Effects of prenatal exposure to inflammation coupled with prepubertal stress on prefrontal white matter structure and related molecules in adult mouse offspring.

Maternal immune activation (MIA) by inflammatory agents such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and prepubertal stress (PS) may individually and collectively affect the central nervous system (CNS) during adulthood. Here, we intended to assess the effects of MIA, alone or combined with PS, on prefrontal white matter structure and its related molecules in adult mice offspring. Pregnant mice received either an i.

Investigation of the psychometric properties of children's somatization inventory in Iranian adolescents.

Background: This study aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of children's somatization inventory (CSI-24) in a sample of Iranian school adolescents.

Materials And Methods: In this study, after translating and back-translating CSI-24, comparisons were made with the original version. The study population consisted of 394 school adolescents.

Crossmodal Harmony: Looking for the Meaning of Harmony Beyond Hearing.

The notion of harmony was first developed in the context of metaphysics before being applied to the domain of music. However, in recent centuries, the term has often been used to describe especially pleasing combinations of colors by those working in the visual arts too. Similarly, the harmonization of flavors is nowadays often invoked as one of the guiding principles underpinning the deliberate pairing of food and drink.

Psychometric properties of the shortened Farsi version of the Food Cravings Questionnaire-Trait.

Background: Food craving contributes to the incidence of weight and food-related disorders. Thus, an accurate measurement of food craving is important for clinical and research purposes.

Aims: We aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the shortened Farsi version of the Food Craving Questionnaire- Trait (FCQ-T-r), an internationally validated tool.

The Volumetric Changes of the Pineal Gland with Age: An Atlas-based Structural Analysis.

Introduction: There are numerous reports on the facilitatory role of the pineal gland (PG) in brain function, and the size this structure is suggested to be associated with its proper functionality. Previous works which studied the volume of the PG were mostly based on manual delineation of this region. In a recent work, we developed an MRI atlas for the PG in the standard space, with one of its applications being in volumetric studies.

A checklist for assessing the methodological quality of concurrent tES-fMRI studies (ContES checklist): a consensus study and statement.

Low-intensity transcranial electrical stimulation (tES), including alternating or direct current stimulation, applies weak electrical stimulation to modulate the activity of brain circuits. Integration of tES with concurrent functional MRI (fMRI) allows for the mapping of neural activity during neuromodulation, supporting causal studies of both brain function and tES effects. Methodological aspects of tES-fMRI studies underpin the results, and reporting them in appropriate detail is required for reproducibility and interpretability.

Memantine augmentation of sertraline in the treatment of symptoms and executive function among patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder: A double-blind placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial.

Background: Medications currently recommended for the treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) usually decrease the severity of the symptoms by 20-30%; however, 40-60% of OCD patients do not achieve a satisfactory response. Our main objective was to investigate the effectiveness of memantine, a non-competitive N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, as an adjunct therapy to sertraline, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), to improve severity of symptoms and executive function among patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Methods: Seventy patients with OCD according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) criteria, and a Yale-Brown obsessive compulsive scale (Y-BOCS) score of more than 21 were recruited to the study.

White matter microstructure differences in individuals with dependence on cocaine, methamphetamine, and nicotine: Findings from the ENIGMA-Addiction working group.

Background: Nicotine and illicit stimulants are very addictive substances. Although associations between grey matter and dependence on stimulants have been frequently reported, white matter correlates have received less attention.

Methods: Eleven international sites ascribed to the ENIGMA-Addiction consortium contributed data from individuals with dependence on cocaine (n = 147), methamphetamine (n = 132) and nicotine (n = 189), as well as non-dependent controls (n = 333).

Glutamatergic medications as adjunctive therapy for moderate to severe obsessive-compulsive disorder in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is among the most disabling neuropsychiatric conditions characterized by the presence of repetitive intrusive thoughts, impulses, or images (obsessions) and/or ritualized mental or physical acts (compulsions). Serotonergic medications, particularly Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), are the first-line treatments for patients with OCD. Recently, dysregulation of glutamatergic system has been proposed to be involved in the etiology of OCD.

The Effect of Cognitive Load on the Retrieval of Long-Term Memory: An fMRI Study.

One of the less well-understood aspects of memory function is the mechanism by which the brain responds to an increasing load of memory, either during encoding or retrieval. Identifying the brain structures which manage this increasing cognitive demand would enhance our knowledge of human memory. Despite numerous studies about the effect of cognitive loads on working memory processes, whether these can be applied to long-term memory processes is unclear.

Can sweet food-specific inhibitory control training via a mobile application improve eating behavior in children with obesity?

Objectives: Consumption of excess sugar, a common energy-dense nutrient-poor food, is a risk factor for obesity in school-aged children. Food-specific inhibition training, where responses to palatable food stimuli, such as sweet foods, are consistently and repeatedly inhibited, reduces sweet food intake in adults. However, no studies have yet examined the effectiveness of inhibitory control training specifically targeting sweet foods among children with high sugar cravings.

Figure Disembedding: The Gottschaldt's Hidden Figure Test in Children with Typical Development and Autism.

In two studies, we used the Gottschaldt's Hidden Figure Test (GHFT) for assessing figure disembedding ability in children aged 7-11. Study 1 demonstrated in a large sample of typically developing children that GHFT accuracy and time scores differed across age groups, without sex and socioeconomic differences. Thus, we provided normative data only taking into account children's age.

