Secondary motor cortex tracks decision value during the learning of a non-instructed task.

Optimal decision-making depends on interconnected frontal brain regions, enabling animals to adapt decisions based on internal states, experiences, and contexts. The secondary motor cortex (M2) is key in adaptive behaviors in expert rodents, particularly in encoding decision values guiding complex probabilistic tasks. However, its role in deterministic tasks during initial learning remains uncertain.

Multifactorial effects of short duration early exposure low intensity magnetic field stimulation in Streptozotocin induced Alzheimer's disease rat model.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an approaching, progressive public health crisis which presently lacks an effective treatment. Various non-invasive novel therapies like repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation have shown potential to improve cognitive performance in AD patients. In the present study, the effect of extremely low intensity magnetic field (MF) stimulation on neurogenesis and cortical electrical activity was explored.

Identifying interindividual variability of social perception and associated brain anatomical correlations in children with autism spectrum disorder using eye-tracking and diffusion tensor imaging MRI (DTI-MRI).

Even though deficits in social cognition constitute a core characteristic of autism spectrum disorders, a large heterogeneity exists regarding individual social performances and its neural basis remains poorly investigated. Here, we used eye-tracking to objectively measure interindividual variability in social perception and its correlation with white matter microstructure, measured with diffusion tensor imaging MRI, in 25 children with autism spectrum disorder (8.5 ± 3.

The glymphatic system: Current understanding and modeling.

We review theoretical and numerical models of the glymphatic system, which circulates cerebrospinal fluid and interstitial fluid around the brain, facilitating solute transport. Models enable hypothesis development and predictions of transport, with clinical applications including drug delivery, stroke, cardiac arrest, and neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease. We sort existing models into broad categories by anatomical function: Perivascular flow, transport in brain parenchyma, interfaces to perivascular spaces, efflux routes, and links to neuronal activity.

The structural connectivity of the human angular gyrus as revealed by microdissection and diffusion tractography.

The angular gyrus (AG) has been described in numerous studies to be consistently activated in various functional tasks. The angular gyrus is a critical connector epicenter linking multiple functional networks due to its location in the posterior part of the inferior parietal cortex, namely at the junction between the parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes. It is thus crucial to identify the different pathways that anatomically connect this high-order association region to the rest of the brain.

The Zinc Ionophore Clioquinol Reduces Parkinson's Disease Patient-Derived Brain Extracts-Induced Neurodegeneration.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is pathologically characterized by intracellular α-synuclein-rich protein aggregates, named Lewy bodies (LB), and by the progressive loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. Several heavy metals, including zinc (Zn), have been suggested to play a role in PD progression, although the exact role of Zn in neurodegeneration remains to be fully elucidated. To address this gap, we investigated the effects of Zn modulation on the progression of degeneration in mice injected with PD patient-derived LB-extracts carrying toxic α-synuclein aggregates.

Olfactory modulation of barrel cortex activity during active whisking and passive whisker stimulation.

Rodents depend on olfaction and touch to meet many of their fundamental needs. However, the impact of simultaneous olfactory and tactile inputs on sensory representations in the cortex remains elusive. To study these interactions, we recorded large populations of barrel cortex neurons using 2-photon calcium imaging in head-fixed mice during olfactory and tactile stimulation.

Effects of pristine or contaminated polyethylene microplastics on zebrafish development.

The presence of microplastics in the aquatic ecosystem represents a major issue for the environment and human health. The capacity of organic pollutants to adsorb onto microplastic particles raises additional concerns, as it creates a new route for toxic compounds to enter the food web. Current knowledge on the impact of pristine and/or contaminated microplastics on aquatic organisms remains insufficient, and we provide here new insights by evaluating their biological effects in zebrafish (Danio rerio).

Bayesian causal network modeling suggests adolescent cannabis use accelerates prefrontal cortical thinning.

While there is substantial evidence that cannabis use is associated with differences in human brain development, most of this evidence is correlational in nature. Bayesian causal network (BCN) modeling attempts to identify probable causal relationships in correlational data using conditional probabilities to estimate directional associations between a set of interrelated variables. In this study, we employed BCN modeling in 637 adolescents from the IMAGEN study who were cannabis naïve at age 14 to provide evidence that the accelerated prefrontal cortical thinning found previously in adolescent cannabis users by Albaugh et al.

The genetic architecture of language functional connectivity.

Language is a unique trait of the human species, of which the genetic architecture remains largely unknown. Through language disorders studies, many candidate genes were identified. However, such complex and multifactorial trait is unlikely to be driven by only few genes and case-control studies, suffering from a lack of power, struggle to uncover significant variants.

