Digital Commons Network^™

Caloric Restriction Preserves Memory And Reduces Anxiety Of Aging Mice With Early Enhancement Of Neurovascular Functions, Ishita Parikh, Janet Guo, Kai-Hsiang Chuang, Yu Zhong, Ralf G. Rempe, Jared D. Hoffman, Rachel Armstrong, Björn Bauer, Anika M. S. Hartz, Ai-Ling Lin

Sanders-Brown Center on Aging Faculty Publications

Neurovascular integrity plays an important role in protecting cognitive and mental health in aging. Lifestyle interventions that sustain neurovascular integrity may thus be critical on preserving brain functions in aging and reducing the risk for age-related neurodegenerative disorders. Here we show that caloric restriction (CR) had an early effect on neurovascular enhancements, and played a critical role in preserving vascular, cognitive and mental health in aging. In particular, we found that CR significantly enhanced cerebral blood flow (CBF) and blood-brain barrier function in young mice at 5-6 months of age. The neurovascular enhancements were associated with reduced mammalian target of …

Judgement Bias In Goats (Capra Hircus): Investigating The Effects Of Human Grooming, Luigi Baciadonna, Christian Nawroth, Alan G. Mcelligott

Emotion Collection

Animal emotional states can be investigated by evaluating their impact on cognitive processes. In this study, we used a judgement bias paradigm to determine if shortterm positive human-animal interaction (grooming) induced a positive affective state in goats. We tested two groups of goats and trained them to discriminate between a rewarded and a non-rewarded location over nine training days. During training, the experimental group (nD9) was gently groomed by brushing their heads and backs for five min over 11 days (nine training days, plus two testing days, total time 55 min). During training, the control group (nD10) did not experience …

Cardiorespiratory Fitness Is Associated With Better Executive Function In Young Women, Samuel P. Scott, Mary Jane De Souza, Karsten Koehler, Dylan L. Petkus, Laura E. Murray-Kolb

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Purpose: A positive association between cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and cognitive function has been demonstrated mainly in children and older adults. Women attending college live in a cognitively demanding setting where optimal cognition matters but often experience declines in CRF. Our aim was to test whether CRF is associated with executive function in young adult women.

Methods: Participants in this cross-sectional study included 120 healthy women age 18–35 yr in a university setting. Each woman completed a maximal treadmill-based exercise test to determine peak oxygen uptake (V˙O_2peak), computerized tests of executive function, and questionnaires to assess motivation …

Animal Welfare And Individual Characteristics: A Conversation Against Speciesism, Marc Bekoff, Lori Gruen

Marc Bekoff, PhD

It seems impossible for a human being not to have some point of view concerning nonhuman animal (hereafter animal) welfare. Many people make decisions about how humans are permitted to treat animals using speciesist criteria, basing their decisions on an individual's species membership rather than on that animal's individual characteristics. Although speciesism provides a convenient way for making difficult decisions about who should be used in different types of research, we argue that such decisions should rely on an analysis of individual characteristics and should not be based merely on species membership. We do not argue that the concept of …

Dogs & Society: Anglo-American Sociological Perspectives (1865-1934), Michael R. Hill, Mary Jo Deegan

Zea E-Books Collection

HUMANS AND DOGS have a long, wonderful and sometimes problematic association. At a personal level, dogs have been integral to our lives, and our parents’ lives, for as long as the two of us can remember. As sociologists, we also recognize that dogs are important at the macro level. Here, we introduce a selection of early sociological arguments about dogs and their social relationships with humankind. Our interest in developing this book began when we encountered the delightful essays on dogs by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Annie Marion MacLean — two insightful Anglo-American sociologists who present opposing sympathies regarding the …

Orca Behavior And Subsequent Aggression Associated With Oceanarium Confinement, Robert Anderson, Robyn Waayers, Andrew Knight

Theory of Mind Collection

Based on neuroanatomical indices such as brain size and encephalization quotient, orcas are among the most intelligent animals on Earth. They display a range of complex behaviors indicative of social intelligence, but these are difficult to study in the open ocean where protective laws may apply, or in captivity, where access is constrained for commercial and safety reasons. From 1979 to 1980, however, we were able to interact with juvenile orcas in an unstructured way at San Diego’s SeaWorld facility. We observed in the animals what appeared to be pranks, tests of trust, limited use of tactical deception, emotional self-control, …

Constructive And Deconstructive Tool Modification By Chimpanzees (Pan Troglodytes), Amanda E. Bania, Stephany Harris, Hannah R. Kinsley, Sarah T. Boysen

