Interaction of numerosity and time in prefrontal and parietal cortex

It has been proposed that numerical and temporal information are processed by partially overlapping magnitude systems. Interactions across different magnitude domains could occur both at the level of perception and decision-making. However, their neural correlates have been elusive. Here, using functional magnetic resonance imaging in humans, we show that the right intraparietal cortex (IPC) and inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) are jointly activated by duration and numerosity discrimination tasks, with a congruency effect in the right IFG. To determine whether the IPC and the IFG are involved in response conflict (or facilitation) or modulation of subjective passage of time by numerical information, we examined their functional roles using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and two different numerosity-time interaction tasks: duration discrimination and time reproduction tasks. Our results show that TMS of the right IFG impairs categorical duration discrimination, whereas that of the right IPC modulates the degree of influence of numerosity on time perception and impairs precise time estimation. These results indicate that the right IFG is specifically involved at the categorical decision stage, whereas bleeding of numerosity information on perception of time occurs within the IPC. Together, our findings suggest a two-stage model of numerosity-time interactions whereby the interaction at the perceptual level occurs within the parietal region and the interaction at categorical decisions takes place in the prefrontal cortex

Uric acid is more strongly associated with impaired glucose regulation in women than in men from the general population: the KORA F4-Study.

High serum uric acid (UA) levels are associated with the metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. It is largely unknown whether there are gender-specific differences regarding the association between UA and prediabetic states. We examined the possible association between UA levels and known as well as newly diagnosed diabetes (NDD), isolated impaired fasting glucose (i-IFG), isolated impaired glucose tolerance (i-IGT), and combined IFG/IGT in a population-based sample of 32-to-81-year-old men and women. An oral glucose tolerance test was carried out in all 2,740 participants without known diabetes of the Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg (KORA) F4 Study conducted between 2006 and 2008 in Southern Germany. Serum UA was analysed by the uricase method. In women after multivariable adjustment the associations between UA and i-IFG (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.15-2.14), IFG/IGT (OR 1.52, 1.07-2.16), NDD (OR 1.67, 95% CI 1.28-2.17), and known diabetes (OR 1.47, 95% CI 1.18-1.82) remained significant, but the association with i-IGT (OR 1.14, 95% CI 0.95-1.36) lost significance. In contrast in men, after multivariable adjustment there was only a significant association between UA levels and i-IFG (OR 1.49, 95% CI 1.21-1.84), all other associations were non-significant (i-IGT: OR 1.09, IFG/IGT: OR 1.06, NDD: OR 0.91, known diabetes: OR 1.04; all p-values>0.05). Serum UA concentrations were associated with different categories of impaired glucose regulation in individuals from the general population, particularly in women. Further studies investigating the role of UA in the development of derangements in glucose metabolism are needed

Prevalence of diabetes mellitus in Croatia

The aim of this study was to obtain an accurate estimate of diabetes prevalence in Croatia and additional estimates of impaired fasting glucose (IFG), undiagnosed diabetes, and insulin resistance. The study was part of the First Croatian Health Project. Field work included a questionnaire, anthropological measurements, and blood sampling. A nationally representative sample of 1653 subjects aged 18-65 years was analyzed. A total of 100 participants with diabetes were detected, among them 42 with previously unknown diabetes. The prevalence was 6.1% (95% CI: 4.59-7.64), with a significant difference by age. IFG prevalence (WHO-criteria) was 11.3%. The ratio of undiagnosed/diagnosed diabetes was 72/100, unevenly distributed by the regions. HOMA-IR was >1 in 40.4% of the subjects. This survey revealed a higher prevalence of diabetes than previously estimated, whereas that of IFG was as expected. A significant difference in the proportion of undiagnosed diabetes among the regions warrants attention

Cooper pairs as resonances

Using the Bethe-Salpeter (BS) equation, Cooper pairing can be generalized to include contributions from holes as well as particles from the ground state of either an ideal Fermi gas (IFG) or of a BCS many-fermion state. The BCS model interfermion interaction is employed throughout. In contrast to the better-known original Cooper pair problem for either two particles or two holes, the generalized Cooper equation in the IFG case has no real-energy solutions. Rather, it possesses two complex-conjugate solutions with purely imaginary energies. This implies that the IFG ground state is unstable when an attractive interaction is switched on. However, solving the BS equation for the BCS ground state reveals two types of {\it real} solutions: one describing moving (i.e., having nonzero total, or center-of-mass, momenta) Cooper pairs as resonances (or bound composite particles with a {\it finite} lifetime), and another exhibiting superconducting collective excitations sometimes known as Anderson-Bogoliubov-Higgs (ABH) modes. A Bose-Einstein-condensation-based picture of superconductivity is addressed.Comment: 5 pages in PS, including 3 figures. In press Physica

