Perceptual Learning of Fine Contrast Discrimination Under Non-roving, Roving-Without-Flanker, and Roving-with-Flanker Conditions and its Relation to Neuronal Activity in Macaque V1

\ua9 The Author(s) 2024.Perceptual learning refers to an improvement in perceptual abilities with training. Neural signatures of visual perceptual learning have been demonstrated mostly in mid- and high-level cortical areas, while changes in early sensory cortex were often more limited. We recorded continuously from multiple neuronal clusters in area V1 while macaque monkeys learned a fine contrast categorization task. Monkeys performed the contrast discrimination task initially when a constant-contrast sample stimulus was followed by a test stimulus of variable contrast, whereby they had to indicate whether the test was of lower or higher contrast than the sample. This was followed by sessions where we employed stimulus roving; i.e. the contrast of the sample stimulus varied from trial to trial. Finally, we trained animals, under ‘stimulus roving-with-flanker’ conditions, where the test stimuli to be discriminated were flanked by ‘flanking stimuli’. Perceptual discrimination abilities improved under non-roving conditions and under roving-with-flanker conditions as training progressed. Neuronal discrimination abilities improved with training mostly under non-roving conditions, but the effect was modest and limited to the most difficult contrast. Choice probabilities, quantifying how well neural activity is correlated with choice, equally increased with training during non-roving, but not during either of the roving conditions (with and without flankers). Noise correlations changed with training in both monkeys, but the changes were not consistent between monkeys. In one monkey, noise correlations decreased with training for non-roving and both roving conditions. In the other monkey, noise correlations changed for some conditions, but lacked a systematic pattern. Thus, while perceptual learning occurred under non-roving and roving-with-flanker conditions, the changes in neural activity in V1 were overall modest and were essentially absent under the different roving conditions

Conservative treatment for acute ankle sprain : a systematic review

The aim was to identify conservative treatments available for acute ankle sprain and to evaluate their effectiveness with respect to pain relief and short-term recovery of functional capacity. A systematic review of the relevant literature was conducted via a data search of the PROSPERO, PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL, PyscINFO and SPORTDiscus databases, from inception until December 2019, focusing on randomised control trial studies. Two of the authors independently assessed the quality of each study located and extracted the relevant data. The quality of each paper was assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool included in RevMan 5. In all, 20 studies met the inclusion criteria. In terms of absence of bias, only nine papers were classed as “high quality”. Studies (75%) were of low quality in terms of the blinding of participants and personnel and uncertainty in blinding of outcome assessment and all presented one or more other forms of bias. Despite the generally low quality of the studies considered, it can be concluded that conservative treatment for acute ankle sprain normally achieves pain relief and rapidly improved functionality. Research based on higher-quality study designs and procedures would enable more definitive conclusions to be drawn

Traveling Granular Segregation Patterns in a Long Drum Mixer

Mixtures of granular media often exhibit size segregation along the axis of a partially-filled, horizontal, rotating cylinder. Previous experiments have observed axial bands of segregation that grow from concentration fluctuations and merge in a manner analogous to spinodal decomposition. We have observed that a new dynamical state precedes this effect in certain mixtures: bi-directional traveling waves. By preparing initial conditions, we found that the wave speed decreased with wavelength. Such waves appear to be inconsistent with simple PDE models which are first order in time.Comment: 11 page

Implications of zoonotic and vector-borne parasites to free-roaming cats in central Spain

Cats are definitive hosts and reservoirs for several parasites, some of which are responsible for serious zoonotic diseases. We conducted a case-control study of data from a trap-neuter-return (TNR) programme (years 2014-2017) designed to examine the prevalence of zoonotic parasites in free-roaming cats living in urban areas of central Spain. In the animal population tested (n = 263), we detected a 29.2% prevalence of endoparasites, including high rates of cestodes (12.9%) and Toxocara cati (11.7%). While faecal samples showed no Toxoplasma gondii oocysts, the seroprevalence of T. gondii infection was 24.2%. Antibodies to Leishmania infantum were detected in 4.8% of the animals, though all skin and blood samples analyzed were PCR negative for this parasite. Ectoparasites (ticks and fleas) were found in 4.6% of the cat population, and 10.6% of the cats were detected with Otodectes cynotis. Finally, 6.3% and 7.9% cats tested positive for feline leukaemia virus and feline immunodeficiency virus, respectively. Our study provides useful information for animal-welfare and public-health, as the parasites detected can affect native wild animals through predation, competition and disease transmission. Our detection of zoonotic parasites such as L. infantum, T. gondii, T. cati, Giardia duodenalis and several ectoparasites prompts an urgent need for health control measures in stray cats.S