New insights into benzo[⍺]pyrene osteotoxicity in zebrafish.

Persistent and ubiquitous organic pollutants, such as the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon benzo[⍺]pyrene (BaP), represent a major threat to aquatic organisms and human health. Beside some well-documented adverse effects on the development and reproduction of aquatic organisms, BaP was recently shown to affect fish bone formation and skeletal development through mechanisms that remain poorly understood. In this work, zebrafish bone-related in vivo assays were used to evaluate the osteotoxic effects of BaP during bone development and regeneration.

Restoring glutamate receptosome dynamics at synapses rescues autism-like deficits in Shank3-deficient mice.

Shank3 monogenic mutations lead to autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Shank3 is part of the glutamate receptosome that physically links ionotropic NMDA receptors to metabotropic mGlu5 receptors through interactions with scaffolding proteins PSD95-GKAP-Shank3-Homer. A main physiological function of the glutamate receptosome is to control NMDA synaptic function that is required for plasticity induction.

MRI-Compatible and Conformal Electrocorticography Grids for Translational Research.

Intraoperative electrocorticography (ECoG) captures neural information from the surface of the cerebral cortex during surgeries such as resections for intractable epilepsy and tumors. Current clinical ECoG grids come in evenly spaced, millimeter-sized electrodes embedded in silicone rubber. Their mechanical rigidity and fixed electrode spatial resolution are common shortcomings reported by the surgical teams.

Hodology of the superior longitudinal system of the human brain: a historical perspective, the current controversies, and a proposal.

The description of human white matter pathways experienced a tremendous improvement, thanks to the advancement of neuroimaging and dissection techniques. The downside of this progress is the production of redundant and conflicting literature, bound by specific studies' methods and aims. The Superior Longitudinal System (SLS), encompassing the arcuate (AF) and the superior longitudinal fasciculi (SLF), becomes an illustrative example of this fundamental issue, being one of the most studied white matter association pathways of the brain.

Reptin/RUVBL2 is required for hepatocyte proliferation in vivo, liver regeneration and homeostasis.

Previous studies have shown that Reptin is overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinoma and that it is necessary for in vitro proliferation and cell survival. However, its pathophysiological role in vivo remains unknown. We aimed to study the role of Reptin in hepatocyte proliferation after regeneration using a liver Reptin knock-out model (Reptin ).

Sex differences in neural correlates of common psychopathological symptoms in early adolescence.

Background: Sex-related differences in psychopathology are known phenomena, with externalizing and internalizing symptoms typically more common in boys and girls, respectively. However, the neural correlates of these sex-by-psychopathology interactions are underinvestigated, particularly in adolescence.

Methods: Participants were 14 years of age and part of the IMAGEN study, a large ( = 1526) community-based sample.

, and Models for Monitoring SARS-CoV-2 Spike/Human ACE2 Complex, Viral Entry and Cell Fusion.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the etiologic agent responsible for the recent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Productive SARS-CoV-2 infection relies on viral entry into cells expressing angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Indeed, viral entry into cells is mostly mediated by the early interaction between the viral spike protein S and its ACE2 receptor.

Myelination of parvalbumin interneurons shapes the function of cortical sensory inhibitory circuits.

Myelination of projection neurons by oligodendrocytes is key to optimize action potential conduction over long distances. However, a large fraction of myelin enwraps the axons of parvalbumin-positive fast-spiking interneurons (FSI), exclusively involved in local cortical circuits. Whether FSI myelination contributes to the fine-tuning of intracortical networks is unknown.

Linking glutamate receptor movements and synapse function.

Regulation of neurotransmitter receptor content at synapses is achieved through a dynamic equilibrium between biogenesis and degradation pathways, receptor stabilization at synaptic sites, and receptor trafficking in and out synapses. In the past 20 years, the movements of receptors to and from synapses have emerged as a series of highly regulated processes that mediate postsynaptic plasticity. Our understanding of the properties and roles of receptor movements has benefited from technological advances in receptor labeling and tracking capacities, as well as from new methods to interfere with their movements.

Synthesis and Intracellular Uptake of Rhodamine-Nucleolipid Conjugates into a Nanoemulsion Vehicle.

Neurodegenerative diseases represent some of the greatest challenges for both basic science and clinical medicine. Due to their prevalence and the lack of known biochemical-based treatments, these complex pathologies result in an increasing societal cost. Increasing genetic and neuropathological evidence indicates that lysosomal impairment may be a common factor linking these diseases, demanding the development of therapeutic strategies aimed at restoring the lysosomal function.