Frontal aslant tract projections to the inferior frontal gyrus

Background: Frontal aslant tract (FAT) is a white matter bundle connecting the pre-supplementary motor area (pre-SMA) and the supplementary motor area (SMA) with the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG). The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the anatomical variability of FAT. Materials and methods: Total number of fibres and the lateralisation index (LI) were calculated. We attempted to find factors contributing to the diversity of FAT regarding IFG terminations to the pars opercularis (IFG-Op) and to the pars triangularis (IFG-Tr). Magnetic resonance imaging of adult patients with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) with total number of 98 hemispheres composed a cohort. V-shaped operculum was the most common (60.5%). Results: Total number of FAT fibres had widespread and unimodal distribution (6 to 1765; median: 160). Left lateralisation was noted in 64.3% of cases and was positively correlated with total number of FAT fibres and the bundle projecting to IFG-Op (p < 0.01). LI correlated with total number of FAT fibres (r = 0.43, p < 0.01). FAT projected predominantly to IFG-Op (88.9%; 88 of 99). Only in 3 (3.1%) cases more fibres terminated in IFG-Tr than in IFG-Op. Total number of FAT fibres and number of fibres terminating at IFG-Op did not correlate with the ratio of fibre numbers: FAT/IFG-Op, FAT/IFG-Tr and IFG-Op/IFG-Tr (p > 0.05). The greater total number of fibres to IFG-Tr was, the higher were the ratios of IFG-Tr/ /FAT (r = 0.57, p < 0.01) and IFG-Tr/IFG-Op (r = 0.32, p = 0.04). Conclusions: Among the IFG, the major termination of FAT is IFG-Op. Whereas the IFG-Tr projection seems to be related to the expansion of the entire FAT bundle regardless of side, domination and handedness. Nevertheless, FAT features a significant anatomical variability which cannot be explained in terms of DTI findings

Making War: The President and Congress

The main aim of this dissertation was to investigate the difference in neural language patternsrelated to language ability in healthy adults. The focus lies on unraveling the contributions of theright‐hemispheric homologues to Broca’s area in the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and Wernicke’s areain the posterior temporal and inferior parietal lobes. The functions of these regions are far from fullyunderstood at present. Two study populations consisting of healthy adults and a small group ofpeople with generalized epilepsy were investigated. Individual performance scores in tests oflanguage ability were correlated with brain activation obtained with functional magnetic resonanceimaging during semantic and word fluency tasks. Performance‐dependent differences were expectedin the left‐hemispheric Broca’s and Wernicke’s area and in their right‐hemispheric counterparts. PAPER I revealed a shift in laterality towards right‐hemispheric IFG and posterior temporal lobeactivation, related to high semantic performance. The whole‐brain analysis results of PAPER IIrevealed numerous candidate regions for language ability modulation. PAPER II also confirmed thefinding of PAPER I, by showing several performance‐dependent regions in the right‐hemispheric IFGand the posterior temporal lobe. In PAPER III, a new study population of healthy adults was tested.Again, the right posterior temporal lobe was related to high semantic performance. A decrease in lefthemisphericIFG activation could be linked to high word fluency ability. In addition, task difficultywas modulated. Increased task complexity showed to correlate positively with bilateral IFGactivation. Lastly, PAPER IV investigated anti‐correlated regions. These regions are commonly knownas the default mode network (DMN) and are normally suppressed during cognitive tasks. It wasfound that people with generalized epilepsy had an inadequate suppression of regions in the DMN,and showed poorer performance in a complex language test. The results point to neural adaptabilityin the IFG and temporal lobe. Decreased left‐lateralization of the IFG and increased rightlateralizationof the posterior temporal lobe are proposed as characteristics of individuals with highlanguage ability

High risk of cardiovascular mortality in individuals with impaired fasting glucose is explained by conversion to diabetes - The Hoorn Study

OBJECTIVE: To optimize identification of future diabetic patients, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) introduced criteria for impaired fasting glucose (IFG) in 1997 (IFG 6.1 mmol/l [IFG6.1]) and lowered the threshold from 6.1 to 5.6 mmol/l (IFG5.6) in 2003. Our aim was to assess the consequences of lowering the IFG cutoff on the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality and to evaluate whether this risk is explained by a conversion to type 2 diabetes within 6.4 years. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: In a population-based cohort, the Hoorn Study, plasma glucose was determined in 1989 and 1996 (n = 1,428). Subjects were classified in 1989 according to 1997 and 2003 ADA criteria. Subjects with IFG in 1989 were further classified according to diabetes status in 1996. Hazard ratios for CVD mortality (n = 81) in the period 1996-2005 were adjusted for age and sex. RESULTS: Subjects with IFG6.1, but not IFG5.6, had a significantly higher CVD mortality risk than normal fasting glucose (NFG) subjects. Subjects who converted from IFG to diabetes (IFG6.1: 42%; IFG5.6: 21%) had a more than twofold risk of CVD mortality (IFG6.1: 2.47 [1.17-5.19]; IFG5.6: 2.14 [1.12-4.10]) than subjects with NFG. IFG subjects who did not develop diabetes did not have significantly higher CVD mortality risks (IFG6.1: 1.50 [0.72-3.15]; IFG5.6: 1.15 [0.69-1.93]). CONCLUSIONS: The lower cutoff for IFG (ADA 2003 criteria) results in a category of IFG that no longer represents a high-risk state of CVD. Furthermore, only subjects who convert from IFG to diabetes have a high risk of CVD mortality

