Attentional Lapse and Inhibition Control in Adults with Williams Syndrome

Research exploring cognitive processing associated with Williams Syndrome (WS) has suggested that executive functioning deficits exist across the developmental spectrum. Such executive functions include problem solving, planning, dividing attention and inhibiting responses. Within a framework of executive functions, the aim of the current study was to explore attentional lapse and inhibition skills in older adults with WS (n = 20; aged 36–61 yr) and consider the implications of deficits within this group. Participants with WS were compared to typical adults of the same chronological age and typical older adults (aged 65+ yr) to consider attentional changes seen in the ageing process. The study employed a sustained attention to response task known to assess inhibition and attentional lapse but which had not previously been used with this population. Compared to both groups of typical matches, the results indicated atypicalities of attention and inhibition in adults with WS. Specifically, compared to the typical matches, adults with WS failed to withhold a response (showing inhibition deficits), had problems re-engaging attentional control processes after making an error and showed a generalised deficit of concentration and task engagement. We conclude that further attention should be paid to the cognitive capacity of older individuals with WS in order to consider the everyday challenges faced by this group and to provide adequate intervention and support for daily living

Effects of three different biochars on aggregate stability, organic carbon mobility and micronutrient bioavailability

Previous studies have demonstrated both beneficial and detrimental effects on soil properties from biochar incorporation. Several biochars, with different feedstock origins, were evaluated for their effectiveness at improving soil quality of a sandy agricultural soil. A pot trial was used to investigate aggregate stability and microbial activity, pore water trace element mobility and micronutrient concentrations in grain of spring wheat after incorporation of three biochars. The feedstocks for biochar production were selected because they were established UK waste products, namely oversize woody material from green waste composting facilities, and rhododendron and soft wood material from forest clearance operations. Biochars were incorporated into the soil at a rate of 5% v/v. Aggregate stability was improved following addition of oversize biochar whilst microbial activity increased in all treatments. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations in soil pore water from biochar-treated soils were raised, whilst micronutrient concentrations in wheat grain grown in the treated soils were significantly reduced. It was concluded that incorporation of biochar to temperate agricultural soils requires caution as it may result in reductions of essential grain micronutrients required for human health, whilst the effect on aggregate stability may be linked to organic carbon functional groups on biochar surfaces and labile carbon released from the char into the soil system

Brief report: Exploring the relationship between repetitive behaviours and sensory processing in Williams syndrome

This study explored the relationship between sensory processing abnormalities and repetitive behaviours in children with Williams Syndrome (WS; n = 21). This is a novel investigation bringing together two clinical phenomena for the first time in this neuro-developmental disorder. Parents completed the Sensory Profile (Short Form; Dunn in The sensory profile manual. San Antonio: The Psychological Corporation, 1999) and the Repetitive Behaviour Questionnaire (Turner 1995). A significant correlation was evident between the total scores on each of these measures; suggesting that children with WS who exhibit increased sensory processing abnormalities also display a higher number of repetitive behaviours. Further exploratory analyses of subscales of the measures indicated potentially important relationships that suggest a role for arousal regulation in the relationship between sensory processing abnormalities and repetitive behaviours in WS

Glucose enhancement of human memory: A comprehensive research review of the glucose memory facilitation effect

The brain relies upon glucose as its primary fuel. In recent years, a rich literature has developed from both human and animal studies indicating that increases in circulating blood glucose can facilitate cognitive functioning. This phenomenon has been termed the ‘glucose memory facilitation effect’. The purpose of this review is to discuss a number of salient studies which have investigated the influence of glucose ingestion on neurocognitive performance in individuals with (a) compromised neurocognitive capacity, as well as (b) normally functioning individuals (with a focus on research conducted with human participants). The proposed neurocognitive mechanisms purported to underlie the modulatory effect of glucose on neurocognitive performance will also be considered. Many theories have focussed upon the hippocampus, given that this brain region is heavily implicated in learning and memory. Further, it will be suggested that glucose is a possible mechanism underlying the phenomenon that enhanced memory performance is typically observed for emotionally laden stimuli

A Fucus vesiculosus extract inhibits estrogen receptor activation and induces cell death in female cancer cell lines.

BACKGROUND: We previously reported the anti-estrogenic activity of the brown seaweed, Fucus vesiculosus. The present study aimed to further investigate its anti-estrogenic modes of action and to assess other potentially biologically relevant anti-tumorigenic effects in estrogen receptor (ER)-dependent and -independent female cancer cell lines. METHODS: The CALUX® assay was used to determine the effect of a F. vesiculosus extract (FVE) on activation of the ER. Aromatase enzymatic activity was measured to determine the potential effect of FVE on estradiol (E2) biosynthesis. Transcriptional activity profiling of 248 genes involved in cancer, immunity, hormonal regulation, protein phosphorylation, transcription, metabolism, and cellular structure was conducted using the NanoString nCounter® analysis system in FVE-treated breast, ovarian and endometrial cancer cell lines. The effects of FVE on cell viability, morphology, membrane integrity, mitochondrial toxicity, induction of apoptotic and autophagic markers, and cell signaling were also analyzed. RESULTS: In co-treatments with 12.5 pM (EC50) E2, FVE (2 %) reduced ER activation by 50 %, exhibiting potent ER antagonistic effects. FVE inhibited aromatase activity in an in vitro assay (IC50 2.0 %). ER-dependent and -independent cancer cell lines showed significantly decreased viability that correlated with increasing FVE concentrations and altered morphological features suggestive of apoptosis and autophagy. Expression of genes that were significantly altered by FVE (p < 0.05) revealed predominantly apoptotic, autophagic and kinase signaling pathways. FVE also effectively inhibited the phosphorylation of Akt, resulting in reduced mTORC1 activities to stimulate autophagy in cells. Concentration-dependent cleavage of PARP and induction of caspase-3 and -7 activities were observed in MDA-MB-231 cells supporting a role for FVE in the promotion of apoptosis. CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides new insights into the anti-estrogenic activity of F. vesiculosus. Moreover, the induction of autophagy and apoptosis on breast, endometrial and ovarian cancer cell lines suggests additional anti-tumorigenic actions of FVE that are independent of ER status in female cancers

