Working memory outcomes following traumatic brain injury in children: A systematic review with meta-analysis

The aim of this review is to systematically examine the literature concerning multicomponent working memory (WM)—comprising a central executive (CE), two storage components (phonological loop, PL and visuo-spatial sketchpad, VSSP), and episodic buffer (EB)—in pediatric traumatic brain injury (TBI). Electronic searches were conducted of MEDLINE, PsychINFO and EMBASE up to October 2014 with the inclusion criteria of children and adolescents with TBI, and quantitative methods to assess at least one component of WM. Meta-analytic procedures calculated pooled effect sizes for WM outcomes. Of the studies examined, 27 met the inclusion criteria. Children with TBI exhibited deficits in the CE and PL, but not in the VSSP, and no study could be found which examined the EB. Qualitative analysis found that greater TBI severity was associated with poorer CE functioning in five out of nine studies. Differences in patterns of brain activation were evident in four out of five fMRI studies that examined WM in TBI children and controls. Deficits in CE were associated with poorer mathematical skills in the only study that examined relations between WM and academic deficits. Notwithstanding the heterogeneity of the studies reviewed, TBI places children at risk of WM deficits. Moreover, this meta-analysis suggests that various components of WM have differential vulnerability to pediatric TBI, with significant deficits found in the CE and PL, but not in the VSSP (although the VSSP has rarely been examined to date). Future studies should be theoretically driven, employ tasks assessing all components of the WM model and examine the functional ramifications (including academic outcomes) of WM deficits in this population.     

Parental ratings of daily behavior and child cognitive test performance after pediatric mild traumatic brain injury

This study aimed to evaluate the degree to which the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) and Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) measure overlapping vs. distinct constructs in pediatric patients with mild traumatic brain injury (TBI), and to examine the demographic and injury correlates of such constructs as well as those of cognitive test performance. A total of 100 parents completed the BRIEF and the CBCL within 1 to 12 months after the injury of their child. Groups were contrasted based on the presence vs. absence of impairment on, respectively, the BRIEF and the CBCL. Exploratory maximum likelihood factor analysis was used to evaluate latent constructs. Correlates of the various factor scores were evaluated through regression analysis and contrasted with those of a test of verbal learning and memory.The results revealed that the BRIEF and the CBCL disagree about the presence vs. absence of impairment in about one quarter of cases. A prior history of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) was associated with an increased likelihood of impairment on both the BRIEF and the CBCL, whereas prior outpatient psychiatric treatment was associated with the increased likelihood of selective impairment on the CBCL. Latent constructs manifested themselves along cognitive regulation, emotional adjustment and behavioral regulation factors. Whereas premorbid characteristics were the exclusive correlates of these factors, performance on a test of verbal learning and memory was negatively affected by intracranial lesions on neuroimaging.It is concluded that the BRIEF and the CBCL offer complementary and non-redundant information about daily functioning after pediatric mild TBI. The correlates of cognitive test performance and parental behavior ratings after such injuries are different and reflect a divergence between premorbid and injury-related influences.     

背景性渴求与事件性渴求:区分心理渴求对尼古丁成瘾的不同作用路径

大量研究发现心理渴求机制的紊乱是尼古丁成瘾的核心机制之一。线索暴露是探索心理渴求与尼古丁成瘾关系的重要研究范式。但最近研究者提出该范式较难区分事件性渴求与背景性渴求,导致无法清楚定位渴求在尼古丁成瘾中扮演的角色。通过对以往文献的回顾,对不同成瘾概念、作用机制和生理基础进行对比分析,认为事件性渴求与背景性渴求两者在维持成瘾行为上的确存在不同的作用路径。未来研究应改进实验范式,分别探讨两种心理渴求与尼古丁成瘾的内在联系,完善心理渴求与尼古丁成瘾的关系模型,为尼古丁成瘾的治疗和干预等方法提供一定的理论依据。     

NATURAL DOUBTS

Abstract: Many philosophers now argue that the doubts of the philosophical sceptic are unnatural ones, in that they are not forced on us by considerations that any reasonable person would have to accept as compelling but only arise if one has already accepted certain controversial theoretical commitments. In this article I defend the naturalness of philosophical scepticism against such criticisms. After defining “global ontological scepticism,” I examine the work of a number of anti‐sceptical philosophers—Michael Huemer, Michael Williams, and John McDowell. Although McDowell does move the debate to a deeper level by interpreting scepticism as a challenge to the very possibility of the mind's apprehending reality by being in a rational rather than a merely causal relation to it, none of them succeeds in showing that global ontological scepticism is, in the relevant sense, unnatural. This is not to say that the sceptic is correct; simply that it has not been shown that we can reasonably dismiss the sceptical questions and thereby evade the need to engage seriously with the sceptical arguments.     