Impaired fasting glucose as a marker of heterogeneity of gestational diabetes mellitus. A study of 1025 women living in the region of Kuyavia and Pomerania in Poland

Introduction: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a heterogeneous disease. We hypothesized that fasting hyperglycaemia, defined as impaired fasting glycaemia (IFG), is a marker of metabolic heterogeneity of GDM. The aim of this study was to compare selected metabolic parameters in two groups of women with GDM, one with normal fasting glycaemia (NFG GDM) and another with IFG, to test this hypothesis. Material and methods: Metabolic parameters of 1025 women with GDM (mean age 29 years): glucose and insulin at 0 OGTT, glucose at 2-h oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), body mass index before pregnancy, parity, and gestational age at diagnosis of GDM were analyzed. Insulin resistance and &#946;-cell function were evaluated by HOMA indexes (HOMA-IR and HOMA-B) at the diagnosis of GDM. Results: The IFG GDM group (23%) consisted of isolated IFG (30%), IFG/IGT (60%), and IFG/DM (10%). The NFG GDM group (77%) consisted of isolated IGT (98%) and NFG/DM (2%). Women with IFG GDM were characterized by higher prepregnancy BMI, earlier diagnosis of GDM, higher HOMA-IR (p < 0.03), and lower HOMA-B (p < 0.01) compared to NFG GDM. In the IFGGDM group, DM was characterized by lower HOMA-B compared with isolated IFG and IFG/IGT. In the NFG GDM group, isolated IGT and DM were characterized by similar HOMA-IR and HOMA-B. Conclusions: Impaired fasting glucose distinguishes more severe metabolic phenotypes of GDM compared toGDM with normal fasting glucose concentrations.Wstęp: Cukrzyca ciężarnych (GDM, gestational diabetes mellitus) jest chorobą heterogenną. Autorzy przyjęli hipotezę, że hiperglikemia na czczo spełniająca kryterium nieprawidłowej glikemii (IFG, impaired fasting glycaemia) może być znacznikiem heterogenności GDM. Celem pracy było porównanie wybranych parametrów metabolicznych w dwóch grupach kobiet z GDM, jednej z prawidłową glikemią na czczo (NFG, normal fasting glycaemia) i drugiej z IFG dla sprawdzenia powyższej hipotezy. Materiał i metody: Porównano parametry metaboliczne 1025 kobiet z GDM (śr.wiek 29 lat): stężenie glukozy i insuliny na czczo, stężenie glukozy w 2-godzinnym doustnym teście tolerancji glukozy (OGTT, oral glucose tolerance test), wskaźnik masy ciała (BMI, body mass index) przed ciążą, ilość przebytych ciąż oraz tydzień rozpoznania GDM. Insulinooporność oraz czynność komórek b trzustki oceniono metodą HOMA (HOMA-IR i HOMA-B) przy rozpoznaniu GDM. Wyniki: Grupa IFG GDM (23%) składała się z podgrup z izolowaną IFG (30%), IFG/IGT (60%) oraz IFG/DM (10%). Grupa NFG GDM (77%) skladała się z podgrup z izolowaną IGT (98%) oraz z NFG/DM (2%). Grupa IFG GDM charakteryzowała się wyższym BMI przed ciążą, wcześniejszym rozpoznaniem GDM, większym wskaźnikiem HOMA-IR (p < 0,03) oraz mniejszym wskaźnikiem HOMA-B (p < 0,01) w porównaniu z grupą NFG GDM. W grupie IFG GDM podgrupa z DM charakteryzowała się mniejszym wskaznikiem HOMA-B w porównaniu z izolowaną IFG oraz IFG/IGT. W grupie NFG GDM w podgrupach z izolowaną IGT oraz IGT/DM wskaźniki HOMA-IR oraz HOMA-B nie różniły się istotnie. Wnioski: Występowanie nieprawidłowej glikemii na czczo u kobiet z GDM wyróżnia niekorzystny metabolicznie fenotyp w porównaniu z kobietami z prawidłową glikemią na czczo