Sarah Boysen, PhD

Nine chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) were tested for their ability to assemble or disassemble the appropriate tool to obtain a food reward from two different apparatus. In its deconstructed form, the tool functioned as a probe for one apparatus. In its constructed form, the tool functioned as a hook, appropriate for a second apparatus. Each subject completed four test trials with each apparatus type. Tool types were randomized and counter-balanced between the two forms. Results demonstrated that adult and juvenile chimpanzees (N = 7) were successful with both tool types, while two infant chimpanzees performed near chance. Off-line video analyses revealed …

In Praise Of Fishes: Précis Of What A Fish Knows (Balcombe 2016), Jonathan Balcombe

Animal Sentience

Our relationship to fishes in the modern era is deeply problematic. We kill and consume more of them than any other group of vertebrates. At the same time, advances in our knowledge of fishes and their capabilities are gaining speed. Fish species diversity exceeds that of all other vertebrates combined, with a wide range of sensory adaptations, some of them (e.g., geomagnetism, water pressure and movement detection, and communication via electricity) alien to our own sensory experience. The evidence for pain in fishes (despite persistent detractors) is strongly supported by anatomical, physiological and behavioral studies. It is likely that fishes …

The Role Of Forebrain Cholinergic Signalling In Regulating Hippocampal Function And Neuropathology, Mohammed Al-Onaizi

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Cholinergic dysfunction has been associated with cognitive abnormalities in a variety of neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorders, including Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Cumulative use of drugs with anticholinergic activity is associated with increased risk for dementia and AD. Also, cholinergic function has been implicated in predicting the development of key neuropathological hallmarks seen in AD. However, the relationship between cholinergic dysfunction and conservation of cognitive ability as well as neuronal cell maintenance is not fully understood. Here, we tested how information processing and distinct molecular mechanisms associated with AD are regulated by cholinergic tone in genetically-modified mice in which cholinergic transmission was …

Laterality Influences Cognitive Performance In Rainbowfish Melanotaenia Duboulayi, Anne-Laurence Bibost, Culum Brown

Culum Brown, PhD

Cerebral lateralization has been suggested to convey a selective advantage to individuals by enhancing their cognitive abilities. Few, however, have explicitly compared the cognitive ability of animals with strongly contrasting laterality. Here, we examined the influence of laterality on learning performance in the crimson spotted rainbowfish, Melanotaenia duboulayi, using a classical conditioning paradigm. We also compared the learning ability of wild caught and captive-reared fish to examine the influence of rearing environment on cognitive performance. Laterality was established by observing which eye fish preferred to use while viewing their mirror image. Subjects were then conditioned to associate the appearance of …

The Tnfα-Transgenic Rat: Hippocampal Synaptic Integrity, Cognition, Function, And Post-Ischemic Cell Loss, L. Creed Pettigrew, Richard J. Kryscio, Christopher M. Norris

Sanders-Brown Center on Aging Faculty Publications

The cytokine, tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα), is a key regulator of neuroinflammation linked to numerous neurodegenerative conditions and diseases. The present study used transgenic rats that overexpress a murine TNFα gene, under the control of its own promoter, to investigate the impact of chronically elevated TNFα on hippocampal synaptic function. Neuronal viability and cognitive recovery in TNFα Tg rats were also determined following an ischemic insult arising from reversible middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Basal CA3-CA1 synaptic strength, recorded in acute brain slices, was not significantly different between eight-week-old TNFα Tg rats and non-Tg rats. In contrast, slices from …

Anatomical Markers For Elevated Cognition In Dinosaurs, Thomas Gaetano

Honors Projects

Much research has been conducted on brain evolution within Dinosauria. Dinosaurs were originally believed to be incapable of any advanced cognitive abilities beyond the level observed in modern reptiles. This is likely true for many dinosaurs, but recent discoveries suggest that the non-avian maniraptor dinosaurs shared many physical characteristics with their bird descendants, including body feathers and neural adaptations for flight. By studying cranial endocasts (the braincase of fossilized skulls) using computed tomography (CT), paleontologists are beginning to understand the neural changes that took place across the dinosaur-bird transition. Most of these studies are focused on the development of flight, …

Acth Prevents Deficits In Fear Extinction Associated With Early Life Seizures, Andrew T. Massey, David K. Lerner, Gregory L. Holmes, Rod C. Scott, Amanda Hernan

Dartmouth Scholarship

Objective: Early life seizures (ELS) are often associated with cognitive and psychiatric comorbidities that are detrimental to quality of life. In a rat model of ELS, we explored long-term cognitive outcomes in adult rats. Using ACTH, an endogeneous HPA-axis hormone given to children with severe epilepsy, we sought to prevent cognitive deficits. Through comparisons with dexamethasone, we sought to dissociate the corticosteroid effects of ACTH from other potential mechanisms of action.

