Air pollution, cognitive deficits and brain abnormalities: a pilot study with children and dogs

Exposure to air pollution is associated with neuroinflammation in healthy children and dogs in Mexico City. Comparative studies were carried out in healthy children and young dogs similarly exposed to ambient pollution in Mexico City. Children from Mexico City (n: 55) and a low polluted city (n:18) underwent psychometric testing and brain magnetic resonance imaging MRI. Seven healthy young dogs with similar exposure to Mexico City air pollution had brain MRI, measurement of mRNA abundance of two inflammatory genes cyclooxygenase-2, and interleukin 1 beta in target brain areas, and histopathological evaluation of brain tissue. Children with no known risk factors for neurological or cognitive disorders residing in a polluted urban environment exhibited significant deficits in a combination of fluid and crystallized cognition tasks. Fifty-six percent of Mexico City children tested showed prefrontal white matter hyperintense lesions and similar lesions were observed in dogs (57%). Exposed dogs had frontal lesions with vascular subcortical pathology associated with neuroinflammation, enlarged Virchow-Robin spaces, gliosis, and ultrafine particulate matter deposition. Based on the MRI findings, the prefrontal cortex was a target anatomical region in Mexico City children and its damage could have contributed to their cognitive dysfunction. The present work presents a groundbreaking, interdisciplinary methodology for addressing relationships between environmental pollution, structural brain alterations by MRI, and cognitive deficits/delays in healthy children.     

生命史理论：进化视角下的生命发展观

传统的心理学研究很少从发展角度系统地考察童年早期经历和个体生物性发展之间的关系。然而，以进化理论为基础的生命史理论的研究表明，个体的幼年环境会影响一系列生命史事件的出现和持续时间。其要义在于，为了最大限度地成功繁衍，个体会根据环境线索来做出关乎生存和繁衍的具有适应性的权衡。特别地，性成熟时间是生命史理论区别于其他人类发展理论的核心变量。未来的研究一方面需要深入挖掘人类社会规范在生命史权衡中的意义，另一方面还要继续探索实证研究的新方法。     

Re-evaluating the extractive foraging hypothesis

In his seminal 1992 paper, Dunbar examined three hypotheses advanced to explain primate intelligence, arguing that whereas his social group size hypothesis was supported, neither of two ecological hypotheses, the extractive foraging and frugivory hypotheses, were supported. Following this, and Dunbar's subsequently elaborated argument, many investigators concluded that primate intelligence arose as social rather than ecological adaptations. This paper questions Dunbar's characterization of extractive foraging and social intelligence as alternative hypotheses, raises sampling issues about Dunbar's brain data, species choice, and measurement of extractive foraging. It summarizes the extractive foraging hypothesis, and counters its critics. It reexamines the hypothesis in light of recent behavioral and brain data, new methodology for quantifying extractive foraging, and a new phylogeny of primate intelligence. It concludes that the extractive foraging hypothesis is now supported by several converging lines of evidence.     

A bio-inspired model of behavior considering decision-making and planning,spatial attention and basic motor commands processes

Cognitive architectures (CA) are an IA approach to implement computer systems with human-like behavior. Fundamental exhibited human capabilities include planning and decision-making. In that regard, numerous AI systems successfully exhibit human-like behavior but are limited to either achieving specific objectives or are restrained to too heavily constrained environments, which makes them unsuitable in the presence of unforeseen situations where autonomy is required. To try to alleviate the problem, we present a bio-inspired computational model to solve the autonomous navigation problem of a computational entity in a controlled context. This proposal is the result of the interaction between planning and decision-making, spatial attention and the motor cognitive functions. The proposed model is based on neuroscientific evidence concerning the involved cognitive functions and is part of a more general cognitive architecture. In the case study developed to validate our idea, we can see that the processes previously identified play an important role to accomplish spatial navigation. In the case study presented, an agent achieves the navigation over an unexplored maze from an initial to a final position successfully. The reunited results motivate us to continue improving our model considering attentional information to influence the agent’s motor behavior.     

Implicit processing of emotional words by children with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: An fMRI investigation

Background/ObjectiveIn the last decade, socio-political violence in Colombia (South America) has created an environment of extreme/chronic stress. In this study, brain imaging technology (fMRI) and behavioral task performance were used to measure potential deficits in executive functioning for emotional processing in Colombian children.MethodParticipants (22 Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD and 22 neurotypical, NT) were asked to perform a word task with implicit emotional salience, which required them to report the color of the ink in which a positive, negative or neutral word was printed.ResultsMixed design analysis of variance showed no group differences in accuracy for determining ink color when presented as a positive or neutral word. However, PTSD children were significantly less accurate (negative words) and notably slower (both positive and negative words) at determining ink color when presented in the context of an emotional word. PTSD processing of positive and negative words was associated with hypoactivation in the superior and middle frontal gyri of the right hemisphere in comparison to NT children.ConclusionsThese results may reflect a deficit in executive functioning for emotionally laden stimuli, perhaps induced as a by-product of their traumatic experiences.     

