Search Results (104)

Background/Objectives: Arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) in the dominant temporo-parieto-occipital (TPO) junction of the brain are extremely rare and very difficult to remove surgically because this area includes multiple sensory and language networks. Due to the fact that many patients present with bleeding, surgeons have to find a delicate balance between removing all of the AVM tissue and preserving the functional areas of the brain where important functions occur. This study is reporting a case demonstrating how precise clinical–radiologic correlation, detailed anatomical knowledge, and deliberate microsurgical techniques can allow safe removal of the AVM and improve the patient’s neurologic function without the need for additional intraoperative technology. Case Presentation: A 47-year-old right-handed male patient experienced persistent neurological deficits after experiencing a hemorrhage from an AVM in his dominant posterior hemisphere, which included mild language difficulties, right hemifacial–brachial spasticity, parietal sensory loss and a visual field defect of his right eye known as an inferior quadrantanopia localized to the TPO junction. Cerebral angiography identified a small, compact, high-flow AVM (40 × 30 mm) fed by distal branches of the middle cerebral artery (M4), posterior cerebral artery (P4), anterior cerebral artery (A4), as well as a small branch of the superior cerebellar artery (SCA). Blood drained into two veins of the Trolard and Labbé. The authors removed the AVM completely by circumferential dissection of the nidus along gliotic planes using a microscope. Feeders were then sequentially disconnected, and the venous outflow was preserved until the AVM could be removed en bloc. Post-operative angiograms demonstrated complete removal of the AVM with normalization of blood flow to the surrounding cortex. The patient’s neurologic function improved over time and at three months post-operatively, he was functioning independently (modified Rankin Scale = 1; Barthel Index = 100) and there was no evidence of residual nidus or edema on imaging. Conclusions: High-flow AVMs in the dominant TPO junction can be completely removed using a disciplined microsurgical approach and a feeder first/vein last disconnection method based on anatomy. The patient’s improvement in function represented reperfusion and reintegration of an injured but still functional network of the brain, reinforcing the idea that careful observation, a deep understanding of brain anatomy, and restrained surgical technique are critical to achieving long-term results in AVM surgery. Full article

Background/Purpose: Skilled motor performance depends on the action–observation networks (AONs), which supports the internal simulation of perceived movements. While expertise effects are well-documented in sports, neuroimaging evidence in golf is scarce, particularly on temporal dynamics across swing phases. This study examines how golf expertise modulates AON activation and functional connectivity during temporally distinct swing phases (pre-hitting vs. hitting) and assesses implications for predictive-coding models of motor skill. Methods: Fifty-seven participants (elite golfers: n = 28; controls: n = 29) underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning while viewing golf swing videos segmented into pre-hitting and hitting phases. Data analysis employed generalized linear models (GLMs) with two-sample t-tests for group comparisons and generalized psychophysiological interaction (gPPI) to assess functional connectivity using GLM-identified activation clusters as seeds. Results: (1) Compared to controls, elite golfers showed stronger activation in right insula and posterior cingulate cortex during pre-hitting, and in right cerebellum and bilateral postcentral cortex during hitting phases. The hitting > pre-hitting contrast revealed enhanced bilateral postcentral gyrus activation in golfers. (2) gPPI analysis demonstrated significant group × phase interaction in functional connectivity between right postcentral gyrus and left precuneus. Conclusions: Elite golf expertise dynamically retunes AON across swing phases, shifting from anticipatory interoceptive processing to impact-centered sensorimotor–parietal circuitry. These findings refine predictive-coding models of motor skill and identify the postcentral–precuneus loop as a potential target for neurofeedback interventions aimed at optimizing golf performance. Full article

