Neural Intrinsic timescales in the macaque dorsal premotor cortex predict the strength of spatial response coding

Our brain continuously receives information over multiple timescales that are differently processed across areas. In this study, we investigated the intrinsic timescale of neurons in the dorsal premotor cortex (PMd) of two rhesus macaques while performing a non-match-to-goal task. The task rule was to reject the previously chosen target and select the alternative one. We defined the intrinsic timescale as the decay constant of the autocorrelation structure computed during a baseline period of the task. We found that neurons with longer intrinsic timescale tended to maintain a stronger spatial response coding during a delay period. This result suggests that longer intrinsic timescales predict the functional role of PMd neurons in a cognitive task. Our estimate of the intrinsic timescale integrates an existing hierarchical model (Murray et al., 2014), by assigning to PMd a lower position than prefrontal cortex in the hierarchical ordering of the brain areas based on neurons' timescales

Coding of self and other's future choices in dorsal premotor cortex during social interaction

Representing others’ intentions is central to primate social life. We explored the role of dorsal premotor cortex (PMd) in discriminating between self and others’ behavior while two male rhesus monkeys performed a non-match-to-goal task in a monkey-human paradigm. During each trial, two of four potential targets were randomly presented on the right and left parts of a screen, and the monkey or the human was required to choose the one that did not match the previously chosen target. Each agent had to monitor the other's action in order to select the correct target in that agent's own turn. We report neurons that selectively encoded the future choice of the monkey, the human agent, or both. Our findings suggest that PMd activity shows a high degree of self-other differentiation during face-to-face interactions, leading to an independent representation of what others will do instead of entailing self-centered mental rehearsal or mirror-like activities. Understanding others’ intentions is essential to successful primate social life. Cirillo et al. explore the role of dorsal premotor cortex (PMd) in discriminating between self and others’ behavior while macaques interacted with humans. They show that the majority of neurons encoding the future choice did so selectively for the monkey or the human agent. PMd thus differentiates self from others’ behavior, leading to independent representations of future actions

Pseudo-outbreak of Mycobacterium gordonae in a teaching hospital: importance of strictly following decontamination procedures and emerging issues concerning sterilization

Aim of this study was to investigate a pseudo-outbreak of Mycobacterium gordonae analyzing isolates detected from clinical and environmental samples. Mycobacterium gordonae was detected in 7 out of 497 broncho-alveolar lavage (BAL) samples after bronchoscopy procedure in patients admitted to a teaching hospital between January and April 2013. During this pseudo-outbreak clinical, epidemiological, environmental and molecular investigations were performed. None of the patients met the criteria for non-tuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) lung disease and were treated for M. gordonae lung disease. Environmental investigation revealed M. gordonae in 3 samples: in tap water and in the water supply channel of the washer disinfector. All the isolates were subjected to genotyping by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). The PFGE revealed that only patients' isolates presented the same band pattern but no correlation with the environmental strain was detected. Surveillance of the outbreak and the strict adherence to the reprocessing procedure and its supplies resulted afterwards in no detection of M. gordonae in clinical respiratory samples. Clinical surveillance of patients was crucial to establish the start of NTM treatment. Regular screening of tap water and endoscopic equipment should be adopted to compare the clinical strains with the environmental ones when an outbreak occurs

Colorectal Cancer Stage at Diagnosis Before vs During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy

IMPORTANCE Delays in screening programs and the reluctance of patients to seek medical attention because of the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 could be associated with the risk of more advanced colorectal cancers at diagnosis. OBJECTIVE To evaluate whether the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was associated with more advanced oncologic stage and change in clinical presentation for patients with colorectal cancer. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This retrospective, multicenter cohort study included all 17 938 adult patients who underwent surgery for colorectal cancer from March 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021 (pandemic period), and from January 1, 2018, to February 29, 2020 (prepandemic period), in 81 participating centers in Italy, including tertiary centers and community hospitals. Follow-up was 30 days from surgery. EXPOSURES Any type of surgical procedure for colorectal cancer, including explorative surgery, palliative procedures, and atypical or segmental resections. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was advanced stage of colorectal cancer at diagnosis. Secondary outcomes were distant metastasis, T4 stage, aggressive biology (defined as cancer with at least 1 of the following characteristics: signet ring cells, mucinous tumor, budding, lymphovascular invasion, perineural invasion, and lymphangitis), stenotic lesion, emergency surgery, and palliative surgery. The independent association between the pandemic period and the outcomes was assessed using multivariate random-effects logistic regression, with hospital as the cluster variable. RESULTS A total of 17 938 patients (10 007 men [55.8%]; mean [SD] age, 70.6 [12.2] years) underwent surgery for colorectal cancer: 7796 (43.5%) during the pandemic period and 10 142 (56.5%) during the prepandemic period. Logistic regression indicated that the pandemic period was significantly associated with an increased rate of advanced-stage colorectal cancer (odds ratio [OR], 1.07; 95%CI, 1.01-1.13; P = .03), aggressive biology (OR, 1.32; 95%CI, 1.15-1.53; P < .001), and stenotic lesions (OR, 1.15; 95%CI, 1.01-1.31; P = .03). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE This cohort study suggests a significant association between the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and the risk of a more advanced oncologic stage at diagnosis among patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer and might indicate a potential reduction of survival for these patients

Updating the approaches to define susceptibility and resistance to anti-tuberculosis agents: implications for diagnosis and treatment

11 páginas, 2 figuras, 1 tablaInappropriately high breakpoints have resulted in systematic false-susceptible AST results to anti-TB drugs. MIC, PK/PD and clinical outcome data should be combined when setting breakpoints to minimise the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance.I. Comas was supported by PID2019-104477RB-I00 from the Spanish Science Ministry and by ERC (CoG 101001038)Peer reviewe

Neural activity in macaque medial frontal cortex represents others’ choices

Abstract Predicting the behavior of others is a fundamental skill in primate social life. We tested the role of medial frontal cortex in the prediction of other agents’ behavior in two male macaques, using a monkey-human interactive task in which their actor-observer roles were intermixed. In every trial, the observer monitored the actor’s choice to reject it for a different one when he became the actor on the subsequent trial. In the delay period preceding the action, we identified neurons modulated by the agent’s identity, as well as a group of neurons encoding the agent’s future choice, some of which were neurons that showed differential patterns of activity between agents. The ability of these neurons to flexibly move from ‘self-oriented’ to ‘other-oriented’ representations could correspond to the “other side of the coin” of the simulative mirroring activity. Neurons that changed coding scheme, together with neurons exclusively involved in the prediction of the other agent’s choice, show a neural substrate for predicting or anticipating others’ choices beyond simulation

Dedicated Representation of Others in the Macaque Frontal Cortex: From Action Monitoring and Prediction to Outcome Evaluation

International audienceSocial neurophysiology has increasingly addressed how several aspects of self and other are distinctly represented in the brain. In social interactions, the self-other distinction is fundamental for discriminating one's own actions, intentions, and outcomes from those that originate in the external world. In this paper, we review neurophysiological experiments using nonhuman primates that shed light on the importance of the self-other distinction, focusing mainly on the frontal cortex. We start by examining how the findings are impacted by the experimental paradigms that are used, such as the type of social partner or whether a passive or active interaction is required. Next, we describe the 2 sociocognitive systems: mirror and mentalizing. Finally, we discuss how the self-other distinction can occur in different domains to process different aspects of social information: the observation and prediction of others' actions and the monitoring of others' rewards

Prevalence and molecular characteristics of Staphylococcus aureus, including methicillin resistant strains, isolated from bulk can milk and raw milk products in pastoral communities of South-West Uganda

