Embodied perspective-taking indicated by selective disruption from aberrant self motion

Spatial perspective-taking that involves imagined changes in one’s spatial orientation is facilitated by vestibular stimulation inducing a congruent sensation of self-motion. We examined further the role of vestibular resources in perspective-taking by evaluating whether aberrant and conflicting vestibular stimulation impaired perspective-taking performance. Participants (N = 39) undertook either an “own body transformation” (OBT)task, requiring speeded spatial judgments made from the perspective of a schematic figure, or a control task requiring reconfiguration of spatial mappings from one’s own visuo-spatial perspective. These tasks were performed both without and with vestibular stimulation by whole-body Coriolis motion, according to a repeated measures design, balanced for order. Vestibular stimulation was found to impair performance during the first minute post stimulus relative to the stationary condition. This disruption was task-specific, affecting only the OBT task and not the control task, and dissipated by the second minute post-stimulus. Our experiment thus demonstrates selective temporary impairment of perspective-taking from aberrant vestibular stimulation, implying that uncompromised vestibular resources are necessary for efficient perspective-taking. This finding provides evidence for an embodied mechanism for perspective-taking whereby vestibular input contributes to multisensory processing underlying bodily and social cognition. Ultimately, this knowledge may contribute to the design of interventions that help patients suffering sudden vertigo adapt to the cognitive difficulties caused by aberrant vestibular stimulation

Characterization of basal and lipopolysaccharide-induced microRNA expression in equine peripheral blood mononuclear cells using Next-Generation Sequencing

The innate immune response to lipopolysaccharide contributes substantially to the morbidity and mortality of gram-negative sepsis. Horses and humans share an exquisite sensitivity to lipopolysaccharide and thus the horse may provide valuable comparative insights into this aspect of the inflammatory response. MicroRNAs, small non-coding RNA molecules acting as post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression, have key roles in toll-like receptor signaling regulation but have not been studied in this context in horses. The central hypothesis of this study was that lipopolysaccharide induces differential microRNA expression in equine peripheral blood mononuclear cells in a manner comparable to humans. Illumina Next Generation Sequencing was used to characterize the basal microRNA transcriptome in isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy adult horses, and to evaluate LPS-induced changes in microRNA expression in cells cultured for up to four hours. Selected expression changes were validated using quantitative reverse-transcriptase PCR. Only miR-155 was significantly upregulated by LPS, changing in parallel with supernatant tumor necrosis factor-α concentration. Eight additional microRNAs, including miR-146a and miR-146b, showed significant expression change with time in culture without a clear LPS effect. Target predictions indicated a number of potential immunity-associated targets for miR-155 in the horse, including SOCS1, TAB2 and elements of the PI3K signaling pathway, suggesting that it is likely to influence the acute inflammatory response to LPS. Gene alignment showed extensive conservation of the miR-155 precursor gene and associated promoter regions between horses and humans. The basal and LPS-stimulated microRNA expression pattern characterized here were similar to those described in human leukocytes. As well as providing a resource for further research into the roles of microRNAs in immune responses in horses, this will facilitate inter-species comparative study of the role of microRNAs in the inflammatory cascade during endotoxemia and sepsis

Prevalence of feline bartonellosis and multilocus sequence typing of Bartonella henselae isolates in urban stray cats living in Milan, Italy

Cat scratch disease is a worldwide zoonosis caused predominatly by Bartonella henselae and in a lesser extent by B. clarridgeiae. Cats are the natural reservoir and vectors for B. henselae and B. clarridgeiae infections in humans. Genetic heterogeneity of B. henselae strains has been reported and multiple sequence types (STs) have been identified by the use of multilocus sequence typing (MLST). Particular sequence types have been more frequently associated with zoonosis than others. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of B. henselae and B. clarridgeiae infection in stray cats from Milan, Italy and to explore the genotypes of the B. henselae population for the evaluation of the potential risk of transmission to humans. Whole blood samples collected from 89 stray cats were cultured and analyzed by PCR. Sequence types of the feline B. henselae isolates were delineated using MLST. Bartonella henselae was detected in four (4.5%) cats and B. clarridgeiae was detected in one (1.1%) cat by PCR on blood samples. Coinfection by B. henselae type I and type II was identified in one cat. Four B. henselae isolates were cultured and were characterized as ST1 (2/4), ST5 (1/4) and ST8 (1/4), that are more commonly regarded as human associated or zoonosis associated STs. Typical feline associated B. henselae STs were not observed. Despite the low prevalence of B. henselae infection in stray cats from Milan, further investigation are needed to assess the risk for human health