Verbal to visual code switching improves working memory in older adults: an fMRI study

The effect of verbal to visual code switching training on working memory performance was investigated in individuals aged 63 and older. During verbal working memory task performance, the training group (n = 25) was introduced to a verbal to visual code switching strategy while the control group (n = 25) was not exposed to such a strategy. Working memory recognition accuracy was enhanced only in the training group. To explore the neural substrates underlying these strategy effects, fMRI was used to measure brain activity in both groups during working memory task performance before and after an attention training period. In a comparison between pre- and post-training sessions, results showed increased activation in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). Relative to the control group, the post-training group exhibited increased activation in the left and right inferior parietal lobules (IPLs) and right superior parietal lobule (SPL). These findings suggest that use of a verbal to visual code switching strategy may assist older individuals in the maintenance of information in working memory

High working memory performers have efficient eye movement control systems under Reading Span Test

Controlled eye movements are critical in performing highly goal oriented behavior such as text reading. Previous studies have examined the relationship between working memory capacity and eye movement control during working memory task. However, the results were inconsistent, due to a methodological issue including the predictability of target location. In the present study, we used Japanese version of reading span test, where the position of to-be-remembered word is not predictable so that more efficient attentional control is required, and investigated how working memory capacity contributes to eye movement control during reading span test. Results based on total fixation time revealed that highworking memory performers efficiently control or shift their attention under high memory load

Effect of memory load on eye movement control: A study using the reading span test

We investigated the effect of memory load on attentional control using the Reading Span Test (RST), a task that requires working memory capacity. Previous studies have shown that a shortage of working memory resources leads to a deficit of inhibition of taskirrelevant information and that memory load affects eye movement control. Here, we recorded eye movement and integrated it with RST performance. Total fixation time and the number of regressions showed a memory load effect with the to-be-remembered word, and RST performance was also affected under high memory load. We concluded that a shortage of working memory resources caused by memory load prevents flexible eye movement control and may cause a deficit in inhibitory control based on intrusion errors

A novel role of serum cytochrome c as a tumor marker in patients with operable cancer.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate serum cytochrome c (cyto-c) levels as a novel role of tumor marker in patients with operable malignant tumors. METHODS: Serum cyto-c levels and lactate dehydrogenase (LD) activity were measured in a total of 257 cases (232 malignant and 25 benign). To identify the relationship between serum cyto-c and current tumor markers, six variables, such as gender, age, invasion, lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, and LD, were analyzed by uni- and multivariate regression analysis methods. The test performance of serum cyto-c for the prediction of malignant behavior was evaluated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. RESULTS: The serum cyto-c level was significantly higher in patients with malignant tumors than patients with benign tumors (20.6 vs. 15.5 ng/mL; P = 0.017, Mann-Whitney U test). No difference in the levels among subtypes of cancer was found, indicating that the change in serum cyto-c levels reflect cancer individually and not specific subtypes of cancer. The survival in patients with serum cyto-c levels over 40 ng/mL was poor (Kaplan-Meier test, P < 0.0001, Hazard ratio 16.76, 95% confidential interval 4.45-63.04). Multiple linear regression analyses disclosed the close association of serum cyto-c levels with invasion (P = 0.0004), metastasis (P = 0.0262) except for regional lymph node metastasis, and activity of serum LD (P < 0.0001), all of which are well known to represent malignant behavior. Conversely, the measurement of serum cyto-c was verified to have excellent diagnostic accuracy of 0.802 and 0.781 for the detection of invasion and metastasis (the area under curves of the constructed ROCs). CONCLUSION: Serum cyto-c is a potent tumor marker as a predictor for malignant potential in cancers

First-Person Perspective Effects on Theory of Mind without Self-Reference

This study examined dissociations between brain networks involved in theory of mind, which is needed for guessing others' mental states, and the self, which might constitute the basis for theory of mind's development. We used event-related fMRI to compare a condition that required participants to guess the mental state of a subject featured in first-person perspective sentences (1stPP condition) with a third-person perspective sentence condition (3rdPP condition). The caudate nucleus was marginally more activated in the 1stPP than in the 3rdPP condition, while the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) was significantly more activated in the 3rdPP condition as compared to the 1stPP condition. Furthermore, we examined the correlation between activation (signal intensity) of the caudate nucleus and left DLPFC with that of the right DLPFC, which is thought to be closely connected with sense of self. We found a significant correlation between caudate nucleus and right DLPFC activation in the 1stPP condition, and between left and right DLPFC activation in the 3rdPP condition. Although theory of mind and the self both appear to recruit the right DLPFC, this region seems to be accessed through the left DLPFC during theory of mind tasks, but through the caudate nucleus when tasks require self reference

