Brain-related sexual dimorphism in tuberous sclerosis complex: an overlooked matter.

Biological sex strongly impacts tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) symptoms like epilepsy and autism. However, the mechanisms driving this influence remain largely unknown. Here, we discuss how sex-specific changes in brain synapses and neural networks may drive these differences, offering insights that could be crucial for developing targeted therapies for TSC.

Mobile Health for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Patients' Preferences and Perception of Patient-Centeredness.

Background: The increasingly fast development of mobile health technologies holds significant value for individuals dealing with mental health conditions. However, inadequate consideration of patients' preferences and expectations undermines real-world outcomes, including sustained adherence. Driven by the belief that specific characteristics, such as youth and higher education, of individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder make them suitable for digital adoption, we investigated mHealth-related desirability factors within this patient group.

"Actor-critic" dichotomous hyperactivation and hypoconnectivity in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Dysfunctional response inhibition, mediated by the striatum and its connections, is thought to underly the clinical manifestations of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). However, the exact neural mechanisms remain controversial. In this study, we undertook a novel approach by positing that a) inhibition is a dynamic construct inherently susceptible to numerous failures, which require error-processing, and b) the actor-critic framework of reinforcement learning can integrate neural patterns of inhibition and error-processing in OCD with their behavioural correlates.

Central dopamine receptors: Radiotracers unveiling the Role of dopaminergic tone in obesity.

Brain dopamine type 2 and 3 receptors (D2/3R) have been postulated to play a role in obesity. However, results from molecular neuroimaging studies exploring these receptors in obesity are not consensual. These inconsistencies may be due to the distinct characteristics of radiotracers that confound the interpretation of D2/3R assessment.

Mapping functional traces of opioid memories in the rat brain.

Addiction to psychoactive substances is a maladaptive learned behaviour. Contexts surrounding drug use integrate this aberrant mnemonic process and hold strong relapse-triggering ability. Here, we asked where context and salience might be concurrently represented in the brain during retrieval of drug-context paired associations.

ENPP1 induces blood-brain barrier dysfunction and promotes brain metastasis formation in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive breast cancer.

Background: Brain metastasis (BrM) is a devastating end-stage neurological complication that occurs in up to 50% of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive (HER2+) breast cancer (BC) patients. Understanding how disseminating tumor cells manage to cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) is essential for developing effective preventive strategies. We identified the ecto-nucleotidase ENPP1 (ectonucleotide pyrophosphatase/phosphodiesterase 1) as specifically enriched in the secretome of HER2+ brain metastatic cells, prompting us to explore its impact on BBB dysfunction and BrM formation.

Brief report: caregivers' well-being in families with neurodevelopmental disorders members during COVID-19: implications for family therapy.

Neurodevelopmental disorders affect the lifespan of diagnosed individuals and their families. COVID-19 challenged these families with daily routine unpredictability requiring rapid adaptations. Moreover, associations and schools were closed, leaving these families without regular social support.

Frontal and occipital brain glutathione levels are unchanged in autistic adults.

Background: The neurobiological underpinnings of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are diverse and likely multifactorial. One possible mechanism is increased oxidative stress leading to altered neurodevelopment and brain function. However, this hypothesis has mostly been tested in post-mortem studies.

Increased susceptibility to kainate-induced seizures in a mouse model of tuberous sclerosis complex: Importance of sex and circadian cycle.

Objective: Comorbidity of epilepsy and autism in tuberous sclerosis complex 2 (TSC2) is very frequent, but the link between these conditions is still poorly understood. To study neurological problems related to autism, the scientific community has been using an animal model of TSC2, Tsc2 mice. However, it is still unknown whether this model has the propensity to exhibit increased seizure susceptibility.

Pericytes: Unsung heroes in myelin repair after neonatal brain hypoxia.

Preterm infants can face lasting neurodevelopmental challenges due to hypoxia-induced injury of the cerebral white matter. In this issue of Neuron, Ren et al. identify microvascular pericytes as unexpected targets for growth hormone signaling, which enhances angiogenesis and remyelination after hypoxic injury in the developing mouse brain.

Neural underpinnings of ethical decisions in life and death dilemmas in naïve and expert firefighters.

When a single choice impacts on life outcomes, faculties to make ethical judgments come into play. Here we studied decisions in a real-life setting involving life-and-death outcomes that affect others and the decision-maker as well. We chose a genuine situation where prior training and expertise play a role: firefighting in life-threatening situations.

Corrigendum: Normative mice retinal thickness: 16-month longitudinal characterization of wild-type mice and changes in a model of Alzheimer's disease.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2023.

