Neural Correlates of Category Learning in Monkey Inferior Temporal Cortex.

Area TE is required for normal learning of visual categories based on perceptual similarity. To evaluate whether category learning changes neural activity in area TE, we trained two monkeys (both male) implanted with multielectrode arrays to categorize natural images of cats and dogs. Neural activity during a passive viewing task was compared pre- and post-training.

Anatomo-functional changes in neural substrates of cognitive memory in developmental amnesia: Insights from automated and manual Magnetic Resonance Imaging examinations.

Despite bilateral hippocampal damage dating to the perinatal or early childhood period and severely impaired episodic memory, patients with developmental amnesia continue to exhibit well-developed semantic memory across the developmental trajectory. Detailed information on the extent and focality of brain damage in these patients is needed to hypothesize about the neural substrate that supports their remarkable capacity for encoding and retrieval of semantic memory. In particular, we need to assess whether the residual hippocampal tissue is involved in this preservation, or whether the surrounding cortical areas reorganize to rescue aspects of these critical cognitive memory processes after early injury.

Distinct roles of monkey OFC-subcortical pathways in adaptive behavior.

Primates must adapt to changing environments by optimizing their behavior to make beneficial choices. At the core of adaptive behavior is the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) of the brain, which updates choice value through direct experience or knowledge-based inference. Here, we identify distinct neural circuitry underlying these two separate abilities.

Neurons in the monkey frontopolar cortex encode learning stage and goal during a fast learning task.

The frontopolar cortex (FPC) is, to date, one of the least understood regions of the prefrontal cortex. The current understanding of its function suggests that it plays a role in the control of exploratory behaviors by coordinating the activities of other prefrontal cortex areas involved in decision-making and exploiting actions based on their outcomes. Based on this hypothesis, FPC would drive fast-learning processes through a valuation of the different alternatives.

Neural correlates of category learning in monkey inferior temporal cortex.

We trained two monkeys implanted with multi-electrode arrays to categorize natural images of cats and dogs, in order to observe changes in neural activity related to category learning. We recorded neural activity from area TE, which is required for normal learning of visual categories based on perceptual similarity. Neural activity during a passive viewing task was compared pre- and post-training.

Distinct roles of monkey OFC-subcortical pathways in adaptive behavior.

To be the most successful, primates must adapt to changing environments and optimize their behavior by making the most beneficial choices. At the core of adaptive behavior is the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) of the brain, which updates choice value through direct experience or knowledge-based inference. Here, we identify distinct neural circuitry underlying these two separate abilities.

Molecular ecology of highest priority critically important antibiotic resistant Escherichia coli from mammals housed at an urban zoo.

Objectives: Zoos are environments where species of highly valued animals are kept largely separated from others and the wider world. We report the molecular ecology of critically important antibiotic resistant (ABR) Escherichia coli carried by 28 mammalian species housed in a zoo located in an urban residential district.

Methods: Over 3 months we collected 167 faecal samples from captive mammals and processed for E.

Anatomo-functional changes in neural substrates of cognitive memory in developmental amnesia: Insights from automated and manual MRI examinations.

Despite bilateral hippocampal damage dating to perinatal or early-childhood period, and severely-impaired episodic memory that unfolds in later childhood, patients with developmental amnesia continue to exhibit well-developed semantic memory across the developmental trajectory. Detailed information on the extent and focality of brain damage in these patients is needed to hypothesize about the neural substrate that supports their remarkable capacity for encoding and retrieval of semantic memory. In particular, we need to assess whether the residual hippocampal tissue is involved in this preservation, or whether the surrounding cortical areas reorganise to rescue aspects of these critical cognitive memory processes after early injury.

How do fishes manage disease?

Disease drives the evolution of proactive and reactive mitigation behaviours in fishes as for terrestrial animals. Understanding fish self-remedy behaviours could discover algal bioactives, reveal novel strategies for disease management, identify new habitats or ecosystems critical to population health and conservation, and enhance knowledge of interspecific evolutionary relationships and communication.

Three new species of (Annonaceae) from Thailand.

