The Cognitive Difficulties Scale (CDS): Psychometric Characteristics in a Clinical Referral Sample.

Objective: To evaluate the psychometric characteristics of the Cognitive Difficulties Scale (CDS), a 39-item Likert-type self-report instrument that requires a fifth grade reading level. The CDS is a popular instrument that has been shown to predict cognitive decline in older persons.

Method: Participants were 512 consecutive outpatient referrals (71% women, mean age 60.

Depressive symptoms, memory complaints, and memory test performance.

The impact of emotional factors on subjective cognitive complaints and memory test performance has been a topic of extensive research, produced conflicting results. Investigators typically used self-report inventories that lack measures of response bias. Studies have also neglected to use performance validity tests (PVTs) to screen participants for incomplete effort.

An enhanced delayed recognition measure for the Logical Memory subtest of the Wechsler Memory Scale - IV.

We provide a supplemental measure based on the Logical Memory (LM) subtest of the Wechsler Memory Scale - IV (Wechsler, 2008) to assist in distinguishing deficient memory storage from compromised retrieval operations. A 20-item five-option multiple choice delayed recognition test for the LM stories is described, followed by descriptive data based on a normative sample of 273 neuropsychologically normal outpatient referrals to a neuropsychology clinic. The analysis indicated that about 43% to 48% of the neuropsychology referrals exhibited retrieval difficulties and were able to store more information in long-term memory than they were able to retrieve on the delayed free recall trial.

Depressive symptoms as a factor in neuropsychological test performance: MMPI-2 and selected tests of the Halstead-Reitan/Halstead-Russell Battery.

The potential impact of depressive symptoms on neuropsychological test performance has been studied extensively yielding mixed results. Self-report depression inventories have been most often used, without a means to screen participants for response bias. Studies have also neglected to screen participants for incomplete effort in testing.

Presenilin-dependent ErbB4 nuclear signaling regulates the timing of astrogenesis in the developing brain.

Embryonic multipotent neural precursors are exposed to extracellular signals instructing them to adopt different fates, neuronal or glial. However, the mechanisms by which precursors integrate these signals to make timely fate choices remained undefined. Here we show that direct nuclear signaling by a receptor tyrosine kinase inhibits the responses of precursors to astrocyte differentiation factors while maintaining their neurogenic potential.

Notch1 signaling regulates radial glia differentiation through multiple transcriptional mechanisms.

Signaling by the Notch1 receptor is critical for the formation of radial glia in the developing nervous system. We have shown previously that Notch1 regulates the molecular and morphological differentiation of radial glia through the transcriptional activation of at least two genes, brain lipid binding protein (BLBP) and the erbB2 receptor tyrosine kinase. However, the mechanisms by which this occurs remained undefined.

Sequential signaling through Notch1 and erbB receptors mediates radial glia differentiation.

Radial glia cells both generate neurons and physically guide nascent neurons to their target destination in the cortex, and as such they are essential for CNS development. It has been proposed that in the developing cerebellum, neuronal contact induces radial glia formation, however, the mechanisms involved in this process are not well understood. Here we demonstrate that neuronal induction of radial glia formation is the result of sequential signaling through Notch1 and erbB receptors.