Be prepared for interruptions: EEG correlates of anticipation when dealing with task interruptions and the role of aging.

Dealing with task interruptions requires the flexible use of working memory and attentional control mechanisms, which are prone to age-related changes. We investigated effects of age on dealing with task interruptions and potential advantages of anticipating an interruption using EEG and a retrospective cueing (retro-cue) paradigm. Thirty-two young (18-30 years) and 28 older (55-70 years) participants performed a visual working memory task, where they had to report the orientation of a target following a retro-cue.

Neurostimulation targeting the epileptic focus: Current understanding and perspectives for treatment.

For the one third of people with epilepsy whose seizures are not controlled with medications, targeting the seizure focus with neurostimulation can be an effective therapeutic strategy. In this focused review, we summarize a discussion of targeted neurostimulation modalities during a workshop held in Frankfurt, Germany in September 2023. Topics covered include: available devices for seizure focus stimulation; alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) stimulation to reduce focal cortical excitability; modeling approaches to simulate DC stimulation; reconciling the efficacy of focal stimulation with the network theory of epilepsy; and the emerging concept of 'neurostimulation zones,' which are defined as cortical regions where focal stimulation is most effective for reducing seizures and which may or may not directly involve the seizure onset zone.

Integrated data from intravital imaging and HPLC-MS/MS analysis reveal large interspecies differences in AFB metabolism in mice and rats.

Large interspecies differences between rats and mice concerning the hepatotoxicity and carcinogenicity of aflatoxin B (AFB) are known, with mice being more resistant. However, a comprehensive interspecies comparison including subcellular liver tissue compartments has not yet been performed. In this study, we performed spatio-temporal intravital analysis of AFB kinetics in the livers of anesthetized mice and rats.

Multisensory perception depends on the reliability of the type of judgment.

The brain engages the processes of multisensory integration and recalibration to deal with discrepant multisensory signals. These processes consider the reliability of each sensory input, with the more reliable modality receiving the stronger weight. Sensory reliability is typically assessed via the variability of participants' judgments, yet these can be shaped by factors both external and internal to the nervous system.

Chronic Infection Modulates Hearing Ability across the Adult Life Span.

While several studies have shown associations between hearing disorders and congenital toxoplasmosis, the present study investigated the impact of chronic, latent () infection on hearing loss. We used a regression analysis to explore whether latent infection modulates changes in hearing thresholds over an age range from 20 to 70 years. We analyzed audiometric data of 162 IgG-positive and 430 -negative participants, collected in the Dortmund Vital Study (DVS, ClinicalTrials.

Driving Hebbian plasticity over ventral premotor-motor projections transiently enhances motor resonance.

Background: Making sense of others' actions relies on the activation of an action observation network (AON), which maps visual information about observed actions onto the observer's motor system. This motor resonance process manifests in the primary motor cortex (M1) as increased corticospinal excitability finely tuned to the muscles engaged in the observed action. Motor resonance in M1 is facilitated by projections from higher-order AON regions.

A liver digital twin for in silico testing of cellular and inter-cellular mechanisms in regeneration after drug-induced damage.

This communication presents a mathematical mechanism-based model of the regenerating liver after drug-induced pericentral lobule damage resolving tissue microarchitecture. The consequence of alternative hypotheses about the interplay of different cell types on regeneration was simulated. Regeneration dynamics has been quantified by the size of the damage-induced dead cell area, the hepatocyte density and the spatial-temporal profile of the different cell types.

Comparing auditory distance perception in real and virtual environments and the role of the loudness cue: A study based on event-related potentials.

The perception of the distance to a sound source is relevant in many everyday situations, not only in real spaces, but also in virtual reality (VR) environments. Where real rooms often reach their limits, VR offers far-reaching possibilities to simulate a wide range of acoustic scenarios. However, in virtual room acoustics a plausible reproduction of distance-related cues can be challenging.

Microbiota modulation by dietary oat beta-glucan prevents steatotic liver disease progression.

Background & Aims: Changes in gut microbiota in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) are important drivers of disease progression towards fibrosis. Therefore, reversing microbial alterations could ameliorate MASLD progression. Oat beta-glucan, a non-digestible polysaccharide, has shown promising therapeutic effects on hyperlipidemia associated with MASLD, but its impact on gut microbiota and most importantly MASLD-related fibrosis remains unknown.

Targeting the prefrontal-supplementary motor network in obsessive-compulsive disorder with intensified electrical stimulation in two dosages: a randomized, controlled trial.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is associated with a high disease burden, and treatment options are limited. We used intensified electrical stimulation in two dosages to target a main circuitry associated with the pathophysiology of OCD, left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (l-DLPFC), and pre-supplementary motor area (pre-SMA) and assessed clinical outcomes, neuropsychological performance, and brain physiology. In a double-blind, randomized controlled trial, thirty-nine patients with OCD were randomly assigned to three groups of sham, 2-mA, or 1-mA transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) targeting the l-DLPFC (F3) and pre-SMA (FC2) with anodal and cathodal stimulation respectively.