Vigilance refers to a sustained attentional state enabling the detection of specific but unpredictable changes in the external environment. This state typically declines rapidly over time. A deterioration in vigilance can lead to serious errors or accidents in both occupational and special scenarios, rendering vigilance intervention a critical area of interest for researchers. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has shown promise in mitigating vigilance decrement. However, the timing of such interventions may yield differential effects, a question that remains unresolved in the literature. The present study examines the possibility of using the average power in the low alpha frequency band (alpha-1) as an Electroencephalography-based index of vigilance to identify a candidate entry point for tDCS application that may enhance efficacy, and further explores how the timing of tDCS influences vigilance outcomes. In the pilot experiment, we determined the timing for guiding tDCS based on the average power of the low alpha frequency band (alpha-1) from five participants, which was identified as the third stage of the experiment. The validity of this timing has been verified in subsequent independent samples with a larger size. In the formal experiment, ninety-nine participants were randomly assigned to three groups, receiving early intervention, late intervention, or a no-stimulus control, and completed a 20 min visual modification of the Bakan Task. The early-stimulated group (n = 33) received anodal stimulation (2 mA) on the right posterior parietal cortex during the first 8 min of the test (0–8 min), the late-stimulated group (n = 33) received stimulation on the same location during the middle 8 min of the test (8–16 min), while the blank control group (n = 33) received no stimulation. Results indicated that the late-stimulated group (8–16 min of stimulation), for which alpha-1 power guided the tDCS onset timing, was associated with a greater attenuation of vigilance decrement compared to the early-stimulated group (0–8 min of stimulation). Both groups demonstrated significant differences in vigilance during the first stage following stimulation. Full article

Spatial representation is a core element of spatial cognition in orienteering, but the visual-spatial neural modulation mechanisms underlying spatial representations with differently oriented maps have not yet been systematically elucidated. This study recruited 67 orienteering athletes as participants and employed a single-factor (map orientation: normal vs. rotated) between-subjects experimental design. Eye-tracking and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) techniques were used simultaneously to collect behavioral, eye movement, and brain activity data, investigating the effects of map orientation on visual attention and brain activity characteristics during terrain symbol representation processing in orienteering athletes. The results revealed that compared to the normal orientation, the rotated orientation led to significantly decreased task accuracy, significantly prolonged reaction times, and significantly increased saccade amplitude and pupil diameter. Brain activation analysis showed that the rotated orientation elicited significantly higher activation levels in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (R-DLPFC), bilateral parietal lobe cortex (L-PL, R-PL), right temporal lobe (R-TL), and visual cortex (VC) compared to the normal orientation, along with enhanced functional connectivity. Correlation analysis revealed that under normal map orientation, accuracy was positively correlated with both saccade amplitude and pupil diameter; accuracy was positively correlated with activation in the R-DLPFC; saccade amplitude was positively correlated with activation in the R-DLPFC and R-PL; and pupil diameter was positively correlated with activation in the R-DLPFC. Under rotated map orientation, accuracy was positively correlated with saccade amplitude and pupil diameter, and pupil diameter was positively correlated with activation in both the L-PL and R-PL. The results indicate that map orientation significantly influences the visual search patterns and neural activity characteristics of orienteering athletes, impacting task performance through the coupling mode of visual-neural activity. Full article

Spatial navigation involves the use of external (allocentric) and internal (egocentric) processing. These processes interact differentially depending on age. In order to explore the effectiveness of these interactions in different age groups (study 1), we compared the performance of children and adults in a two-session spatial maze task. This task was performed under deprived vision, thus preventing visual cues critical for allocentric processing. Number of correct performances and performance time were recorded as outcome measures. We recruited thirty healthy participants for the children (mean age 10.97 ± 0.55) and the adult (mean age 21.16 ± 1.76) groups, respectively. The results revealed a significantly higher number of correct actions and shorter performance times during maze solving in children compared to adults. These differences between children and adults might be due to developmental and cortical reorganization factors influencing egocentric processing. Assuming that activation of the posterior parietal cortex (PPC) facilitates egocentric spatial processing, we applied excitatory anodal tDCS over the right PPC in a second study with a different healthy adult group (N = 30, mean age 21.23 ± 2.01). Using the same spatial navigation task as in study 1, we evaluated possible performance improvements in adults associated with this neuromodulation method. Compared to a sham stimulation group, anodal tDCS over the right PPC did not significantly improve spatial task performance. Full article