Management of Natural History collections: criteria and parameters of evaluation

[ES] Las colecciones de historia natural son una herramienta básica para la investigación científica y el estudio de la distribución en el pasado de muchas especies, así como de la propia historia de la ciencia. Además del uso científico de estas colecciones, destacan otros como el histórico, el divulgativo-pedagógico y el estético. De ahí la importancia que tiene una gestión eficaz de las mismas, la cual implica diversos aspectos, que van desde la conservación y su mantenimiento, su inventario, ordenación y procesamiento informático hasta las múltiples tareas relacionadas con su uso en consultas, visitas, préstamos científicos y participación en actividades de carácter divulgativo. En este artículo se examinan los criterios para evaluar la gestión de las colecciones de historia natural y se definen una serie de parámetros, útiles para medir el estado de una colección y su evolución en el tiempo, tanto en su crecimiento como en su uso, principalmente. Se ejemplifica todo ello en el grupo de los poliquetos, del que el Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales de Madrid (MNCN) cuenta con una estimable colección, y se comparan los resultados, según varios parámetros seleccionados, con los de otras colecciones de poliquetos de diversas instituciones de todo el mundo.[EN] Natural History collections are a basic and essential tool for scientific research, the study of the distribution in the past of many species of animals and plants and the History of Science. As well as the scientific aspect of these collections, stand outs other uses as the historic one, the educational and the aesthetic. All these are reasons that show the importance of an effective management of the Natural History collections as well as the several tasks related to it, as consults, visits, scientific loans and educational activities. In this article various criteria and useful parameters are provided for evaluating the curatorial state of a Natural History collection and its evolution, both in growth and use mainly. Finally, an example based on the Polychaeta, an estimable group in the Invertebrates Collection of the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales of Madrid (MNCN), is provided. The results of several selected parameters are compared with other Polychaeta collections from several institutions around the world.Peer reviewe

漢字表記語の意味プライミングにおけるワーキングメモリの個人差 : 事象関連電位による検討

本研究は、プライミング・パラダイムを用いて言語認知処理に関わるワーキングメモリの個人差について検討した。日本語の漢字表記語を用いた語彙決定課題により、プライムとターゲットが意味的に関連する条件では、非関連条件よりも反応速度や正確性においてパフォーマンスが向上する意味プライミング効果を観察した。この促進効果は、RST得点によって測定されたワーキングメモリの個人差には影響を受けなかった。しかしながら、大脳の電位変動を表わすERPのN400成分を測定したところ、ワーキングメモリ容量の高い群は、前頭部のいくつかの部位でより大きなピーク振幅値を示した。このことから、意味プライミングの脳内プロセスにワーキングメモリ容量の個人差が関与していることが明らかとなった。また、前頭部のERPの活性領域は、ワーキングメモリの中央実行系との関連性が指摘されている。本研究においては、ワーキングメモリの個人差が、認知過程のモニタリング機能や制御機能に由来する可能性を示唆する結果が示された

Anterior Medial Prefrontal Cortex Exhibits Activation during Task Preparation but Deactivation during Task Execution

BACKGROUND: The anterior prefrontal cortex (PFC) exhibits activation during some cognitive tasks, including episodic memory, reasoning, attention, multitasking, task sets, decision making, mentalizing, and processing of self-referenced information. However, the medial part of anterior PFC is part of the default mode network (DMN), which shows deactivation during various goal-directed cognitive tasks compared to a resting baseline. One possible factor for this pattern is that activity in the anterior medial PFC (MPFC) is affected by dynamic allocation of attentional resources depending on task demands. We investigated this possibility using an event related fMRI with a face working memory task. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Sixteen students participated in a single fMRI session. They were asked to form a task set to remember the faces (Face memory condition) or to ignore them (No face memory condition), then they were given 6 seconds of preparation period before the onset of the face stimuli. During this 6-second period, four single digits were presented one at a time at the center of the display, and participants were asked to add them and to remember the final answer. When participants formed a task set to remember faces, the anterior MPFC exhibited activation during a task preparation period but deactivation during a task execution period within a single trial. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The results suggest that the anterior MPFC plays a role in task set formation but is not involved in execution of the face working memory task. Therefore, when attentional resources are allocated to other brain regions during task execution, the anterior MPFC shows deactivation. The results suggest that activation and deactivation in the anterior MPFC are affected by dynamic allocation of processing resources across different phases of processing