IMPLICATIONS OF INTERPERSONAL NEUROBIOLOGY FOR A SPIRITUALITY OF COMPASSION

Interpersonal neurobiology (IPNB) is a burgeoning interdisciplinary field that focuses on ways in which relationships shape and transform the architecture and functioning of the human brain. IPNB points to four specific conditions that appear to encourage the emergence of empathy. Further, these conditions, when gathered together, may constitute the core components of a spirituality of compassion. Following definitions and a discussion of interdisciplinary method, this essay delineates IPNB's main tenets and demonstrates ways in which IPNB sheds light on important aspects of human empathy and compassion. Drawing on this analysis, it introduces the four conditions that encourage the emergence of empathy in individuals and groups and shows why they may be central elements of a spirituality of compassion. A case study, in which the Native American Ojibwe practice of the talking circle is described and assessed through the lens of the IPNB‐derived spirituality of compassion, demonstrates the evaluative usefulness of this set of conditions.     

Should Psychology Ignore the Language of the Brain?

ABSTRACT— Claims that neuroscientific data do not contribute to our understanding of psychological functions have been made recently. Here I argue that these criticisms are solely based on an analysis of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies. However, fMRI is only one of the methods in the toolkit of cognitive neuroscience. I provide examples from research on event-related brain potentials (ERPs) that have contributed to our understanding of the cognitive architecture of human language functions. In addition, I provide evidence of (possible) contributions from fMRI measurements to our understanding of the functional architecture of language processing. Finally, I argue that a neurobiology of human language that integrates information about the necessary genetic and neural infrastructures will allow us to answer certain questions that are not answerable if all we have is evidence from behavior.     

Contributions of Neuroscience to Our Understanding of Cognitive Development

ABSTRACT— One major contribution of neuroscience to understanding cognitive development has been in demonstrating that biology is not destiny—that is, demonstrating the remarkable role of experience in shaping the mind, brain, and body. Only rarely has neuroscience provided wholly new insights into cognitive development, but often it has provided evidence of mechanisms by which observations of developmental psychologists could be explained. Behavioral findings have often remained controversial until an underlying biological mechanism for them was offered. Neuroscience has demonstrated promise for detecting cognitive problems before they are behaviorally observable—and, hence, promise for early intervention. In this article, we discuss examples drawn from imitation and mirror neurons, phenylketonuria (PKU) and prefrontal dopamine, maternal touch and stress reactivity, and nongenetic (behavioral) intergenerational transmission of biological characteristics.     

NMDA受体的结构与药理学特性

NMDA受体是一类离子型谷氨酸受体,其功能主要参与发育过程中神经回路的细化及触发多种形式的突触可塑性。近年来的证据表明,组成NMDA受体的亚单位有着复杂的生理学和药理学特性;NMDA受体的数量、分布和亚单位组成并非一成不变,而是在发育过程中、神经元活动时,以一种细胞特异性和突触特异性的方式变化着。这种NMDA受体的双向变化是突触可塑性重塑的基础,而其调节的异常又可导致神经-精神疾病的发生,如可卡因成瘾、精神分裂症等     

脑的逻辑功能的核磁共振成像及其哲学意义

国际上关于逻辑对应的脑物理特征的功能核磁共振成像（fMRI）研究的主要成就在于：建立了高级精神活动和低级神经活动的关联关系的试验方法;提出了高级精神活动的（判断和推理）神经计算模型建立方法。这些研究的实验结果表明,逻辑与神经活动具有确定性的对应关系,它证明了强人工智能的观点：导致意识的可验证的实体（或者称为“意识关联物”）就是意识本身。意识的运行方式是可计算的,思维的本质可以还原为机械性的操作步骤,人工智能和人的天然智能在本质上并无二致。