Background/Objectives: Electroencephalography (EEG)-based emotion recognition plays an important role in affective computing and brain–computer interface applications. However, existing methods often face the challenge of achieving high classification accuracy while maintaining physiological interpretability. Methods: In this study, we propose a convolutional neural network (CNN) model with a simple architecture for EEG-based emotion classification. The model achieves classification accuracies of 95.21% for low/high arousal, 94.59% for low/high valence, and 93.01% for quaternary classification tasks on the DEAP dataset. To further improve model interpretability and support practical applications, Gradient-weighted Class Activation Mapping (Grad-CAM) is employed to identify the EEG electrode regions that contribute most to the classification results. Results: The visualization reveals that electrodes located in the right prefrontal cortex and left parietal lobe are the most influential, which is consistent with findings from emotional lateralization theory. Conclusions: This provides a physiological basis for optimizing electrode placement in wearable EEG-based emotion recognition systems. The proposed method combines high classification performance with interpretability and provides guidance for the design of efficient and portable affective computing systems. Full article

Background: Comorbid personality disorders (PDs) in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) are associated with increased psychopathology, higher suicide risk, and poorer treatment response and outcomes. This study aimed to examine associations between gray matter (GM) volume and PDs in female adolescents with AN before and after short-term psychotherapeutic and nutritional therapy. Methods: Eighteen female adolescents with acute AN, mean age 15.9 years, underwent 3T magnetic resonance imaging before and after weight restoration. The average interval between scans was 2.6 months. Structural brain changes were analyzed using voxel-based morphometry. PDs were assessed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II Disorders (SCID II) and the Assessment of Identity Development Questionnaire. Results: SCID-II total scores showed significant positive associations with GM volume in the mid-cingulate cortex at both time points and in the left superior parietal–occipital lobule at baseline. The histrionic subscale correlated with GM volume in the thalamus bilaterally and the left superior parietal–occipital lobule in both assessments, as well as with the mid-cingulate cortex at follow-up. Borderline and antisocial subscales were associated with GM volume in the thalamus bilaterally at baseline and in the right mid-cingulate cortex at follow-up. Conclusions: PDs in female adolescent patients with AN may be specifically related to GM alterations in the thalamus, cingulate, and parieto-occipital regions, which are present during acute illness and persist after weight restoration therapy. Full article

Reward processing is a vital function for health and survival and is impaired in various psychiatric and neurological disorders. Using a monetary gambling task, the current study aims to elucidate neural substrates in the reward network underlying the evaluation of win versus loss outcomes and their association with behavioral characteristics, such as impulsivity and task performance, and neuropsychological functioning. Functional MRI was recorded in thirty healthy, male community volunteers (mean age = 27.4 years) while they performed a monetary gambling task in which they bet with either 10 or 50 tokens and received feedback on whether they won or lost the bet amount. Results showed that a set of key brain structures in the reward network, including the putamen, caudate nucleus, superior and inferior parietal lobule, angular gyrus, and Rolandic operculum, had greater blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) signals during win relative to loss trials, and the BOLD signals in most of these regions were highly correlated with one another. Furthermore, exploratory bivariate analyses between these reward-related regions and behavioral and neuropsychological domains showed significant correlations with moderate effect sizes, including (i) negative correlations between non-planning impulsivity and activations in the putamen and caudate regions, (ii) positive correlations between risky bets and right putamen activation, (iii) negative correlations between safer bets and right putamen activation, (iv) a negative correlation between short-term memory capacity and right putamen activity, and (v) a negative correlation between poor planning skills and left inferior occipital cortex activation. These findings contribute to our understanding of the neural underpinnings of monetary reward processing and their relationships to aspects of behavior and cognitive function. Future studies may confirm these findings with larger samples of healthy controls and extend these findings by investigating various clinical groups with impaired reward processing. Full article