ジョウ チョウキュウ ニホンゴ ガクシュウシャ ニオケル ハツワブンセキ ハツワ ナイヨウ リョウイキ トノ カカワリ カラ

本研究は、上・超級日本語学習者の発話の特徴を明らかにすることを目指し、ACTFL (全米外国語教育協会)から日本語の OPI テスト(口頭面接テスト)のテスター認定を受けた試験官が行なったものである。OPI テストの録音テープから、超級、上級の上・中・下の各々の典型的なものを選んで分析対象とし、母語話者とも比較した。まず、話題の種類と述べ方から発話内容領域という概念を設け、それを3つの領域---I.身近な具体的事実を直接的に言う、II.個人的一般的関心事の具体的事実を詳述する、III.抽象的内容を論じる--- に分けた。各被験者の発話について、この発話内容領域を軸として、試験官の要求への対応・発話の構成・談話の形・文法能力(語彙の広がり、誤用、言い直し、接続表現)を分析した結果、上・超級話者の各レベルの発話の特徴を具体的に示した。また、上級から超級への移行の過程が明らかになった。全分析項目において、なだらかな発達がみられるわけではなく、発話の構成・抽象的表現の使用・言い直し・接続表現・誤用などの項目では、上級と超級で大きい違いがみられた。また、発話内容領域によっても、レベル差が大きく現れる項目が異なっていた。これらの結果から、いくつかの分析項目では、ACTFL-OPI の基準で示されているレベル変化とは異なる、大きく変化する段階があることも分かった。さらに今回行なった母語話者との比較から、超級話者のほうが母語話者より論理的に話したり、和語を多く使用することが認められた。This research was conducted by a group of Japanese-language Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) testers certified by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). The purpose of the research is to clarify major characteristics of advanced- and superior-level non-native speakers. This research began by selecting tapes that represent typical lower advanced, middle advanced, upper advanced, and superior speech for detailed analysis. Tapes of Japanese native speakers were also selected and included for comparison. This article first categorizes the topics or themes of conversation into three fields: (1) predictable, familiar topics; (2) topics of personal general interest; and (3) wide range of general-interest topics. Second, in relation to these categorized content fields, this research explains the discourse structure, the rate of success in structuring an extended discourse and a paragraph, the variety of conjunctions, kango, and wago used,idiomatic expressions and onomatopoeic words used, and the number and the types of self-corrections. The result of this research shows a clear picture of major characteristics of advanced and superior-level speakers. It also suggests the feature of the progress from advanced to superior levels. Distinct difference was observed between advanced and superior level speakers in discourse structure, usage of abstract expressions, self-corrections, usage of conjunctions, and grammatical mistakes. In case of accomplishments of the tasks and the text types in treating the second field theme, clear difference was observed between advanced-low and advanced-mid speakers. Whereas in case of the text types in treating the third field theme, there was a clear distinction between advanced-mid and advanced-high speakers. The above results suggest the existence of some other levels than the one described in OPI criteria

Effect of intentional bias on agency attribution of animated motion: an event-related FMRI study.

Animated movements of simple geometric shapes can readily be interpreted as depicting social events in which animate agents are engaged in intentional activity. However, the brain regions associated with such intention have not been clearly elucidated. In this study, intentional bias was manipulated using shape and pattern animations while measuring associated brain activity using event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Twenty-five higher-intention involved and twenty-five lower-intention involved animations were presented to participants. Behavioral results showed that the degree of agency attribution of the mental state increased as intentional involvement increased. fMRI results revealed that the posterior superior temporal sulcus (STS), inferior temporal gyrus (ITG), inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), premotor, temporal pole, supramarginal gyrus, and superior parietal lobule (SPL) were activated while participants viewed the high-intention animations. In contrast, occipital, lingual, and middle frontal gyri were activated while the participants viewed the low-intention animations. These findings suggest that as agent attribution increases, the visual brain changes its functional role to the intentional brain and becomes a flexible network for processing information about social interaction