Brief report: how adolescents with ASD process social information in complex scenes. Combining evidence from eye movements and verbal descriptions

We investigated attention, encoding and processing of social aspects of complex photographic scenes. Twenty-four high-functioning adolescents (aged 11–16) with ASD and 24 typically developing matched control participants viewed and then described a series of scenes, each containing a person. Analyses of eye movements and verbal descriptions provided converging evidence that both groups displayed general interest in the person in each scene but the salience of the person was reduced for the ASD participants. Nevertheless, the verbal descriptions revealed that participants with ASD frequently processed the observed person’s emotion or mental state without prompting. They also often mentioned eye-gaze direction, and there was evidence from eye movements and verbal descriptions that gaze was followed accurately. The combination of evidence from eye movements and verbal descriptions provides a rich insight into the way stimuli are processed overall. The merits of using these methods within the same paradigm are discussed

Interpretation of ambiguous situations: evidence for a dissociation between social and physical threat in Williams syndrome

There is increasing evidence that Williams syndrome (WS) is associated with elevated anxiety that is non-social in nature, including generalised anxiety and fears. To date very little research has examined the cognitive processes associated with this anxiety. In the present research, attentional bias for non-social threatening images in WS was examined using a dot-probe paradigm. Participants were 16 individuals with WS aged between 13 and 34 years and two groups of typically developing controls matched to the WS group on chronological age and attentional control ability respectively. The WS group exhibited a significant attention bias towards threatening images. In contrast, no bias was found for group matched on attentional control and a slight bias away from threat was found in the chronological age matched group. The results are contrasted with recent findings suggesting that individuals with WS do not show an attention bias for threatening faces and discussed in relation to neuroimaging research showing elevated amygdala activation in response to threatening non-social scenes in WS

Food for Thought: the Efficiency of Glucose Metabolism Predicts the Self-generation of Temporally Distant Cognition

The generation of thought independent of environmental input occupies almost half of mental life and is important for skills such as creativity and planning. To understand how this ubiquitous cognitive process relates to the brain's ‘energy budget’, a cross-sectional study is carried out to examine how the capacity for mental time travel relates to the efficiency with which adults metabolize glucose, the brain’s primary source of fuel. On day 1 the ability of a group of 36 younger and 36 older individuals to metabolize glucose was assessed using the gold standard two-hour glucose tolerance test. Twenty-four hours later, the same group of participants returned to the laboratory to perform a non-demanding choice reaction time task during which experience sampling was used to assess the frequency with which they generated thoughts that were unrelated to the here and now. Analysis indicated that younger individuals who were the most efficient at metabolizing glucose exhibited mental time travel that spanned longer time periods. Given the importance of self-generated thought in daily life these results suggest that the capacity to mentally simulate events not present in the immediate environment is highly dependent on efficient glucose metabolis

The impact of COVID-19 on anxiety and wellbeing for families of individuals with Special Education Needs and Disabilities in the UK

COVID-19 has affected people across the world. However, it has been suggested that individuals with Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and their families might have been particularly impacted by the first national lockdown in the UK. In contrast to previous studies, the current study examined wellbeing and anxiety at different time points and included a control group matched for family situation. Parents of 402 individuals with SEND reported on their own anxiety and wellbeing as well as that of their son/daughter at three time points (before COVID-19, when COVID-19 pandemic started, and during the national lockdown). In addition, data from 186 typically developing (TD) siblings was obtained. Repeated measures ANOVAs and regression analyses showed that, although both individuals with SEND and their TD siblings showed increased anxiety across the three time points, levels of anxiety were not predicted by age, gender or health. Instead, levels of anxiety in the SEND group, but not the TD siblings, were predicted by awareness about COVID-19, diagnosis of an existing anxiety disorder as well as parental anxiety. In addition, whilst TD individuals were reported to increasingly worry about social related issues as well as family related issues, those with SEND were reported to worry about issues related to school closures. These findings show that COVID-19 impacts the wellbeing of those with SEND differently to that of their TD siblings and that school closures have a particular effect on this group. Further implications for policy impact and interventions are discussed

Imagery Reduces Feelings of Social Anxiety in a Healthy Population

Abstract Negative mental imagery has been shown to be involved in the onset and maintenance of numerous clinical disorders and as a result there has been growing scientific study of the therapeutic role of positive mental imagery, with studies reporting favourable results. However, with regard to social anxiety (SA) disorder the conventional approach to induce positive mental imagery has been suggested to be too demanding due to impairment in the retrieval of such episodes. Therefore, researchers have called for controlled studies to explore alternative inducement techniques with specific focus upon future orientated methods (a method more suitable for patients with SA). In the current study, we compare the conventional inducement technique (past) to a future orientated inducement technique (future) and a control condition (no imagery) and measure the impact upon selfreported levels of anxiety in a non-clinical population. Seventy-Eight younger students were randomly allocated to one of the two imagery inducement techniques or the control condition (and completed anxiety scales before and after imagery inducement or control task). To capture situational anxiety, phobia and broader short and long term (state versus trait) dysfunction the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory were the chosen measures. Results confirmed that positive mental imagery reduces feelings of anxiety and demonstrated, for the first time, the effectiveness of a hypothetical future orientated technique to induce positive mental imagery. These data will provide the groundwork for intervention development in clinical populations with known difficulties capitalising on past based mental imagery