Oscillatory activity is ubiquitous in nervous systems, with solid evidence that synchronisation mechanisms underpin cognitive processes. Nevertheless, its informational content and relationship with behaviour are still to be fully understood. In addition, cognitive systems cannot be properly appreciated without taking into account brain-body- environment interactions. In this paper, we developed a model based on the Kuramoto Model of coupled phase oscillators to explore the role of neural synchronisation in the performance of a simulated robotic agent in two different minimally cognitive tasks. We show that there is a statistically significant difference in performance and evolvability depending on the synchronisation regime of the network. In both tasks, a combination of information flow and dynamical analyses show that networks with a definite, but not too strong, propensity for synchronisation are more able to reconfigure, to organise themselves functionally and to adapt to different behavioural conditions. The results highlight the asymmetry of information flow and its behavioural correspondence. Importantly, it also shows that neural synchronisation dynamics, when suitably flexible and reconfigurable, can generate minimally cognitive embodied behaviour.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00422-012-0507-5 | DOI Listing |
J Neurovirol
January 2025
Division of Infectious Diseases, Advanced Clinical Research Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1, Shirokanedai, Minato-Ku, Tokyo, 108-8639, Japan.
HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND) is a complication of chronic inflammation caused by HIV infection that impairs cognitive and motor functions. HAND can occur at any age, regardless of the duration of infection, even in people living with HIV (PLWH) whose blood viral load is controlled by antiretroviral therapy. The diagnosis of HAND requires a battery of neuropsychological tests, which is time-consuming and burdensome, limiting its effectiveness for screening PLWH.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBMC Geriatr
January 2025
Department of Neurosurgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine, 50, Yonsei-Ro, Seodaemun-Gu, Seoul, 03722, Republic of Korea.
Background: Comparative studies of posterior lumbar interbody fusion with cortical bone trajectory and pedicle screw in older patients, particularly in those aged ≥ 80 years, are rare. This study aimed to retrospectively analyze the clinical and surgical outcomes following posterior lumbar interbody fusion with pedicle screw fixation compared to cortical bone trajectory in patients aged ≥ 80 years with degenerative lumbar spine disease.
Methods: We included 68 patients aged ≥ 80 years who underwent degenerative lumbar spinal surgery at our spine center between January 2011 and December 2020.
Conscious Cogn
January 2025
Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
Asking participants to Think Aloud is a common method for studying conscious experience, but it remains unclear whether this approach alters thought qualities-such as meta-awareness, rate of topic shifts, or the content of thoughts in task-absent conditions. To investigate this, we conducted two studies comparing thinking aloud to thinking silently. In Study 1, 111 participants alternated between 15-minute intervals of verbalizing and silently reflecting on their stream of consciousness in a counterbalanced design.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBrain
January 2025
Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences Malmö, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, 22184 Lund, Sweden.
The APOE4 allele is the strongest genetic risk factor for sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD). While APOE4 is strongly associated with amyloid-beta (Aβ), its relationship with tau accumulation is less understood. Studies evaluating the role of APOE4 on tau accumulation showed conflicting results, particularly regarding the independence of these associations from Aβ load.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGen Thorac Cardiovasc Surg Cases
January 2025
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Osaka General Medical Center, Osaka, 558-8558, Japan.
Background: Left atrial dissection is a rare and occasionally fatal complication of cardiac surgery and is defined as the creation of a false chamber through a tear in the mitral valve annulus extending into the left atrial wall. Some patients are asymptomatic, while others present with various symptoms, such as chest pain, dyspnea, and even cardiac arrest. Although there is no established management for left atrial dissection, surgery should be considered in patients with hemodynamic disruption.
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