The Ubiquity of Cognitive Impairment in Human Illness: a Systematic Review of Meta-Analyses.

Objective: Cognitive dysfunction occurs in many neurological, psychiatric, and other health conditions. This review aimed to characterize the breadth and degree of cognitive morbidity associated with varied health conditions.

Method: We systematically reviewed Medline, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases for meta-analyses of cognitive dysfunction associated with any health condition.

Reduction of N-acetyl aspartate (NAA) in association with relapse in early-stage psychosis: a 7-Tesla MRS study.

Understanding the biological underpinning of relapse could improve the outcomes of patients with psychosis. Relapse is elicited by multiple reasons/triggers, but the consequence frequently accompanies deteriorations of brain function, leading to poor prognosis. Structural brain imaging studies have recently been pioneered to address this question, but a lack of molecular investigations is a knowledge gap.

Within-Person Test Score Distributions: How Typical Is "Normal"?

We evaluated within-person variability across a cognitive test battery by analyzing the of the distribution of each individual's scores within a battery of tests. We hypothesized that most healthy adults would produce test scores that are normally distributed around their own personal battery-wide, within-person (wp) mean. Using cross-sectional data from 327 neurologically healthy adults, we computed each person's mean, standard deviation, skew, and kurtosis for 30 neuropsychological measures.

Patterns of Impaired Neurocognitive Performance on the Global Neuropsychological Assessment, and Their Brain Structural Correlates in Recent-onset and Chronic Schizophrenia.

Objective: Schizophrenia is associated with impairment in multiple cognitive domains. There is a paucity of research on the effect of prolonged illness duration (≥ 15 years) on cognitive performance along multiple domains. In this pilot study, we used the Global Neuropsychological Assessment (GNA), a brief cognitive battery, to explore the patterns of cognitive impairment in recent-onset (≤ 2 years) compared to chronic schizophrenia (≥ 15 years), and correlate cognitive performance with brain morphometry in patients and healthy adults.

Olfactory neuronal cells as a promising tool to realize the "druggable genome" approach for drug discovery in neuropsychiatric disorders.

"Druggable genome" is a novel concept that emphasizes the importance of using the information of genome-wide genetic studies for drug discovery and development. Successful precedents of "druggable genome" have recently emerged for some disorders by combining genomic and gene expression profiles with medical and pharmacological knowledge. One of the key premises for the success is the good access to disease-relevant tissues from "living" patients in which we may observe molecular expression changes in association with symptomatic alteration.

Do "effort tests" really test effort?

Objective: Little is known about how much effort to do well most people exert on cognitive testing. Here, we describe an experimental paradigm to manipulate and measure cognitive effort.

Method: After baseline cognitive and performance validity testing (PVT), 38 participants were assigned to a standard (SI) or enhanced (EI) incentive condition.

Microstructural white matter abnormalities in Lesch-Nyhan disease.

Lesch-Nyhan disease is a rare, sex-linked, genetic neurodevelopmental disorder that is characterized by hyperuricemia, dystonia, cognitive impairment and recurrent self-injury. We previously found reduced brain white matter volume in patients with Lesch-Nyhan disease compared with healthy adults using voxel-based morphometry. Here, we address the structural integrity of white matter via diffusion tensor imaging.

Face processing of social cognition in patients with first episode psychosis: Its deficits and association with the right subcallosal anterior cingulate cortex.

The clinical importance of social cognition is well acknowledged in patients with psychosis, in particular those with first episode psychosis (FEP). Nevertheless, its brain substrates and circuitries remain elusive, lacking precise analysis between multimodal brain characteristics and behavioral sub-dimensions within social cognition. In the present study, we examined face processing of social cognition in 71 FEP patients and 77 healthy controls (HCs).

Effects of Repeated Administration and Comparability of Alternate Forms for the Global Neuropsychological Assessment (GNA).

The Global Neuropsychological Assessment (GNA) is an extremely brief battery of cognitive tasks assessing episodic memory, processing speed, working memory, verbal fluency, executive function, and mood. It can be given in under 15 minutes, has five alternate forms, and does not require an examinee to be literate. The purpose of this study was to quantify practice effects over repeated administrations and assess comparability of the GNA's five alternate forms, preparing the battery for repeated administration in research and clinical settings.

Deep brain stimulation in Lesch-Nyhan disease: outcomes from the patient's perspective.

Aim: To provide insight into outcome and long-term safety and efficacy of deep brain stimulation (DBS), from the perspective of individuals with Lesch-Nyhan disease (LND) and their families.

Method: We used patient-centered outcome measures to assess long-term outcomes of DBS for 14 individuals (mean [SD] age 10y 10mo [5y 6mo], range 5-23y, all males) with LND, after an average duration of 5y 6mo (range 11mo-10y 5mo) after surgery. We compared these results with a comprehensive review of previously published cases.

Preliminary Validation of the Global Neuropsychological Assessment in Alzheimer's Disease and Healthy Volunteers.

Methods: We administered the Global Neuropsychological Assessment (GNA), an abbreviated cognitive battery, to 105 adults aged 73.0 ± 7.1 years, including 28 with probable Alzheimer's disease, 9 with amnestic mild cognitive impairment, and 68 healthy controls.

A multimodal approach to studying the relationship between peripheral glutathione, brain glutamate, and cognition in health and in schizophrenia.

