illnesses. However, timely referral to palliative care may be impeded due to an inability to identify appropriate patients. The aim of this pilot case-control study was to test a quantitative measure for identifying patients with unmet palliative care needs to facilitate appropriate referrals.

A 14-Year-Old Boy With Fevers, Cytopenias, and Neurocognitive Decline.

A 14-year-old boy presented to our institution with a 1-month history of neurocognitive decline and intermittent fevers. His history was significant for fevers, headaches, and a 10-lb weight loss. Previous examinations by multiple medical providers were significant only for bilateral cervical lymphadenopathy.

Update on Palliative Care for Pediatric Neurology.

It has long been recognized that patients with neurological conditions, and particularly pediatric neurology patients, are well suited for palliative care because they frequently have a high symptom burden and variable prognoses. In 1996, the American Academy of neurology formally recognized a need for neurologists to "understand and apply the principles of palliative medicine." Subsequently, some reviews have proposed a simultaneous care model in which palliative care is integrated for all neurology patients from the time of diagnosis.

Student views on the role of self-regulated learning in a surgery clerkship.

Background: Self-regulated learning, including student-generated learning goals and flexibility in the learning structure are increasingly being used to enhance medical education. The role of these practices in surgical education of medical students has not been studied.

Materials And Methods: We administered an 18-question electronic survey to all third-year medical students at Washington University in St.

Detection of submillisecond spike timing differences based on delay-line anticoincidence detection.

Detection of submillisecond interaural timing differences is the basis for sound localization in reptiles, birds, and mammals. Although comparative studies reveal that different neural circuits underlie this ability, they also highlight common solutions to an inherent challenge: processing information on timescales shorter than an action potential. Discrimination of small timing differences is also important for species recognition during communication among mormyrid electric fishes.

Retrograde fluorescent labeling allows for targeted extracellular single-unit recording from identified neurons in vivo.

The overall goal of this method is to record single-unit responses from an identified population of neurons. In vivo electrophysiological recordings from individual neurons are critical for understanding how neural circuits function under natural conditions. Traditionally, these recordings have been performed 'blind', meaning the identity of the recorded cell is unknown at the start of the recording.

Multiplexed temporal coding of electric communication signals in mormyrid fishes.

The coding of stimulus information into patterns of spike times occurs widely in sensory systems. Determining how temporally coded information is decoded by central neurons is essential to understanding how brains process sensory stimuli. Mormyrid weakly electric fishes are experts at time coding, making them an exemplary organism for addressing this question.

Sensory receptor diversity establishes a peripheral population code for stimulus duration at low intensities.

Peripheral filtering is a fundamental mechanism for establishing frequency tuning in sensory systems. By contrast, detection of temporal features, such as duration, is generally thought to result from temporal coding in the periphery, followed by an analysis of peripheral response times within the central nervous system. We investigated how peripheral filtering properties affect the coding of stimulus duration in the electrosensory system of mormyrid fishes using behavioral and electrophysiological measures of duration tuning.

A diversity of synaptic filters are created by temporal summation of excitation and inhibition.

Temporal filtering is a fundamental operation of nervous systems. In peripheral sensory systems, the temporal pattern of spiking activity can encode various stimulus qualities, and temporal filtering allows postsynaptic neurons to detect behaviorally relevant stimulus features from these spike trains. Intrinsic excitability, short-term synaptic plasticity, and voltage-dependent dendritic conductances have all been identified as mechanisms that can establish temporal filtering behavior in single neurons.