Differences in early and late pattern-onset visual-evoked potentials between self-reported migraineurs and controls

Striped patterns have been shown to induce strong visual illusions and discomforts to migraineurs in previous literature. Previous research has suggested that these unusual visual symptoms to be linked with the hyperactivity on the visual cortex of migraine sufferers. The present study searched for evidence supporting this hypothesis by comparing the visual evoked potentials (VEPs) elicited by striped patterns of specific spatial frequencies (0.5, 3, and 13 cycles-per-degree) between a group of 29 migraineurs (17 with aura/12 without) and 31 non-migraineurs. In addition, VEPs to the same stripped patterns were compared between non-migraineurs who were classified as hyperexcitable versus non-hyperexcitable using a previously established behavioural pattern glare task. We found that the migraineurs had a significantly increased N2 amplitude for stimuli with 13 cpd gratings but an attenuated late negativity (LN: 400 - 500 ms after the stimuli onset) for all the spatial frequencies. Interestingly, non-migraineurs who scored as hyperexcitable appeared to have similar response patterns to the migraineurs, albeit in an attenuated form. We propose that the enhanced N2 could reflect disruption of the balance between parvocellular and magnocellular pathway, which is in support of the cortical hyperexcitation hypothesis in migraineurs. In addition, the attenuation of the late negativity could reflect a top-down feedback mechanism to suppress visual processing of an aversive stimulus

Attenuated alpha oscillation and hyperresponsiveness reveals impaired perceptual learning in migraineurs.

Background: Anomalous phantom visual perceptions coupled to an aversion and discomfort to some visual patterns (especially grating in mid-range spatial frequency) have been associated with the hyperresponsiveness in migraine patients. Previous literature has found fluctuations of alpha oscillation (8-14 Hz) over the visual cortex to be associated with the gating of the visual stream. In the current study, we examined whether alpha activity was differentially modulated in migraineurs in anticipation of an upcoming stimulus as well as post-stimulus periods. Methods: We used EEG to examine the brain activity in a group of 28 migraineurs (17 with aura/11 without) and 29 non-migraineurs and compared their alpha power in the pre/post-stimulus period relative to the onset of stripped gratings. Results: Overall, we found that migraineurs had significantly less alpha power prior to the onset of the stimulus relative to controls. Moreover, migraineurs had significantly greater post-stimulus alpha suppression (i.e event-related desynchronization) induced by the grating in 3 cycles per degree at the 2nd half of the experiment. Conclusions: These findings taken together provide strong support for the presence of the hyperresponsiveness of the visual cortex of migraine sufferers. We speculate that it could be the consequence of impaired perceptual learning driven by the dysfunction of GABAergic inhibitory mechanism

Holistic Processing of Words Modulated by Reading Experience

Perceptual expertise has been studied intensively with faces and object categories involving detailed individuation. A common finding is that experience in fulfilling the task demand of fine, subordinate-level discrimination between highly similar instances is associated with the development of holistic processing. This study examines whether holistic processing is also engaged by expert word recognition, which is thought to involve coarser, basic-level processing that is more part-based. We adopted a paradigm widely used for faces – the composite task, and found clear evidence of holistic processing for English words. A second experiment further showed that holistic processing for words was sensitive to the amount of experience with the language concerned (native vs. second-language readers) and with the specific stimuli (words vs. pseudowords). The adoption of a paradigm from the face perception literature to the study of expert word perception is important for further comparison between perceptual expertise with words and face-like expertise

Decrease in Choroidal Vascularity Index of Haller’s layer in diabetic eyes precedes retinopathy

Introduction The study aimed to evaluate Choroidal Vascularity Index (CVI) of Haller’s and Sattler’s layers and their relationships with choroidal and retinal thickness, volumes measured on enhanced depth imaging–optical coherence tomography (OCT) scans in the eyes of patients without diabetes, patients with diabetes with no diabetic retinopathy (DR) and patients with diabetes and DR.Research design and methods Retrospective analysis of 165 eyes from 84 Singapore Indian Eye Study-2 study participants (group 1: no diabetes, group 2: diabetes with no DR and group 3: with DR). Groups 1 and 2 were matched by age and gender from group 3.Results In the eyes of patients with diabetes without DR, the macular CVI of Haller’s but not Sattler’s layer was significantly reduced compared with eyes of patients without diabetes. Eyes with >5 years of diabetes have significantly decreased CVI of Sattler’s layers (mean difference=0.06 ± 0.10, p=0.04) and also decreased subfoveal choroidal volume (mean difference=0.89 ± 0.16 mm3, p=0.02), compared with those with ≤5 years of diabetes.Conclusion Diabetic eyes without DR had significantly lower CVI of macular Haller’s layer than those of healthy controls. With a longer duration of diabetes, CVI of subfoveal Sattler’s layer and choroidal volume continue to decrease, irrespective of diabetic control, suggesting that early diabetic choroidopathy mainly affects larger choroidal veins initially before medium-sized arterioles. The CVI of macular Haller’s layer could potentially be used as a marker on spectral domain OCT imaging in newly diagnosed patients with diabetes for the onset of DR and as a possible prognostication tool in diabetic eyes. Future prospective longitudinal studies in diabetic eyes would be useful in establishing the relationship between CVIs of Haller’s and Sattler’s layer with visual acuity as a marker of photoreceptor health and visual prognosis