Perceptual learning of fine contrast discrimination changes neuronal tuning and population coding in macaque V4

Perceptual learning, the improvement in perceptual abilities with training, is thought to be mediated by an alteration of neuronal tuning. It remains poorly understood how tuning properties change as training progresses, whether improved stimulus tuning directly links to increased behavioural readout of sensory information, or how population coding mechanisms change with training. Here, we recorded continuously from multiple neuronal clusters in area V4 while macaque monkeys learned a fine contrast categorization task. Training increased neuronal coding abilities by shifting the steepest point of contrast response functions towards the categorization boundary. Population coding accuracy of difficult discriminations resulted largely from an increased information coding of individual channels, particularly for those channels that in early learning had larger ability for easy discriminations, but comparatively small encoding abilities for difficult discriminations. Population coding was also enhanced by specific changes in correlations. Neuronal activity became more indicative of upcoming choices with training

Comparison of Leishmania typing results obtained from 16 European clinical laboratories in 2014

Leishmaniasis is a vector-borne disease which is endemic in 98 countries worldwide [1]. It is caused by protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania, which are transmitted by female sand flies of the genera Lutzomyia and Phlebotomus. Many infected individuals never develop symptoms, but those who do can exhibit various disease manifestations [2]. Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) or kala-azar is the severe form, whereby parasites infect internal organs and the bone marrow, a lethal condition if left untreated. Other disease types are restricted to the skin (cutaneous leishmaniasis, CL) or the mucosae of the nose and mouth (mucosal leishmaniasis, ML). Finally, a particular cutaneous disease sometimes develops in cured VL patients: post kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL). Typically, VL is caused by two species: Leishmania donovani and Leishmania infantum. The latter can also cause CL, as can all other pathogenic species. Some particular species (e.g. L. braziliensis and L. aethiopica) can lead to overt ML. As many as 20 different Leishmania species are able to infect humans, and globally there are over 1 million new disease cases per annum [1,3]. Leishmaniasis is endemic in southern Europe, and in other European countries cases are diagnosed in travellers who have visited affected areas both within the continent and beyond. Although treatment in practice is often guided only by clinical presentation and patient history, in some cases determination of the aetiological subgenus, species complex or species is recommended for providing optimal treatment [2,4,5]. For example, a patient returning from South America with CL might be infected with Leishmania braziliensis, which necessitates systemic drug therapy and counselling about the risk of developing mucosal leishmaniasis in the future. The same patient could also be infected with Leishmania mexicana, which is managed by less intensive treatment and which is not associated with mucosal disease [6]. Determining the infecting species and its probable source permits selection of the correct drug, route of administration (intralesional, oral systemic, or parenteral) and duration [7]. Unfortunately, for CL it is impossible to predict the species responsible for an ulcerating lesion clinically, and the morphology of amastigotes does not differ between species. When the geographical origin of infection is known, for instance when a patient in an endemic region is treated at a local hospital, the species can be guessed often from the known local epidemiology, as species distribution follows a geographical pattern [8]. However, especially in infectious disease clinics that treat patients who have stayed in various endemic countries, the geographic origin of infections may be unknown. For instance, people residing in Europe who have travelled outside Europe may come from, or have also visited, Leishmania-endemic areas within Europe, especially the Mediterranean basin. Even when the location of infection is known, several species can co- circulate in a given endemic area, in which case the species can only be determined by laboratory tests. Culture and subsequent isoenzyme analysis is time consuming and available in very few specialised centres, so it is impractical as a front-line diagnostic test in clinical laboratories. Hence, well-performed reliable molecular methods are necessary for species identification. Several Leishmania typing methods have been published (reviewed in [9]), and as a result each laboratory uses its own preferred assay. The most popular assays nowadays are those that can be applied directly to clinical samples, thereby circumventing the need for parasite isolation and culture. However, few tests have been standardised, and no commercial kits are currently available. As a result, clinical and epidemiological studies make use of various techniques, and in patient management other methods are often deployed. In this study we compare the typing performance in 16 clinical laboratories across Europe, which use a variety of methods for species discrimination

Epidemiological characteristics and diagnostic approach in patients admitted to the emergency room for transient loos of consciousness: Group for Syncope Study in the Emergency Room (GESINUR) study