Abstract Background Staphylococcus aureus strains are now regarded as zoonotic agents. In pastoral settings where human-animal interaction is intimate, multi-drug resistant microorganisms have become an emerging zoonotic issue of public health concern. The study of S. aureus prevalence, antimicrobial resistance and clonal lineages in humans, animals and food in African settings has great relevance, taking into consideration the high diversity of ethnicities, cultures and food habits that determine the lifestyle of the people. Little is known about milk carriage of methicillin resistant S. aureus strains (MRSA) and their virulence factors in Uganda. Here, we present the prevalence of MRSA in bulk can milk and raw milk products in pastoral communities of south-west Uganda. We also present PFGE profiles, spa-types, as well as frequency of enterotoxins genes. Methods S. aureus was identified by the coagulase test, susceptibility testing by the Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion and E-test methods and MRSA by detection of the mecA gene and SCCmec types. The presence of Panton – Valentine Leucocidin (PVL) genes and staphylococcal enterotoxins was determined by PCR, while genotyping was by PFGE and spa typing. Results S. aureus were isolated from 30/148 (20.3%) milk and 11/91(12%) sour milk samples. mecA gene carriage, hence MRSA, was detected in 23/41 (56.1%) of the isolates, with 21 of the 23 (91.3%) being SCCmec type V; while up to 30/41 (73.2%) of the isolates were resistant to tetracycline. Only five isolates carried the PVL virulence gene, while PFGE typing revealed ten clusters (ranging from two seven isolates each) that comprised 83% of the sample, and only eight isolates with unique pulsotypes. The largest PFGE profile (E) consisted of seven isolates while t7753, t1398, and t2112 were the most common spa-types. Thirty seven of the 41 strains (90.2%) showed at least one of the eight enterotoxin genes tested, with sem 29 (70.7%), sei 25 (61%) and seg 21 (51.2%) being the most frequently observed genes. Conclusion This is the first study to demonstrate MRSA and enterotoxin genes in raw milk and its products in Uganda. The fact that over 90% of the isolates carried at least one gene encoding enterotoxins shows a high risk of spread of foodborne diseases through milk in this setting

Molecular epidemiology of Panton-Valentine Leukocidin-positive community-acquired methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolates in pastoral communities of rural south western Uganda

Abstract Background The emergence of multidrug resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains, including methicillin resistant (MRSA), is a global concern. Treatment of bacterial infections in Uganda\u2019s health care settings is largely empirical, rarely accompanied by laboratory confirmation. Here we show the burden, characteristics of MRSA and epidemiology of Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) positive strains in asymptomatic carriers in pastoral households of south-west Uganda. Methods Nasal swabs from 253 participants were cultured following standard methodology. MRSA strains were identified by detection of the mecA gene and SCC mec typing, and PVL genes detected by PCR. Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) was done to evaluate possible transmission patterns. Spa typing of PVL positive isolates was done to study the epidemiology of virulent strains in this setting. Results S. aureus was isolated in 29% ( n \u2009=\u200973) of the participants, of which 48 were MRSA by mecA typing. PVL-encoding genes were found in 49.3% ( n \u2009=\u200936) of the 73 isolates, of which 25 were also mecA positive. Among the PVL negative strains ( n \u2009=\u200937), 62.2% ( n \u2009=\u200923) carried the mecA gene. The most common SCC me c type was V, detected in 39 (18 PVL positive and 21 PVL negative) isolates. PFGE clustered 21/36 (58.3%) PVL positive isolates divided in four pulsotypes and 18/37 (48.6%) PVL negative isolates divided in eight pulsotypes. The most prevalent Spa types were t318 (26.5%, n \u2009=\u20099) and t645 (20.6%, n \u2009=\u20097); while other common Spa types were t11656 ( n \u2009=\u20093), t127 ( n \u2009=\u20093) and t355 ( n \u2009=\u20093). Conclusion The study shows a high prevalence of community acquired (CA)-MRSA, and PVL-positive isolates with two predominant spa types in rural Uganda, further complicating infection control strategies in these underprivileged communities