Results: Although rats with a history of ELS were able to acquire a conditioned fear learning paradigm and controls, these rats had significant deficits in their ability to extinguish …

The Effects Of Hypohydration On Neurocognitive, Balance, Vestibular Ocular Motor Functions And Mood State, Satoshi Iida

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Inconsistent findings have been observed on the impact of hydration state on cognitive functions. The isolated effect of hypohydration on neurocognitive performance, balance, vestibular ocular motor function and mood outcomes in widely used concussion assessment tools has not been studied. The purpose of this study was to investigate how hypohydration affected the results in concussion testing batteries. A single-blind randomized crossover design was used. Thirteen healthy males (22 ± 4y, 180.9 ± 5.7cm) without history of concussion within the past six months or any condition or disease that could influence outcome measurements participated in this study. Each subject completed concussion …

The Impact Of A Child-Centered, Mastery Movement Program On Physical Activity Levels, Motor Skill Development, And Cognitive Function In Young Children, Joshua Anderson

Kinesiology, Recreation, and Sport Studies Publications and Other Works

Physical activity and cognition has not been extensively studied in preschool children. Purpose: To determine the association between physical activity and cognition in preschool children. Methods: Participants were 18 young children (3–5 years old) enrolled in a Head Start preschool program. Physical activity was assessed using an Actigraph accelerometer placed on the child’s hip. The device was worn at school for at least three hours on three separate days during the week. Accelerometer data were categorized as sedentary or active (light, moderate, and vigorous intensity). Cognitive function, specifically working memory, was assessed using the Corsi Block-Tapping Test. The number …

Relationship Between The Romberg Test And The Wii Basic Balance Test And Cognition In Athletes With Concussion, Nicholas G. Murray, Anthony P. Salvatore, Arthur Islas, Joseph Tomaka, Rebecca J. Reed-Jones

Department of Health Sciences and Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Background: Approximately 30% of individuals with a sport-related concussion present with postural instability. Multiple clinical balance tests exist to diagnose postural instability; yet little is known about the potential relationship between these type of postural assessments and cognition post-concussion. Aim: The purpose of the current study was to assess the relationship between the Romberg test, the Wii Fit basic balance test (WBBT), and the composite scores on the Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) test in a sample of athletes with concussions.

Methods: 55 post-concussed athletes (40 male) completed the Romberg Test (RT) (−/+), the WBBT, and ImPACT test. …

Genetic Moderators Of Cognitive Decline In The Health And Retirement Study, Shannon K. Runge

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The current dissertation used a gene x environment (G x E) approach to examine the independent and interactive effects of specific genetic variants and participation in physical and cognitive/social activities (PA and CSA) on cognitive performance in 4,764 participants of the Health and Retirement Study. Using three-wave data, three sets of multi-level growth models were conducted to examine baseline, longitudinal, and interactive effects of genotype (i.e., ApoE, COMT, and BDNF) and CSA/PA on performance across five cognitive measures: immediate, delayed and total word recall, and serial 7s and backwards counting.

At baseline, the ApoE ε4 allele predicted …

Group-Based Exercise And Cognitive-Physical Training In Older Adults With Self-Reported Cognitive Complaints: The Multiple-Modality, Mind-Motor (M4) Study Protocol, Michael A. Gregory, Dawn P. Gill, Erin M. Shellington, Teresa Liu-Ambrose, Ryosuke Shigematsu, Guangyong Zou, Kevin Shoemaker, Adrian M. Owen, Vladimir Hachinski, Melanie Stuckey, Robert J. Petrella

Anatomy and Cell Biology Publications

Background: Dementia is associated with cognitive and functional deficits, and poses a significant personal, societal, and economic burden. Directing interventions towards older adults with self-reported cognitive complaints may provide the greatest impact on dementia incidence and prevalence. Risk factors for cognitive and functional deficits are multifactorial in nature; many are cardiovascular disease risk factors and are lifestyle-mediated. Evidence suggests that multiple-modality exercise programs can provide cognitive and functional benefits that extend beyond what can be achieved from cognitive, aerobic, or resistance training alone, and preliminary evidence suggests that novel mind-motor interventions (i.e., Square Stepping Exercise; SSE) can benefit cognition and …

Better Cognitive Control Of Emotional Information Is Associated With Reduced Pro-Inflammatory Cytokine Reactivity To Emotional Stress, Grant S. Shields, Shari Young Kuchenbecker, Sarah D. Pressman, Ken D. Sumida, George M. Slavich

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Stress is strongly associated with several mental and physical health problems that involve inflammation, including asthma, cardiovascular disease, certain types of cancer, and depression. It has been hypothesized that better cognitive control of emotional information may lead to reduced inflammatory reactivity to stress and thus better health, but to date no studies have examined whether differences in cognitive control predict pro-inflammatory cytokine responses to stress. To address this issue, we conducted a laboratory-based experimental study in which we randomly assigned healthy young-adult females to either an acute emotional stress (emotionally evocative video) or no-stress (control video) condition. Salivary levels of …

