Modulating Applied Task Performance via Transcranial Electrical Stimulation

Basic and applied research are increasingly adopting transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) for modulating perceptual, cognitive, affective, and motor processes. Industry and defense applications of tES hold potential for accelerating training and knowledge acquisition and sustaining work-related performance in the face of fatigue, workload, and stress. This mini-review article describes the promises and perils of tES, and reviews research testing its influence on two broad applied areas: sustaining and dividing attention, and operating in virtual environments. Also included is a discussion of challenges related to viable mechanistic explanations for tES effectiveness, attempts at replication and consideration of null results, and the potential importance of individual differences in predicting tES influences on human performance. Finally, future research directions are proposed to address these challenges and help develop a fuller understanding of tES viability for enhancing real-world performance

Standardization of blood smears prepared in transparent acetate : an alternative method for the microscopic diagnosis of malaria

Background: Due to students’ initial inexperience, slides are frequently broken and blood smears are damaged in microscopy training, leading to the need for their constant replacement. To minimize this problem a method of preparing blood smears on transparent acetate sheets was developed with the goal of implementing appropriate and more readily available teaching resources for the microscopic diagnosis of malaria. Methods: Acetate sheets derived from polyester were used to standardize the preparation and staining of thin and thick blood smears on transparent acetate sheets. Thick and thin blood smears were also prepared using the conventional method on glass slides. The staining was conducted using Giemsa staining for the thick and thin smears. Results: Microscopic examination (1,000x) of the thin and thick blood smears prepared on transparent acetate produced high-quality images for both the parasites and the blood cells. The smears showed up on a clear background and with minimal dye precipitation. It was possible to clearly identify the main morphological characteristics of Plasmodium, neutrophils and platelets. After 12 months of storage, there was no change in image quality or evidence of fungal colonization. Conclusion: Preparation of thin and thick blood smears in transparent acetate for the microscopic diagnosis of malaria does not compromise the morphological and staining characteristics of the parasites or blood cells. It is reasonable to predict the applicability of transparent acetate in relevant situations such as the training of qualified professionals for the microscopic diagnosis of malaria and the preparation of positive specimens for competency assessment (quality control) of professionals and services involved in the diagnosis of malaria

Caffeine and Placebo Improved Maximal Exercise Performance Despite Unchanged Motor Cortex Activation and Greater Prefrontal Cortex Deoxygenation

Caffeine (CAF) is an ergogenic aid used to improve exercise performance. Independent studies have suggested that caffeine may have the ability to increase corticospinal excitability, thereby decreasing the motor cortex activation required to generate a similar motor output. However, CAF has also been suggested to induce a prefrontal cortex (PFC) deoxygenation. Others have suggested that placebo (PLA) may trigger comparable effects to CAF, as independent studies found PLA effects on motor performance, corticospinal excitability, and PFC oxygenation. Thus, we investigated if CAF and CAF-perceived PLA may improve motor performance, despite the likely unchanged MC activation and greater PFC deoxygenation. Nine participants (26.4 ± 4.8 years old, VO2MAX of 42.2 ± 4.6 mL kg-1 min-1) performed three maximal incremental tests (MITs) in control (no supplementation) and ∼60 min after CAF and PLA ingestion. PFC oxygenation (near-infrared spectroscopy at Fp1 position), MC activation (EEG at Cz position) and vastus lateralis and rectus femoris muscle activity (EMG) were measured throughout the tests. Compared to control, CAF and PLA increased rectus femoris muscle EMG (P = 0.030; F = 2.88; d = 0.84) at 100% of the MIT, and enhanced the peak power output (P = 0.006; F = 12.97; d = 1.8) and time to exhaustion (P = 0.007; F = 12.97; d = 1.8). In contrast, CAF and PLA did not change MC activation, but increased the PFC deoxygenation as indicated by the lower O2Hb (P = 0.001; F = 4.68; d = 1.08) and THb concentrations (P = 0.01; F = 1.96; d = 0.7) at 80 and 100% the MIT duration. These results showed that CAF and CAF-perceived PLA had the ability to improve motor performance, despite unchanged MC activation and greater PFC deoxygenation. The effectiveness of CAF as ergogenic aid to improve MIT performance was challenged

Predominance of Rotavirus P[4]G2 in a Vaccinated Population, Brazil

We identified 21 rotaviruses in 129 patients with diarrhea in a Brazilian city with high rotavirus vaccine coverage. All rotaviruses were genotype P[4]G2 with 1 mixed infection with P[NT]G9. Although virus predominance could have occurred randomly, the vaccine may be less protective against P[4]G2. Prospective surveillance is urgently needed

Predominance of rotavirus P[4]G2 in a vaccinated population, Brazil

We identified 21 rotaviruses in 129 patients with diarrhea in a Brazilian city with high rotavirus vaccine coverage. All rotaviruses were genotype P[4]G2 with 1 mixed infection with P[NT]G9. Although virus predominance could have occurred randomly, the vaccine may be less protective against P[4]G2. Prospective surveillance is urgently needed

Nootropic effects of LSD: Behavioral, molecular and computational evidence

The therapeutic use of classical psychedelic substances such as d-lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) surged in recent years. Studies in rodents suggest that these effects are produced by increased neural plasticity, including stimulation of the mTOR pathway, a key regulator of metabolism, plasticity, and aging. Could psychedelic-induced neural plasticity be harnessed to enhance cognition? Here we show that LSD treatment enhanced performance in a novel object recognition task in rats, and in a visuo-spatial memory task in humans. A proteomic analysis of human brain organoids showed that LSD affected metabolic pathways associated with neural plasticity, including mTOR. To gain insight into the relation of neural plasticity, aging and LSD-induced cognitive gains, we emulated the experiments in rats and humans with a neural network model of a cortico-hippocampal circuit. Using the baseline strength of plasticity as a proxy for age and assuming an increase in plasticity strength related to LSD dose, the simulations provided a good fit for the experimental data. Altogether, the results suggest that LSD has nootropic effects.This project was supported by the Beckley Foundation; Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) – Finance Code 001, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) (grants 308775/2015-5 and 408145/2016-1), São Paulo Research Foundation grants (2013/07699-0, 2014/10068-4, 2017/25588-1 and 2019/00098-7), intramural grants from D'Or Institute and Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, and a Juan de la Cierva-Incorporación Scholarship (IJCI-2016-27864) from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, and a Newton International Fellowship from the Royal Society.Peer reviewe

Global Spatial Risk Assessment of Sharks Under the Footprint of Fisheries

Effective ocean management and conservation of highly migratory species depends on resolving overlap between animal movements and distributions and fishing effort. Yet, this information is lacking at a global scale. Here we show, using a big-data approach combining satellite-tracked movements of pelagic sharks and global fishing fleets, that 24% of the mean monthly space used by sharks falls under the footprint of pelagic longline fisheries. Space use hotspots of commercially valuable sharks and of internationally protected species had the highest overlap with longlines (up to 76% and 64%, respectively) and were also associated with significant increases in fishing effort. We conclude that pelagic sharks have limited spatial refuge from current levels of high-seas fishing effort. Results demonstrate an urgent need for conservation and management measures at high-seas shark hotspots and highlight the potential of simultaneous satellite surveillance of megafauna and fishers as a tool for near-real time, dynamic management