Individual predictors of vaccine hesitancy in the Italian post COVID-19 pandemic era.

A wide range of survey studies have explored vaccination hesitancy/resistance during the COVID-19 pandemic and provided evidence that this can be explained by several individual variables from the ideological, clinical, and socio-affective domain. However, evidence about which individual variables predict vaccine hesitancy in the post-pandemic state of COVID-19 is meager. We administered a battery of questionnaires to a group of 120 Italian participants with high and low scores on the adult vaccine hesitancy scale (aVHS) to investigate the predictive role of ideological (i.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on academic performance: a comparative analysis of face-to face and online assessment.

Introduction: Survey studies yield mixed results on the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on academic performance, with limited direct evidence available.

Methodology: Using the academic platform from the Italian university system, a large-scale archival study involving 30,731 students and 829 examiners encompassing a total of 246,416 exams (oral tests only) to scrutinize the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on the likelihood of passing exams was conducted. Examination data were collected both in face-to-face and online formats during the pandemic.

Aflatoxin M Analysis in Urine of Mill Workers in Bangladesh: A Pilot Study.

Presence of aflatoxin B (AFB) in food and feed is a serious problem, especially in developing countries. Human exposure to this carcinogenic mycotoxin can occur through dietary intake, but also through inhalation or dermal contact when handling and processing AFB-contaminated crops. A suitable biomarker of AFB exposure by all routes is the occurrence of its hydroxylated metabolite aflatoxin M (AFM) in urine.

Exposure limits for indoor volatile substances concerning the general population: The role of population-based differences in sensory irritation of the eyes and airways for assessment factors.

Assessment factors (AFs) are essential in the derivation of occupational exposure limits (OELs) and indoor air quality guidelines. The factors shall accommodate differences in sensitivity between subgroups, i.e.

Both stimulus-specific and configurational features of multiple visual stimuli shape the spatial ventriloquism effect.

Studies on multisensory perception often focus on simplistic conditions in which one single stimulus is presented per modality. Yet, in everyday life, we usually encounter multiple signals per modality. To understand how multiple signals within and across the senses are combined, we extended the classical audio-visual spatial ventriloquism paradigm to combine two visual stimuli with one sound.

Investigating robust associations between functional connectivity based on graph theory and general intelligence.

Previous research investigating relations between general intelligence and graph-theoretical properties of the brain's intrinsic functional network has yielded contradictory results. A promising approach to tackle such mixed findings is multi-center analysis. For this study, we analyzed data from four independent data sets (total N > 2000) to identify robust associations amongst samples between g factor scores and global as well as node-specific graph metrics.

Mild Deficits in Fear Learning: Evidence from Humans and Mice with Cerebellar Cortical Degeneration.

Functional brain imaging studies in humans suggest involvement of the cerebellum in fear conditioning but do not allow conclusions about the functional significance. The main aim of the present study was to examine whether patients with cerebellar degeneration show impaired fear conditioning and whether this is accompanied by alterations in cerebellar cortical activations. To this end, a 2 d differential fear conditioning study was conducted in 20 cerebellar patients and 21 control subjects using a 7 tesla (7 T) MRI system.

Imagery practice of motor skills without conscious awareness?: a commentary to Frank et al.

Modifications of imagined sensory consequences will not benefit overt performance when they cannot be transformed into motor outflow that produces them. With physical practice, the acquisition of internal models of motor transformations is largely based on prediction errors that are absent in imagery practice. What can imagery practice nevertheless contribute to transformation learning? Explicit, strategic adjustments to novel transformations should be possible.

Evaluation of different feedback designs for target guidance in human controlled robotic cranes: A comparison between high and low performance groups.

Labour shortages and costly operator training are driving the need for digital on-board robotic crane operator support in forestry and construction. This simulator study investigated the effects of sonification (auditory, pitch/loudness) and continuous visual (brightness/size) feedback on aiming movements with a robotic crane for low and high performers. The feedback was designed non-linear and linear.

Occurrence of ochratoxin A in breast milk and urine samples of nursing mothers in Bangladesh.

The mycotoxin ochratoxin A (OTA) is a potent nephrotoxin with carcinogenic properties and, thus, of concern as a food contaminant. Since food contaminant data are scarce in Bangladesh, we applied human biomonitoring to gain more insights into OTA exposure in the country's population. OTA concentrations in human milk and urine samples of nursing mothers were determined with the aim to assess also exposure to this mycotoxin in breastfed infants.

Dopaminergic D2-like receptor stimulation affects attention on contextual information and modulates BOLD activation of extinction-related brain areas.

Contextual information is essential for learning and memory processes and plays a crucial role during the recall of extinction memory, and in the renewal effect, which is the context-dependent recovery of an extinguished response. The dopaminergic system is known to be involved in regulating attentional processes by shifting attention to novel and salient contextual cues. Higher dopamine levels are associated with a better recall of previously learned stimulus-outcome associations and enhanced encoding, as well as retrieval of contextual information which promotes renewal.