Proof of Concept for the Autobiographical Memory Flexibility (MemFlex) Intervention for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.

Autobiographical memory distortions are a key feature of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In this proof-of-concept randomized controlled trial ( = 43), we evaluated an autobiographical memory flexibility intervention, MemFlex. We aimed to determine whether the mechanism-focused intervention, which aims to improve autobiographical memory processes, may also affect other cognitive predictors of PTSD and potentially reduce PTSD symptoms in Iranian trauma survivors diagnosed with PTSD.

A Probabilistic Atlas of the Pineal Gland in the Standard Space.

Pineal gland (PG) is a structure located in the midline of the brain, and is considered as a main part of the epithalamus. There are numerous reports on the facilitatory role of this area for brain function; hormone secretion and its role in sleep cycle are the major reports. However, reports are rarely available on the direct role of this structure in brain cognition and in information processing.

Iranian Brain Imaging Database: A Neuropsychiatric Database of Healthy Brain.

Introduction: The Iranian Brain Imaging Database (IBID) was initiated in 2017, with 5 major goals: provide researchers easy access to a neuroimaging database, provide normative quantitative measures of the brain for clinical research purposes, study the aging profile of the brain, examine the association of brain structure and function, and join the ENIGMA consortium. Many prestigious databases with similar goals are available. However, they were not done on an Iranian population, and the battery of their tests (e.

Impaired Autobiographical Memory Flexibility in Iranian Trauma Survivors With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.

Reduced ability to retrieve specific autobiographical memories is a well-defined feature of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and science-driven interventions have emerged to improve memory specificity and thereby symptoms. However, research in depressed samples indicates that the ability to flexibly move between retrieval of specific and general memory types (i.e.

Psychometric Properties of the Abdominal Pain Index (API) in the Iranian Adolescent Population.

Considering the high prevalence of abdominal pain in children and adolescents in Iran, it is essential to use appropriate screening tools. One of the most comprehensive, yet concise, tools for this purpose is the Abdominal Pain Index (API). This study aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the self-report API in adolescents.

National Guidelines for Cognitive Assessment and Rehabilitation of Iranian Traumatic Brain Injury Patients.

Background: Individuals with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) often have prolonged cognitive impairments, resulting in long-term problems with their real-life activities. Given the urgent need for evidence-based recommendations for neuropsychological management of Iranian TBI patients, the current work aimed to adapt eligible international guidelines for cognitive assessment and rehabilitation of the TBI patients in Iran.

Methods: The project was led by an executive committee, under the supervision of the Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Education (MOHME).

"Building blocks and drawing figures is not the same": Neuropsychological bases of block design and Rey figure drawing in typically developing children.

Several studies investigated the neuropsychological bases of spatial construction in developmental samples. However, no study directly tested whether the pattern of the neuropsychological processes implied in spatial construction changed depending on whether a block building or a figure drawing task is considered. Here, we used the path analysis to test the direct and indirect effects of verbal abilities (naming and verbal knowledge), executive functions, figure disembedding and mental rotation on two classical spatial construction tasks: the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure (ROCF) and the Block Design (BD).

The reading level matched design: Limitations and possible alternatives.

Wybrow & Hanley (2015) reported that proportions of phonological and surface dyslexics change depending on how control groups are selected. This observation questions the appropriateness of the reading-level match design for establishing causality in cognitive studies of reading. Here, I focus on three features: (1) the lack of an explicit definition of the reading-level concept; (2) the metric problems associated with using this design; and (3) the ambiguity of the delay-deviance contrast in interpreting reading deficits.

Investigating the Role of Brain Lateralization and Gender in Paranormal Beliefs.

Introduction: Brain lateralization is associated with human behavior. Therefore, this study aimed at investigating the effects of brain lateralization on the scores of paranormal beliefs.

Methods: The study population included 180 students of Sanandaj universities, Sanandaj City, Iran who were selected with convenience sampling method (100 left-brained males, 6 left-brained females, 56 both left- and right-brained males and 22 both left- and right-brained females).

Psychometric Properties of the Persian Translation of Video Gaming Addiction Test.

Introduction: The current study aims to measure the validity, reliability, and psychometric properties of the Persian translation of the Video Gaming Addiction Test (VAT).

Methods: A total of 280 young men (14-20 years old) (Mean±SD age: 17.22±1.

The ability to learn new written words is modulated by language orthographic consistency.

Introduction: It is well known that a difficulty in forming lexical representations is a strong predictor of reading and spelling difficulties even after controlling for the effects of other cognitive skills. Our study had two main interrelated aims. First, we wanted to examine whether the ability to learn new written words (lexical learning) varies as a function of the orthographic consistency of the language of the learner.

A Roadmap for Integrating Neuroscience Into Addiction Treatment: A Consensus of the Neuroscience Interest Group of the International Society of Addiction Medicine.

Although there is general consensus that altered brain structure and function underpins addictive disorders, clinicians working in addiction treatment rarely incorporate neuroscience-informed approaches into their practice. We recently launched the Neuroscience Interest Group within the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM-NIG) to promote initiatives to bridge this gap. This article summarizes the ISAM-NIG key priorities and strategies to achieve implementation of addiction neuroscience knowledge and tools for the assessment and treatment of substance use disorders.