Aims: To assess the clinical presentation and acute management of patients with transient loss of consciousness (T-LOC) in the emergency department (ED). Methods and results: A multi-centre prospective observational study was carried out in 19 Spanish hospitals over 1 month. The patients included were 14 years old and were admitted to the ED because of an episode of T-LOC. Questionnaires and corresponding electrocardiograms (ECGs) were reviewed by a Steering Committee (SC) to unify diagnostic criteria, evaluate adherence to guidelines, and diagnose correctly the ECGs. We included 1419 patients (prevalence, 1.14%).ECG was performed in 1335 patients (94%) in the ED: 498 (37.3%) ECGs were classified as abnormal. The positive diagnostic yield ranged from 0% for the chest X-ray to 12% for the orthostatic test. In the ED, 1217 (86%) patients received a final diagnosis of syncope, whereas the remaining 202 (14%) were diagnosed of non-syncopal transient lossof consciousness (NST-LOC). After final review by the SC, 1080 patients (76%) were diagnosed of syncope, whereas 339 (24%) were diagnosed of NST-LOC (P , 0.001). Syncope was diagnosed correctly in 84% of patients. Only 25% of patients with T-LOC were admitted to hospitals. Conclusion Adherence to clinical guidelines for syncope management was low; many diagnostic tests were performed with low diagnostic yield. Important differences were observed between syncope diagnoses at the ED and by SC decision

Home parenteral nutrition (HPN) registry in spain for the years 2007, 2008 and 2009 (Nadya-SENPE group)

