Pupil-linked arousal correlates with neural activity prior to sensorimotor decisions.

Sensorimotor decisions require the brain to process external information and combine it with relevant knowledge prior to actions. In this study, we explore the neural predictors of motor actions in a novel, realistic driving task designed to study decisions while driving.Through a spatiospectral assessment of functional connectivity during the premotor period, we identified the organization of visual cortex regions of interest into a distinct scene processing network.

Pupillary response is associated with the reset and switching of functional brain networks during salience processing.

The interface between processing internal goals and salient events in the environment involves various top-down processes. Previous studies have identified multiple brain areas for salience processing, including the salience network (SN), dorsal attention network, and the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine (LC-NE) system. However, interactions among these systems in salience processing remain unclear.

A Recurrent Neural Network for Attenuating Non-cognitive Components of Pupil Dynamics.

There is increasing interest in how the pupil dynamics of the eye reflect underlying cognitive processes and brain states. Problematic, however, is that pupil changes can be due to non-cognitive factors, for example luminance changes in the environment, accommodation and movement. In this paper we consider how by modeling the response of the pupil in real-world environments we can capture the non-cognitive related changes and remove these to extract a residual signal which is a better index of cognition and performance.

Ballistocardiogram Artifact Reduction in Simultaneous EEG-fMRI Using Deep Learning.

Objective: The concurrent recording of electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a technique that has received much attention due to its potential for combined high temporal and spatial resolution. However, the ballistocardiogram (BCG), a large-amplitude artifact caused by cardiac induced movement contaminates the EEG during EEG-fMRI recordings. Removal of BCG in software has generally made use of linear decompositions of the corrupted EEG.

Molecular Structure and Dynamics of Water on Pristine and Strained Phosphorene: Wetting and Diffusion at Nanoscale.

Phosphorene, a newly fabricated two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterial, has emerged as a promising material for biomedical applications with great potential. Nonetheless, understanding the wetting and diffusive properties of bio-fluids on phosphorene which are of fundamental importance to these applications remains elusive. In this work, using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we investigated the structural and dynamic properties of water on both pristine and strained phosphorene.

Exploring biological effects of MoS2 nanosheets on native structures of α-helical peptides.

Recent reports of mono- and few-layer molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), a representative transition metal dichacogenide (TMD), as antibacterial and anticancer agents have shed light on their potential in biomedical applications. To better facilitate these promising applications, one needs to understand the biological effects of these TMDs as well, such as their potential adverse effects on protein structure and function. Here, we sought to understand the interaction of MoS2 nanosheets with peptides using molecular dynamics simulations and a simple model polyalanine with various lengths (PAn, n = 10, 20, 30, and 40; mainly α - helices).

Your eyes give you away: prestimulus changes in pupil diameter correlate with poststimulus task-related EEG dynamics.

Pupillary measures have been linked to arousal and attention as well as activity in the brainstem's locus coeruleus norepinephrine (LC-NE) system. Similarly, there is evidence that evoked EEG responses, such as the P3, might have LC-NE activity as their basis. Since it is not feasible to record electrophysiological data directly from the LC in humans due to its location in the brainstem, an open question has been whether pupillary measures and EEG variability can be linked in a meaningful way to shed light on the nature of the LC-NE role in attention and arousal.