Background/Objectives: Part-to-whole object completion and search guidance by salient, integrated objects has been proposed to require attentional resources, as shown by studies of neglect patients suffering from right-parietal brain damage. The current study was performed to provide further causal evidence for the link between attention and object integration. Methods: Healthy observers detected targets in the left and/or right hemifields, and these targets were in turn embedded in various Kanizsa-type configurations that systematically varied in the extent to which individual items could be integrated into a complete, whole object. Moreover, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) was applied over the right intraparietal sulcus (IPS) and compared to both active and passive baseline conditions. Results: The results showed that target detection was substantially facilitated when the to-be detected item(s) were fully embedded in a salient, grouped Kanizsa figure, either a unilateral triangle or a bilateral diamond. However, object groupings in one hemifield did not facilitate target detection to the same extent when there were bilateral targets, one inside the (triangle) grouping and the other outside of the grouped object. These results extend previous findings from neglect patients. Moreover, a subgroup of observers was found to be particularly sensitive to IPS stimulation, revealing neglect-like extinction behavior with the single-hemifield triangle groupings and bilateral targets. Conversely, a second subgroup showed the opposite effect, namely an overall, IPS-dependent improvement in performance. Conclusions: These explorative analyses show that the parietal cortex, in particular IPS, seems to modulate the processing of object groupings by up- and downregulating the deployment of attention to spatial regions were to-be-grouped items necessitate attentional resources for object completion. Full article

Background: Both transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and acupuncture are promising methods for managing chronic low back pain (cLBP), however, their underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Methods: To explore the neural mechanisms of tDCS and acupuncture on cLBP, we examined how real and sham tDCS applied to the bilateral motor cortex (M1), combined with real or sham acupuncture, influenced cerebral blood flow (CBF) using pulsed continuous arterial spin labeling (pCASL) imaging. tDCS was administered over six sessions, combined with real or sham acupuncture, over one month. Results: Following real tDCS, we observed increased CBF in the bilateral occipital cortex, precuneus, left hippocampus, and parahippocampal gyrus/posterior cingulate cortex. After sham tDCS, CBF decreased in regions including the bilateral superior parietal lobule, precuneus, bilateral precentral and postcentral gyri, and left angular gyrus. Real acupuncture led to reduced CBF in the bilateral occipital cortex and hippocampus, and left posterior cingulate gyrus, and increased CBF in the right postcentral gyrus, superior parietal lobule, and frontal areas. Sham acupuncture was associated with decreased CBF in the bilateral hippocampus and anterior cingulate gyrus. Conclusions: These results suggest both shared and distinct patterns of CBF changes between real and sham tDCS, as well as between real and sham acupuncture, reflecting mode-dependent effects on brain networks involved in pain processing and modulation. Our findings highlight the different neural circuits implicated in the therapeutic mechanisms of tDCS and acupuncture in the management of cLBP. Full article

Social and environmental influences are important for learning. However, the influence of reward and competition during social learning is less understood. The literature suggests that the ventromedial prefrontal cortex is implicated in hot executive functioning (EF), while the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is related to cool EF. In addition, reward processing deficits are associated with atypical connectivity between the nucleus accumbens and the dorsofrontal regions. Here, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to determine the role of hot and cool EF in reward processing and their relationship to performance under social competition. We adapted a reward-based n-back task to examine the neural correlates of hot and cool EF and the reward influence on performance during competition. A total of 29 healthy adults showed cortical activation associated with individual differences in EF abilities during fMRI scans. Hot and cool EF activated distinct networks in the right insula, hippocampus, left caudate nucleus, and superior parietal gyrus during the no-competition task, while they differentially activated the right precuneus and caudate nucleus in the competition condition. Further analysis revealed correlations between the Hot–Cool network and reward sensitivity and risk-taking behaviour. The findings provided further insights into the neural basis of hot and cool EF engagement in the socio-emotional regulation for learning. Full article

Background/Objectives: A neurobiological framework of bi- or multilingual neurocognitive development must consider the following: (i) longitudinal behavioral and neural measures; (ii) brain developmental constraints across structure and function; and (iii) the development of global multilingual competence in a homogeneous social environment. In this study, we investigated whether multilingual competence yields early changes in executive attention control mechanisms and their underlying neural structures in the frontal–striatal system, such as the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex/pre-supplemental area and the left caudate. Methods: We employed longitudinal neuroimaging and functional connectivity methods in a small group of multilingual children over two years. Results: We found that the dACC/preSMA is functionally influenced by changes in multilingual competence but not yet structurally adapted, while the left caudate, in a developmental stage, is influenced, adapts, and specializes due to multilingual experience. Furthermore, increases in multilingual competence strengthen connections between the dACC/preSMA, left caudate, and other structures of the cognitive control network, such as the right inferior frontal gyrus and bilateral inferior parietal lobules. Conclusions: These findings suggest that multilingual competence impacts brain “adaptation” and “specialization” during childhood. The results may provide insights and guide future research on experience-expectant and experience-dependent brain plasticity to explain the “interaction” between multilingualism and neurodevelopment. Full article