Three new species (Annonaceae), , and , are described from Thailand. resembles , but its leaves have more secondary veins, and its flowers have more carpels, with yellow-and-pink striped outer petals with a margin that becomes undulate with age. resembles , but has larger sepals and petals, longer flowering pedicels, and shorter monocarp stipes, with monocarps that have a longitudinal ridge.

Chemogenetic Disconnection between the Orbitofrontal Cortex and the Rostromedial Caudate Nucleus Disrupts Motivational Control of Goal-Directed Action.

The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and its major downstream target within the basal ganglia-the rostromedial caudate nucleus (rmCD)-are involved in reward-value processing and goal-directed behavior. However, a causal contribution of the pathway linking these two structures to goal-directed behavior has not been established. Using the chemogenetic technology of designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs with a crossed inactivation design, we functionally and reversibly disrupted interactions between the OFC and rmCD in two male macaque monkeys.

Diversification Slowdown in the Alliance (, Orchidaceae): Insights From the Evolutionary Dynamics of Crassulacean Acid Metabolism.

Evolutionary slowdowns in diversification have been inferred in various plant and animal lineages. Investigation based on diversification models integrated with environmental factors and key characters could provide critical insights into this diversification trend. We evaluate diversification rates in the alliance (, Orchidaceae subfam.

and (Annonaceae): Two new species from Peninsular Thailand.

Two new species (Annonaceae), and , are described from the southern limits of Peninsular Thailand (Narathiwat and Yala Provinces). Both new species resemble , and . The addition of these two new species brings the total number of species in Thailand to 27.

Contributions of the Monkey Inferior Temporal Areas TE and TEO to Visual Categorization.

The ability to categorize images is thought to depend on neural processing within the ventral visual stream. Recently, we reported that after removal of architectonic area TE, the terminal region of the ventral stream, monkeys were still able to categorize images as cats or dogs moderately well. Here, we investigate the contribution of TEO, the architectonically defined region located one step earlier than area TE in the ventral stream.

MRI monitoring of macaque monkeys in neuroscience: Case studies, resource and normative data comparisons.

Information from Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is useful for diagnosis and treatment management of human neurological patients. MRI monitoring might also prove useful for non-human animals involved in neuroscience research provided that MRI is available and feasible and that there are no MRI contra-indications precluding scanning. However, MRI monitoring is not established in macaques and a resource is urgently needed that could grow with scientific community contributions.

EARLY-ONSET LEUKOENCEPHALOMYELOPATHY AND POLYNEUROPATHY IN EASTERN QUOLLS () IN THE EUROPEAN CAPTIVE POPULATION.

Leukoencephalomyelopathy (LEM) is suggested to be an age-related degenerative condition in geriatric Eastern quolls (), manifesting in animals greater than 3.5 yr of age. This case series describes four LEM cases from two zoologic collections; three in nongeriatric animals, with one only 1 yr of age, and details advanced diagnostic investigation, including magnetic resonance imaging, cerebrospinal fluid analysis, and electrodiagnostic studies, not previously reported in Eastern quolls.

Specificity of assemblage, not fungal partner species, explains mycorrhizal partnerships of mycoheterotrophic Burmannia plants.

Mycoheterotrophic plants (MHPs) growing on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) usually maintain specialized mycorrhizal associations. The level of specificity varies between MHPs, although it remains largely unknown whether interactions with mycorrhizal fungi differ by plant lineage, species, and/or by population. Here, we investigate the mycorrhizal interactions among Burmannia species (Burmanniaceae) with different trophic modes using high-throughput DNA sequencing.

Theta, but Not Gamma Oscillations in Area V4 Depend on Input from Primary Visual Cortex.

Theta (3-9 Hz) and gamma (30-100 Hz) oscillations have been observed at different levels along the hierarchy of cortical areas and across a wide set of cognitive tasks. In the visual system, the emergence of both rhythms in primary visual cortex (V1) and mid-level cortical areas V4 has been linked with variations in perceptual reaction times. Based on analytical methods to infer causality in neural activation patterns, it was concluded that gamma and theta oscillations might both reflect feedforward sensory processing from V1 to V4.

Phylogenetic relationships of '' in Fiji.

The genus (Annonaceae) has undergone dramatic taxonomic changes in recent years. Nine species have historically been recognized in Fiji, all of which have subsequently been transferred to three different genera, viz. , and .