Younger adults tolerate more relational risks in everyday life as revealed by the general risk-taking questionnaire

Abstract A range of self-report questionnaires were developed to quantify one’s risk-taking (RT) tendency. Exploring people’s perceived risk level associated with negative risk behaviors is essential to develop a better understanding and intervention policies for RT. In the present study, we proposed a 2 × 10-item scale, namely, the general risk-taking questionnaire (GRTQ), to evaluate RT tendency and risk attitude among the general population by measuring people’s engagement in and perceptions toward 10 commonly known risky behaviors. A total of 2984 adults residing in 10 prefectures in Japan (age range = 20–59, 53.12% female) provided valid responses to an online survey. Apart from the factor analysis procedures, multivariate negative binomial regression models have been applied to investigate the relationship between RT engagement and perception. We obtained two identical factors, namely, personal risk and relational risk, for both scales of the GRTQ. Increased levels of RT engagement were found in younger, male, nonmarried, nonparent and urban respondents. Despite an overall negative correlation between RT engagement and perception, our model revealed a weaker linkage in the younger population for relational risk behaviors. Overall, we showed evidence that the GRTQ is an easy-to-administer, valid and reliable measure of RT for future clinical research

Circulating Metabolites and Cardiovascular Disease in Asians with Chronic Kidney Disease

10.1159/000533741Cardiorenal Medicine13

Attenuated alpha oscillation and hyperresponsiveness reveals impaired perceptual learning in migraineurs

Background: Anomalous phantom visual perceptions coupled to an aversion and discomfort to some visual patterns (especially grating in mid-range spatial frequency) have been associated with the hyperresponsiveness in migraine patients. Previous literature has found fluctuations of alpha oscillation (8-14 Hz) over the visual cortex to be associated with the gating of the visual stream. In the current study, we examined whether alpha activity was differentially modulated in migraineurs in anticipation of an upcoming stimulus as well as post-stimulus periods. Methods: We used EEG to examine the brain activity in a group of 28 migraineurs (17 with aura /11 without) and 29 non-migraineurs and compared their alpha power in the pre/post-stimulus period relative to the onset of stripped gratings. Results: Overall, we found that migraineurs had significantly less alpha power prior to the onset of the stimulus relative to controls. Moreover, migraineurs had significantly greater post-stimulus alpha suppression (i.e event-related desynchronization) induced by the grating in 3 cycles per degree at the 2nd half of the experiment. Conclusions: These findings, taken together, provide strong support for the presence of the hyperresponsiveness of the visual cortex of migraine sufferers. We speculate that it could be the consequence of impaired perceptual learning driven by the dysfunction of GABAergic inhibitory mechanism

Advancing GCT Management: A Review of miR-371a-3p and Other miRNAs in Comparison to Traditional Serum Tumor Markers

MicroRNAs, short non-protein coding RNAs, are overexpressed in GCTs. Circulating levels of germ cell tumor (GCT)-associated miRNAs, such as miR-371a-3p, can be utilized as efficient and cost-effective alternatives in diagnosing and managing patients presenting with GCTs. This quality of miRNAs has demonstrated favorable performance characteristics as a reliable blood-based biomarker with high diagnostic accuracy compared to current serum tumor markers (STMs), including α-fetoprotein (AFP), beta human chorionic gonadotropin (β-hCG), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH). The conventional STMs exhibit limited specificity and sensitivity. Potential clinical implications of miRNAs include impact on de-escalating or intensifying treatment, detecting recurrence at earlier stages, and lessening the necessity of cross-sectional imaging or invasive tissue biopsy for non-teratomatous GCTs. Here, we also highlight the outstanding issues that must be addressed prior to clinical implementation. Standards for measuring circulating miRNAs and determining ideal cutoff values are essential for integration into current clinical guidelines