Should Fish Feel Pain? A Plant Perspective, František Baluška

Animal Sentience

Key (2016) claims fish that fish do not feel pain because they lack the necessary neuronal architecture: their responses to noxious stimuli, according to Key, are executed automatically without any feelings. However, as pointed out by many of his commentators, this conclusion is not convincing. Plants might provide some clues. Plants are not usually thought to be very active behaviorally, but the evidence suggests otherwise. Moreover, in stressful situations, plants produce numerous chemicals that have painkilling and anesthetic properties. Finally, plants, when treated with anesthetics, cannot execute active behaviors such as touch-induced leaf movements or rapid trap closures after localizing …

Individual Personality Differences In Goats Predict Their Performance In Visual Learning And Non-Associative Cognitive Tasks, Christian Nawroth, Pamela M. Prentice, Alan G. Mcelligott

Learning Ability Collection

Variation in common personality traits, such as boldness or exploration, is often associated with risk–reward trade–offs and behavioural flexibility. To date, only a few studies have examined the effects of consistent behavioural traits on both learning and cognition. We investigated whether certain personality traits (‘exploration’ and ‘sociability’) of individuals were related to cognitive performance, learning flexibility and learning style in a social ungulate species, the goat (Capra hircus). We also investigated whether a preference for feature cues rather than impaired learning abilities can explain performance variation in a visual discrimination task. We found that personality scores were consistent …

Histological Evidence Of The Effect Of Oil Palm Phenolics In Atherogenic Diet Induced Rat Model Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Kenechukwu Monplaisir Monplaisir

Wayne State University Theses

BACKGROUND: Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease with the clinical presentation of memory loss and cognitive impairment. Alzheimer's disease pathology is the accumulation of beta amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles.

METHOD: In this study atherogenic diet was used to induce AD in aged Brown Norway rats. The rats were assigned to the following four groups fed isocaloric diets; control group (C ),high cholesterol diet (H), high cholesterol + oil palm phenolics group (HP), high cholesterol + curcumin group (HC). The impact of oil palm phenolics (OPP) on neuronal health and its effect on amyloid deposition was evaluated using histology …

Cognition And Problem Solving Using Detour Reaching And Novel Object Tasks In The Budgerigar, Mollie E. Kemp

Undergraduate Distinction Papers

As animal cognition is a complex and multifaceted issue, our understanding of the topic is still incomplete. Particularly, our understanding of what factors may drive the development of intricate and costly behaviors relating to cognition, like bird call or song, are not well understood. One possible explanation is the cognitive capacity hypothesis which states that song complexity is a signal of cognitive abilities and thus an indication of a mate’s ability to problem solve and thus effectively provide for offspring and mates. However, previous research of this hypothesis has yielded mixed results and has 1) focused solely on male song …

Animal Sentience: The Other-Minds Problem, Stevan Harnad

Animal Sentience

The only feelings we can feel are our own. When it comes to the feelings of others, we can only infer them, based on their behavior — unless they tell us. This is the “other-minds problem.” Within our own species, thanks to language, this problem arises only for states in which people cannot speak (infancy, aphasia, sleep, anaesthesia, coma). Our species also has a uniquely powerful empathic or “mind-reading” capacity: We can (sometimes) perceive from the behavior of others when they are in states like our own. Our inferences have also been systematized and operationalized in biobehavioral science …

Animals Think And Feel: Précis Of Beyond Words: What Animals Think And Feel (Safina 2015), Carl Safina

Animal Sentience

Abstract: Evolution, brain science, and the logic of behavior in free-living animals all converge to show that to varying degrees many animals have conscious experience, thoughts, and emotions.

Deep Sleep, Cognition, Body Weight, Body Temperature, And Behavioral Distress Responses To New Onset Psychosocial Stressors Are Blunted With Age In Male F344 Rats, Kendra E. Hargis

Theses and Dissertations--Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences

Complaints associated with aging, including cognitive deficits and sleep loss, are highly prevalent and negatively impact quality of life. Further, with increased age, humans are also more likely to experience new-onset psychosocial stressors, such as divorce, loss of a spouse, and social isolation. Stress has detrimental consequences that in many ways parallel the effects of aging on sleep and cognition. The long-standing stress/ glucocorticoid hypotheses of brain aging posit that stress exposure exacerbates aging symptoms, and extensive prior studies have shown that early life stress exposure does worsen phenotypic aging symptoms. However, despite its prevalence in aged humans, little basic …