Background: Motor imagery includes visual imagery and kinesthetic imagery, which are two strategies that exist for mental rotation and are currently widely studied. However, different mental rotation tests can lead to different strategic performances. There are also many research results where two different strategies appear simultaneously under the same task. Previous studies on the comparative brain mechanisms of kinesthetic imagery and visual imagery have not adopted consistent stimulus images or mature mental rotation paradigms, making it difficult to effectively compare these types of imagery. Methods: In this study, we utilized functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to investigate the brain activation of sixty-seven young right-handed participants with different strategy preferences during hand lateral judgment tasks (HLJT). Results: The results showed that the accuracy of the kinesthetic imagery group was significantly higher than that of the visual imagery group, and the reaction time of the kinesthetic imagery group was significantly shorter than that of the visual imagery group. The areas significantly activated in the kinesthetic imagery group were wider than those in the visual imagery group, including the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (BA9, 46), premotor cortex (BA6), supplementary motor area (SMA), primary motor cortex (BA4), and parietal cortex (BA7, 40). It is worth noting that the activation levels in the frontal eye fields (BA8), primary somatosensory cortex (BA1, 2, 3), primary motor cortex (BA4), and parietal cortex (BA40) of the kinesthetic imagery group were significantly higher than those in the visual imagery group. Conclusion: Therefore, we speculate that kinesthetic imagery has more advantages than visual imagery in the mental rotation of egocentric transformations. Full article

Sensory integration is the province of the parietal lobe. The non-dominant hemisphere is responsible for both body sides, while the dominant hemisphere is responsible for the contralateral hemi-body. Furthermore, the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) participates in a network involved in spatial orientation, attention, and spatial and episodic memory. Laser interstitial thermotherapy (LiTT) is a minimally invasive surgery for focal drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE) that can target deeper brain regions, and thus, region-specific symptoms can emerge. Here, we present an 18-year-old right-handed male with focal DRE who experienced seizures characterized by sensations of déjà vu, staring spells, and language disruption. A comprehensive evaluation localized the seizure focus and revealed a probable focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) in the left posterior cingulate gyrus. The patient underwent uneventful LiTT of the identified lesion. Post-operatively, he developed transient ipsilateral spatial neglect and contralateral sensory loss, as well as acalculia. His sensory symptoms gradually improved after the surgery, and he remained seizure-free after the intervention for at least 10 months (until the time of this writing). This rare case of ipsilateral spatial and visual hemineglect post-LiTT in epilepsy underscores the importance of recognizing atypical neurosurgical outcomes and considering individual variations in brain anatomy and function. Understanding the dynamics of cortical connectivity and handedness, particularly in pediatric epilepsy, may be crucial in anticipating and managing neurocognitive effects following epilepsy surgery. Full article

Self-ambivalence, a prevalent phenomenon in daily life, has been increasingly substantiated by research. It refers to conflicting self-views and evaluations, primarily concerning self-worth and morality. Previous behavioral research has distinguished self-worth and moral ambivalence, but it remains unclear whether they have separable neural bases. The present study addressed this question by examining resting-state brain activity (i.e., the fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations, fALFF) and connectivity (i.e., resting-state functional connectivity, RSFC) in 112 college students. The results found that self-worth ambivalence was positively related to the fALFF in the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and left superior parietal lobule (SPL). The RSFC strength between the SPL and precuneus/posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) was positively related to self-worth ambivalence. Moral ambivalence was positively associated with the fALFF in the left SPL (extending into the temporoparietal junction) and right SPL. The RSFC strengths between the left SPL/TPJ and OFC, as well as the RSFC strengths between the right SPL as a seed and the bilateral middle and inferior temporal gyrus, were associated with moral ambivalence. Overall, the neural bases of self-worth and moral ambivalence are associated with the SPL and OFC, involved in attentional alertness and value representation, respectively. Additionally, the neural basis of moral ambivalence is associated with the TPJ, responsible for mentalizing. Full article