Objetivo: Comunicar los datos del registro de Nutrición Parenteral Domiciliaria (NPD) del grupo de trabajo NADYA-SENPE de los años 2007, 2008 y 2009. Material y métodos: Recopilación de los datos del registro “on-line” introducidos por las Unidades responsables del seguimiento de la NPD desde el 1 de enero de 2007 al 31 de diciembre de 2009 dividido por años naturales. Resultados: Año 2007: Se registraron 133 pacientes con NPD (61 hombres y 72 mujeres), de 21 hospitales. La edad media de los 119 pacientes mayores de 13 años fue de 53,7 ± 14,9 años, y de 3,6 ± 3,6 años la de los 14 pacientes que no los superaban. La patología más frecuente fue la neoplasia (24%) seguida de las alteraciones de la motilidad intestinal y la enteritis posradiación (ambas 14%). En el 43% de los casos el motivo de indicación fue el síndrome de intestino corto, seguido de malabsorción (27%) y obstrucción intestinal (23%). Los catéteres más utilizados fueron los tunelizados (69%) y los reservorios subcutáneos (27%). Las complicaciones mas frecuentes fueron las sépticas relacionadas con el catéter con una tasa de 0,92 infecciones por cada mil días de NPD. La duración de la NPD fue superior a los dos años en el 50% de los casos. Al acabar el año seguía en activo el 71,4% de los pacientes; la muerte fue la principal causa de la finalización de la NPD (57,5%). El 26% de los pacientes se consideraron candidatos al trasplante intestinal. Año 2008: Se registraron 143 pacientes con NPD (62 hombres y 81mujeres), de 24 hospitales. La edad media de los 133 pacientes mayores de 13 años fue de 54,7 ± 13,9 años, y de 3,7 ± 0,6 años la de los 10 pacientes que no los superaban. La patología más frecuente fue la neoplasia (20%) seguida de la enteritis rádica (14%) y las alteraciones de la motilidad intestinal (13%). En el 44% de los casos el motivo de indicación fue el síndrome de intestino corto, seguido de malabsorción (28%) y obstrucción Nutriintestinal (20%). Los catéteres más utilizados fueron los tunelizados (60%) y los reservorios subcutáneos (29%). Las complicaciones mas frecuentes fueron las sépticas relacionadas con el catéter con una tasa de 0,50 infecciones por cada mil días de NPD. La duración de la NPD fue superior a los dos años en el 67% de los casos. Al acabar el año seguía en activo el 71,6% de los pacientes; la muerte fue la principal causa de la finalización de la NPD (52,4%). El 29% de los pacientes se consideraron candidatos al trasplante intestinal. Año 2009: Se registraron 158 pacientes con NPD (62 hombres y 96 mujeres), de 24 hospitales. La edad media de los 149 pacientes mayores de 13 años fue de 55,2 ± 13,0 años. La patología más frecuente fue la neoplasia (25%) seguida de la enteritis rádica (12%) y las alteraciones de la motilidad intestinal (11%). En el 42% de los casos el motivo de indicación fue el síndrome de intestino corto, seguido de malabsorción y obstrucción intestinal (ambas 23%). Los catéteres más utilizados fueron los tunelizados (60%) y los reservorios subcutáneos (36%). Las complicaciones mas frecuentes fueron las sépticas relacionadas con el catéter con una tasa de 0,67 infecciones por cada mil días de NPD. La duración de la NPD fue superior a los dos años en el 58% de los casos. Al acabar el año seguía en activo el 79,2% de los pacientes; el paso a alimentación oral fue la principal causa de la finalización de la NPD (48%). El 23% de los pacientes se consideraron candidatos a trasplante intestinal. Conclusiones: Se observa un aumento progresivo de los pacientes registrados respecto a años anteriores con una prevalencia muy variable según comunidades autónomas. La principal patología sigue siendo la neoplasia, que ocupa el primer lugar desde 2003. Se aprecia una disminución de las complicaciones sépticas relacionadas con el catéter en los dos últimos años, siendo la tasa de 2008 la más baja desde la creación del registroObjective: To report the data of the Home Parenteral Nutrition (HPN) registry of the NADYA-SENPE working group for the years 2007, 2008 and 2009. Methodology: We compiled the data from the on-line registry introduced by the responsible Units for the monitoring of HPN from January 1st 2007 to December 31st 2009. Included fields were: age, sex, diagnosis and reason for HPN, access path, complications, beginning and end dates, complementary oral or enteral nutrition, activity level, autonomy degree, product and fungible material supply, withdrawal reason and intestinal transplant indication. Results: 2007: 133 patients with HPN were registered (61 males and 72 females), belonging to 21 hospitals. Average age for the 119 patients older than 13 years old was 53.7 ± 14.9 years, and 3.6 ± 3.6 y. for the 14 patients under 14 years old. Most frequent pathology was neoplasm (24%), followed by intestinal motility disorders and actinic enteritis (14% both). The reason for HPN provision was short bowel syndrome (43%), malabsorption (27%), and intestinal obstruction (23%). Tunnelled catheters were mostly used (69%), followed by implanted port-catheters (27%). Catheter related infections were the most frequent complications, with a rate of 0.92 episodes/103 HPN days. HPN was provided for more than two years in 50% of the cases. By the end of 2007, 71.4% of the patients remained active; exitus was the most frequent reason to end HPN (57.5%). 26% of the patients were eligible for intestinal transplant. 2008: 143 patients with HPN were registered (62 males and 81 females), belonging to 24 hospitals. Average age for the 133 patients older than 13 years old was 54.7 ± 13.9 years, and 3.7 ± 0.6 y. for the 10 patients under 14 years old. Most frequent pathology was neoplasm (20%), followed by actinic enteritis (14%) and intestinal motility disorders (13% ). The reason for HPN provision was short bowel syndrome (44%), malabsorption (28%), and intestinal obstruction (20%). Tunnelled catheters were mostly used (60%), followed by implanted port-catheters (29%). Catheter related infections were the most frequent complications, with a rate of 0.50 episodes/103 HPN days. HPN was provided for more than two years in 67% of the cases. By the end of 2008, 71.6% of the patients remained active; exitus was the most frequent reason to end HPN (52.4%). 29% of the patients were eligible for intestinal transplant. 2009: 158 patients with HPN were registered (62 males and 96 females), belonging to 24 hospitals. Average age for the 149 patients older than 13 years old was 55.2 ± 13.0 years. Most frequent pathology was neoplasm (25%), followed by actinic enteritis (12%) and intestinal motility disorders (11%). The reason for HPN provision was short bowel syndrome (42%), malabsorption, and intestinal obstruction (23% both). Tunnelled catheters were mostly used (60%), followed by implanted port-catheters (36%). Catheter related infections were the most frequent complications, with a rate of 0.67 episodes/103 HPN days. HPN was provided for more than two years in 58% of the cases. By the end of 2009, 79.2% of the patients remained active; full oral nutrition was the most frequent reason to end HPN (48%). 23% of the patients were eligible for intestinal transplant. Conclusions: We observe an increase in registered patients with respect to previous years, with a very different prevalence among regions. Neoplasia remains as the main pathology since 2003. We observe a decrease in catheter-related infections in the last two years, being the 2008 rate the smallest since the register’s beginning