Involvement of oxidative stress in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia (SZ) is suggested by studies of peripheral tissue. Nonetheless, it is unclear how such biological changes are linked to relevant, pathological neurochemistry, and brain function. We designed a multi-faceted study by combining biochemistry, neuroimaging, and neuropsychology to test how peripheral changes in a key marker for oxidative stress, glutathione (GSH), may associate with central neurochemicals or neuropsychological performance in health and in SZ.

Altered frontal white matter asymmetry and its implications for cognition in schizophrenia: A tractography study.

Background: White matter (WM) alterations are well documented in schizophrenia. Abnormalities in interhemispheric fibers appear to account for altered WM asymmetry in the illness. However, the regional specificity (e.

Assessing Brain Metabolism With 7-T Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy in Patients With First-Episode Psychosis.

Importance: The use of high-field magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in multiple brain regions of a large population of human participants facilitates in vivo study of localized or diffusely altered brain metabolites in patients with first-episode psychosis (FEP) compared to healthy participants.

Objective: To compare metabolite levels in 5 brain regions between patients with FEP (evaluated within 2 years of onset) and healthy controls, and to explore possible associations between targeted metabolite levels and neuropsychological test performance.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Cross-sectional design used 7-T MRS at a research MR imaging facility in participants recruited from clinics at the Johns Hopkins Schizophrenia Center and the local population.

The availability of the α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor in recent-onset psychosis: a study using F-ASEM PET.

Limited postmortem evidence suggests a diminished availability of the α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7-nAChR) in hippocampus in psychosis. In this cross-sectional PET study, we used F-ASEM, a radiotracer targeting the α7-nAChR, with positron emission tomography to compare the binding of F-ASEM in hippocampus between individuals with recent-onset psychosis and healthy controls. Individuals with recent-onset psychosis [non-affective psychosis (NP) or affective psychosis], and particularly those with NP, showed lower hippocampal binding of F-ASEM than healthy controls.

Demographically Calibrated Norms for Two Premorbid Intelligence Measures: The Word Accentuation Test and Pseudo-Words Reading Subtest.

The Word Accentuation Test (WAT, Spanish adaptation of the NART) and the Pseudo-Words (PW) Reading subtest from the Battery for Reading Processes Assessment-Revised (PROLEC-R) are measures to estimate premorbid IQ. This study aims to develop demographically calibrated norms for these premorbid measures in a representative sample of the adult Spanish population in terms of age, education, and sex. A sample of 700 healthy participants from 18 to 86 years old completed the WAT and the PW Reading subtest.

Clinical utility of the 15-item geriatric depression scale (GDS-15) for use with young and middle-aged adults.

Background: The Geriatric Depression Scale, Short Form (GDS-15) is a widely-used depression rating scale for elderly adults. It might be useful for persons across the adult lifespan, but more research is needed to support its clinical utility with young and middle-aged adults.

Methods: We examined the classification accuracy of the GDS-15 in identifying depression cases and non-cases in adults aged 18-54 (n = 199) compared to those aged 55-80 (n = 112), using the standard cutoff score of 5.

Decoupling of Brain Temperature and Glutamate in Recent Onset of Schizophrenia: A 7T Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Study.

Background: Converging evidence suggests that cerebral metabolic and cellular homeostasis is altered in patients with recent onset of schizophrenia. As a possible marker of metabolic changes that might link to altered neurotransmission, we used proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy to estimate brain temperature, and we evaluated its relationship to a relevant metabolite, glutamate, within this study population.

Methods: Using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy at 7T, 20 patients with recent onset (≤24 months after first psychotic symptoms) of schizophrenia and 20 healthy control subjects were studied.

Balanced bifrontal transcranial direct current stimulation enhances working memory in adults with high-functioning autism: a sham-controlled crossover study.

Background: Working memory (WM) often is impaired in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Such impairment may underlie core deficits in cognition and social functioning. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been shown to enhance WM in both healthy adults and clinical populations, but its efficacy in ASD is unknown.

The use of neuropsychological tests to assess intelligence.

Objective: We sought to derive a 'neuropsychological intelligence quotient' (NIQ) to replace IQ testing in some routine assessments.

Method: We administered neuropsychological testing and a seven-subtest short form of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale to a community sample of 394 adults aged 18-96 years. We regressed Wechsler Full Scale IQs (W-FSIQ) on 23 neuropsychological scores and derived an NIQ from 9 measures that explained significant variance in W-FSIQ.

Reproducibility of tDCS Results in a Randomized Trial: Failure to Replicate Findings of tDCS-Induced Enhancement of Verbal Fluency.

Background: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been shown to enhance verbal productivity, but the finding and extent of enhancement vary across studies. Few attempts to replicate positive tDCS findings have been reported, suggesting the possibility of publication bias.

Objective: We aimed to replicate the tDCS methodology and findings of Cattaneo, Pisoni, and Papagno (2011, Neuroscience 183:64-70) in a new population sample.

[Modified Wisconsin Card Sorting Test: standardization and norms of the test for a population sample in Spain].

Introduction: The Modified Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (M-WCST) is a shorter, modified version of the WCST that assesses executive functioning and mental flexibility. The M-WCST presents some differences and advantages compared to other versions of the WCST, as previously described in the scientific literature.

Aim: To standardize and develop demographically-calibrated norms for the M-WCST in a sample representing of the population of Spain.