Bilinguals who stutter: A cognitive perspective

PurposeBrain differences, both in structure and executive functioning, have been found in both developmental stuttering and bilingualism. However, the etiology of stuttering remains unknown. The early suggestion that stuttering is a result of brain dysfunction has since received support from various behavioral and neuroimaging studies that have revealed functional and structural brain changes in monolinguals who stutter (MWS). In addition, MWS appear to show deficits in executive control. However, there is a lack of data on bilinguals who stutter (BWS). This literature review is intended to provide an overview of both stuttering and bilingualism as well as synthesize areas of overlap among both lines of research and highlight knowledge gaps in the current literature.MethodsA systematic literature review on both stuttering and bilingualism studies was conducted, searching for articles containing “stuttering” and/or “bilingualism” and either “brain”, “executive functions”, “executive control”, “motor control”, “cognitive reserve”, or “brain reserve” in the PubMed database. Additional studies were found by examining the reference list of studies that met the inclusion criteria.ResultsA total of 148 references that met the criteria for inclusion in this paper were used in the review. A comparison of the impact of stuttering or bilingualism on the brain are discussed.ConclusionPrevious research examining a potential bilingual advantage for BWS is mixed. However, if such an advantage does exist, it appears to offset potential deficits in executive functioning that may be associated with stuttering.     

Working memory in very-low-birthweight children at the age of 11 years

The aim of this study is to investigate the working memory (WM) of very-low-birthweight (VLBW, ≤ 1500 g) children at the age of 11 years using Baddeley’s WM model. A regional cohort of 95 VLBW children was assessed for the domains of the WM model (central executive [CE], visuospatial sketchpad [VS], and phonological loop [PL]) using subtests from the Working Memory Test Battery for Children (WMTB-C) and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children – Fourth Edition (WISC-IV). VLBW children were categorized into three groups according to their degree of brain pathology (normal, minor, or major) in neonatal brain magnetic resonance imaging at the term age, and the WM performance was compared between groups to test norms. The structure of the WM model was studied by analyzing correlations among domains. Even VLBW children with normal cognitive development (general ability index ≥ 85) performed worse compared to the test norms (M = 100, SD = 15) on CE (M = 87.64, SD = 20.54, p < .001) and VS (M = 91.65, SD = 11.03, p < .001), but their performance on PL was above the norm (M = 110.79, SD = 13.79, p < .001). VLBW children with major brain pathology performed significantly worse on VS and PL compared to the other groups. The correlations among the WM domains of the VLBW children differ from earlier findings in normative populations. To conclude, the WM of the VLBW children in the study differ—especially in the CE and VS subtest scores—from the normative population irrespective of the degree of brain pathology and level of cognitive development.     

Response to commentaries on discussion paper Gene–environment interdependence

There is a high measure of agreement on the key issues concerning gene–environment interdependence. Contrary to arguments on the need for direct exact replication of findings, it is suggested that “robust” replication using the same constructs is needed. RCTs have an important role for testing for environmental mediation but cannot be used for environmental risks in childhood that show G×E in relation to adult outcomes. Instead, greater use needs to be made of natural experiments. Experimental methods are needed to study biological mediating mechanisms and these should include both animal models and human brain imaging studies. In addition to further research on G×E, further studies of gene–environment correlations are required. Many challenges remain but the future for gene–environment interdependence is bright.     

How reading acquisition changes children’s spoken language network

To examine the influence of age and reading proficiency on the development of the spoken language network, we tested 6- and 9-years-old children listening to native and foreign sentences in a slow event-related fMRI paradigm. We observed a stable organization of the peri-sylvian areas during this time period with a left dominance in the superior temporal sulcus and inferior frontal region. A year of reading instruction was nevertheless sufficient to increase activation in regions involved in phonological representations (posterior superior temporal region) and sentence integration (temporal pole and pars orbitalis). A top-down activation of the left inferior temporal cortex surrounding the visual word form area, was also observed but only in 9 year-olds (3 years of reading practice) listening to their native language. These results emphasize how a successful cultural practice, reading, slots in the biological constraints of the innate spoken language network.     

The Holographic Principle of Mind and the Evolution of Consciousness

The Holographic Principle holds that the information in any region of space and time exists on the surface of that region. Layers of the holographic, universal “now” go from the inception of the universe to the present. Universal Consciousness is the timeless source of actuality and mentality. Information is experience, and the expansion of the “now” leads to higher and higher orders of experience in the Universe, with various levels of consciousness emerging from experience. The brain consists of a nested hierarchy of surfaces that range from the most elementary field through the neuron, neural group, and the whole brain. Evidence from the evolution and structure of the brain shows that optimal surface areas in a variety of structures are conserved with respect to underlying surfaces. Microgenesis, the becoming of the mental state through a process of recapitulation of development and evolution, is in full accord with the Holographic Principle. Evidence from a wide variety of contexts indicates the capacity on the mind for total recall of past life events and for access to universal information, indicating connection with the holographic surfaces of prior “nows” and with the Universal holographic boundary. In summation, the Holographic Principle can help us explain the unity and mechanisms of perception, experience, memory, and consciousness.