Wczesne markery miażdżycy u chorych z nieprawidłową glikemią na czczo

Introduction. It is known that increased plasma glucose, which includes impaired fasting glucose (IFG), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), and diabetes, is a risk factor for atherosclerosis. Individuals with IFG exhibit a higher rate of cardiovascular events compared with those with normal fasting glucose. The aim of the study was to evaluate whether IFG has an influence on early markers of atherosclerosis [intima media thickness (IMT), strain (S, deformation of the vessels wall), and strain rate (Sr, deformation over time)] in common ca­rotid artery (CCA) compare to healthy subjects (without disturbances of glucose metabolism). Patients and methods. A group of 25 dysglycemic patients with IFG and 15 healthy subjects of similar age and gender were examined. Blood analyses and anthropometric measurement [systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and heart rate (HR)] were obtained. Carotid IMT, S, and Sr were measured by tissue Doppler. IFP was diagnosed according to the diagnostic criteria for IFG in Poland. Results. Patients with IFG had higher DBP and IMT of CCA (right and left) compared with control. There was no difference in SBP and HR between patients with IFG and controls. Strain of CCA was decreased in subject with IFG compared with controls and strain rate of CCA was increased in patients with IFG compared with the controls. Conclusion. IFG may have an influence on early markers of atherosclerosis, but further investigations are needed to confirm these observations.Wstęp. Podwyższone stężenie glukozy we krwi, obejmujące nieprawidłową glikemię na czczo (IFG), nietolerancję glukozy i cukrzycę, jest czynnikiem ryzyka miażdżycy. U pacjentów z nieprawidłową glikemią na czczo częstość występowania zdarzeń sercowo-naczyniowych jest większa niż u osób z prawidłową glikemią. Celem badania była ocena, czy IFG ma wpływ na wczesne markery miażdżycy: grubość kompleksu błony wewnętrznej (IMT), odkształcenie ściany naczynia (S) i odkształcenie w jednostce czasu (Sr) w tętnicach szyjnych wspólnych (CCA) w porównaniu z osobami zdrowymi (bez zaburzeń metabolizmu glukozy). Pacjenci i metody. Zbadano 25 chorych z IFG oraz 15 zdrowych osób odpowiednio dobranych pod względem wieku i płci. Od chorych pobrano próbkę krwi oraz dokonano pomiarów skurczowego ciśnienia tętniczego (SBP), rozkurczowego ciśnienia tętniczego (DBP), częstości rytmu serca (HR). Oceny IMT tętnic szyjnych, S, Sr dokonano przy użyciu doplera tkankowego. Rozpo­znania IFG dokonano na podstawie kryteriów rozpoznania obowiązujących w Polsce. Wyniki. Pacjenci z IFG mieli wyższe wartości DBP oraz IMT prawej i lewej CCA w porównaniu z grupą kontrolną. Nie stwierdzono różnicy między SBP i HR w grupie z IFG w porównaniu z grupą kontrolną. Odkształcenie ściany naczynia obu CCA było obniżone w grupie z IFG w porównaniu z grupą kontrolną, Sr był wyższy w grupie z IFG niż w grupie kontrolnej. Wnioski. Nieprawidłowa glikemia na czczo może mieć wpływ na wczesne markery miażdżycy, jednak są potrzebne dalsze badania, by potwierdzić tę obserwację

Adiponectin is Associated with Impaired Fasting Glucose in the Non-Diabetic Population

OBJECTIVES: Adiponectin is strongly associated with diabetes in the Western population. However, whether adiponectin is independently associated with impaired fasting glucose (IFG) in the non-obese population is unknown. METHODS: The serum adiponectin, insulin resistance (IR), and waist circumference (WC) of 27,549 healthy Koreans were measured. Individuals were then classified into tertile groups by gender. IFG was defined as a fasting serum glucose of 100-125 mg/dL without diabetes. IR was calculated using the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). The association of adiponectin and IFG was determined using logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: WC and adiponectin were associated with IFG in both men and women. However, the association of WC with IFG was attenuated in both men and women after adjustment for the HOMA-IR. Adiponectin was still associated with IFG after adjustment for and stratification by HOMA-IR in men and women. Strong combined associations of IR and adiponectin with IFG were observed in men and women. Multivariate adjusted odds ratios (ORs) (95% confidence interval [CI]) among those in the highest tertile of IR and the lowest tertile of adiponectin were 9.8 (7.96 to 12.07) for men and 24.1 (13.86 to 41.94) for women. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that adiponectin is strongly associated with IFG, and point to adiponectin as an additional diagnostic biomarker of IFG in the non-diabetic population.ope