Mind wandering and task-focused attention: ERP correlates

Previous studies looking at how Mind Wandering (MW) impacts performance in distinct Focused Attention (FA) systems, using the Attention Network Task (ANT), showed that the presence of pure MW thoughts did not impact the overall performance of ANT (alert, orienting and conflict) performance. However, it still remains unclear if the lack of interference of MW in the ANT, reported at the behavioral level, has a neurophysiological correspondence. We hypothesize that a distinct cortical processing may be required to meet attentional demands during MW. The objective of the present study was to test if, given similar levels of ANT performance, individuals predominantly focusing on MW or FA show distinct cortical processing. Thirty-three healthy participants underwent an EEG high-density acquisition while they were performing the ANT. MW was assessed following the ANT using an adapted version of the Resting State Questionnaire (ReSQ). The following ERP's were analyzed: pN1, pP1, P1, N1, pN, and P3. At the behavioral level, participants were slower and less accurate when responding to incongruent than to congruent targets (conflict effect), benefiting from the presentation of the double (alerting effect) and spatial (orienting effect) cues. Consistent with the behavioral data, ERP's waves were discriminative of distinct attentional effects. However, these results remained true irrespective of the MW condition, suggesting that MW imposed no additional cortical demand in alert, orienting, and conflict attention tasks.Acknowledgements Óscar F. Gonçalves was funded by the Brazilian National Counsel for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) as a Special Visiting Researcher of the Science Without Borders program (401143/2014-7). Paulo S Boggio was funded by a CNPq researcher fellowship (311641/2015-6). Olivia Morgan Lapenta and Tatiana Conde were supported by two postdoctoral grants from CNPq (150249/2017-9 and 152358/2016-1). Sandra Carvalho was funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) with the grant IF/00091/2015. Gabriel Rêgo was supported by a PhD grant from Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP-2015/18713-9). This work was partially supported by FEDER funds through the Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade – COMPETE and by national funds through FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (P2020-PTDC/MHC-PCN/3950/2014).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Differential Sources for 2 Neural Signatures of Target Detection: An Electrocorticography Study.

Electrophysiology and neuroimaging provide conflicting evidence for the neural contributions to target detection. Scalp electroencephalography (EEG) studies localize the P3b event-related potential component mainly to parietal cortex, whereas neuroimaging studies report activations in both frontal and parietal cortices. We addressed this discrepancy by examining the sources that generate the target-detection process using electrocorticography (ECoG). We recorded ECoG activity from cortex in 14 patients undergoing epilepsy monitoring, as they performed an auditory or visual target-detection task. We examined target-related responses in 2 domains: high frequency band (HFB) activity and the P3b. Across tasks, we observed a greater proportion of electrodes that showed target-specific HFB power relative to P3b over frontal cortex, but their proportions over parietal cortex were comparable. Notably, there was minimal overlap in the electrodes that showed target-specific HFB and P3b activity. These results revealed that the target-detection process is characterized by at least 2 different neural markers with distinct cortical distributions. Our findings suggest that separate neural mechanisms are driving the differential patterns of activity observed in scalp EEG and neuroimaging studies, with the P3b reflecting EEG findings and HFB activity reflecting neuroimaging findings, highlighting the notion that target detection is not a unitary phenomenon

Gender bias in academia: a lifetime problem that needs solutions

Despite increased awareness of the lack of gender equity in academia and a growing number of initiatives to address issues of diversity, change is slow and inequalities remain. A major source of inequity is gender bias, which has a substantial negative impact on the careers, work-life balance, and mental health of underrepresented groups in science. Here, we argue that gender bias is not a single problem but manifests as a collection of distinct issues that impact researchers' lives. We disentangle these facets and propose concrete solutions that can be adopted by individuals, academic institutions, and society

Intravitreal Anti-VEGF Therapy in the Management of Diabetic Macular Edema

Diabetic macular edema (DME), an ocular complication of diabetes mellitus, can potentially lead to devastating visual outcomes. Traditionally, laser photocoagulation has been the gold standard in the management of this condition. Over the recent years, however, several landmark clinical trials have shown beneficial effects of anti-VEGF agents over both sham injections and laser photocoagulation. These results have led to the wide adoption of intravitreal anti-VEGF therapy in DME treatment. Currently, two anti-VEGF agents, ranibizumab and aflibercept, are FDA approved in the United States for the management of DME. Recently, the Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network released its protocol T results showing that compared to bevacizumab and ranibizumab, aflibercept yielded significantly better outcomes in patients with visual acuity (VA) of 20/50 or worse at baseline. Among patients with baseline VA better than 20/50, however, all three anti-VEGF drugs had comparable results