Corrigendum: Assessing MR-compatibility of somatosensory stimulation devices: a systematic review on testing methodologies.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2023.

Brain metastasis: An insight into novel molecular targets for theranostic approaches.

Brain metastases (BrM) are common malignant lesions in the central nervous system, and pose a significant threat in advanced-stage malignancies due to delayed diagnosis and limited therapeutic options. Their distinct genomic profiles underscore the need for molecular profiling to tailor effective treatments. Recent advances in cancer biology have uncovered molecular drivers underlying tumor initiation, progression, and metastasis.

On the quantitative analysis of lamellar collagen arrangement with second-harmonic generation imaging.

Second harmonic generation (SHG) allows for the examination of collagen structure in collagenous tissues. Collagen is a fibrous protein found in abundance in the human body, present in bones, cartilage, the skin, and the cornea, among other areas, providing structure, support, and strength. Its structural arrangement is deeply intertwined with its function.

Portuguese observational cross-sectional clinical imaging study protocol to investigate central dopaminergic mechanisms of successful weight loss through bariatric surgery.

Introduction: Bariatric surgery (BS) is the treatment of choice for refractory obesity. Although weight loss (WL) reduces the prevalence of obesity-related comorbidities, not all patients maintain it. It has been suggested that central mechanisms involving dopamine receptors may play a role in successful WL.

Polyphenols: immunonutrients tipping the balance of immunometabolism in chronic diseases.

Mounting evidence progressively appreciates the vital interplay between immunity and metabolism in a wide array of immunometabolic chronic disorders, both autoimmune and non-autoimmune mediated. The immune system regulates the functioning of cellular metabolism within organs like the brain, pancreas and/or adipose tissue by sensing and adapting to fluctuations in the microenvironment's nutrients, thereby reshaping metabolic pathways that greatly impact a pro- or anti-inflammatory immunophenotype. While it is agreed that the immune system relies on an adequate nutritional status to function properly, we are only just starting to understand how the supply of single or combined nutrients, all of them termed immunonutrients, can steer immune cells towards a less inflamed, tolerogenic immunophenotype.

Neuroanatomical Predictors of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS)-Induced Modifications in Neurocognitive Task Performance in Typically Developing Individuals.

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a noninvasive neuromodulation technique gaining more attention in neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). Due to the phenotypic heterogeneity of NDDs, tDCS is unlikely to be equally effective in all individuals. The present study aimed to establish neuroanatomical markers in typically developing (TD) individuals that may be used for the prediction of individual responses to tDCS.

Neural inhibition as implemented by an actor-critic model involves the human dorsal striatum and ventral tegmental area.

Inhibition is implicated across virtually all human experiences. As a trade-off of being very efficient, this executive function is also prone to many errors. Rodent and computational studies show that midbrain regions play crucial roles during errors by sending dopaminergic learning signals to the basal ganglia for behavioural adjustment.

Retinal GABAergic Alterations in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Alterations in γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) have been implicated in sensory differences in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Visual signals are initially processed in the retina, and in this study, we explored the hypotheses that the GABA-dependent retinal response to light is altered in individuals with ASD. Light-adapted electroretinograms were recorded from 61 adults (38 males and 23 females;  = 22 ASD) in response to three stimulus protocols: (1) the standard white flash, (2) the standard 30 Hz flickering protocol, and (3) the photopic negative response protocol.

Retinal OCT biomarkers and their association with cognitive function-clinical and AI approaches.

Retinal optical coherence tomography (OCT) biomarkers have the potential to serve as early, noninvasive, and cost-effective markers for identifying individuals at risk for cognitive impairments and neurodegenerative diseases. They may also aid in monitoring disease progression and evaluating the effectiveness of interventions targeting cognitive decline. The association between retinal OCT biomarkers and cognitive performance has been demonstrated in several studies, and their importance in cognitive assessment is increasingly being recognized.

White matter diffusion estimates in obsessive-compulsive disorder across 1653 individuals: machine learning findings from the ENIGMA OCD Working Group.

White matter pathways, typically studied with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), have been implicated in the neurobiology of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). However, due to limited sample sizes and the predominance of single-site studies, the generalizability of OCD classification based on diffusion white matter estimates remains unclear. Here, we tested classification accuracy using the largest OCD DTI dataset to date, involving 1336 adult participants (690 OCD patients and 646 healthy controls) and 317 pediatric participants (175 OCD patients and 142 healthy controls) from 18 international sites within the ENIGMA OCD Working Group.