Neuroscience and Neurobiology Commons^™

Plants Lack The Functional Neurotransmitters And Signaling Pathways Required For Sentience In Animals, David G. Robinson, Michael R. Blatt, Andreas Draguhn, Lincoln Taiz, Jon Mallatt

Animal Sentience

We cannot agree with Segundo-Ortin and Calvo that plants are sentient organisms. We have critically examined several aspects of their target article, and find their claims are not supported by the published evidence. We address these claims in sections on whether plants have a ‘neurobiology’ analogous to that of animal nervous systems, including neurotransmitters and synaptic receptors that respond to anesthetics; and whether plant signaling resembles neural transmission. For the latter, we especially consider the unique way plants signal their responses to wounding. Although the plant vascular system has been compared to the animal nervous system, animal blood vessels would …

Consciousness, Evolution, And The Self-Organizing Brain, Karen Seymour

Journal of Conscious Evolution

While evolution is guided by natural selection, it is internally driven by self-organizing processes. The brain encompasses these complementary forces and dynamics of evolution in both its structure and dynamics by embodying a historical record of the factors that have shaped it throughout its evolutionary past, as well as by being shaped by selective parameters in real time. Self-organization is evident in not only the brain’s structure and form, but also in the processes that support consciousness. From the convergence of complex structure and the novelty-generating dynamics of chaos that both characterize the brain arises the experience of explicit consciousness, …

The Genomics Of Autism-Related Genes Il1rapl1 And Il1rapl2: Insights Into Their Cortical Distribution, Cell-Type Specificity, And Developmental Trajectories, Jacob Weaver

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

Neuropsychiatric disorders have a significant impact on modern society. These disorders affect a large percentage of the population: schizophrenia has a world-wide prevalence of 1% and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) affects 1 in 59 school-aged children in the US. There is substantial evidence that most neuropsychiatric disorders have a genetic component. Thus, with the advent of high throughput sequencing much effort has gone into identifying genetic variants associated with these disorders. The emerging picture from these studies is a complex one where hundreds of genes with small effects interact with a varied landscape of common variants to result in disease. …

Evaluation Of Concussion Assessment Tools For Collegiate Athletes, Jacqueline D. Villanueva Arevalo, Emily R. Brown

Student Scholar Showcase

BACKGROUND: Due to the increase in sports-related concussions in the United States, there is a rising concern about concussion assessments in collegiate athletes with regard to long term vestibular ocular motor dysfunction and post-concussion syndrome.

PURPOSE: Due to varying practices in concussion diagnosis, this systematic review analyzed three concussion diagnostic instruments, The King Devick, Screening Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT-5), and Vestibular Oculomotor Screening Tool (VOMS), to determine the most appropriate instrument(s) for reducing vestibular ocular-motor dysfunction and post-concussion symptoms in collegiate athletes.

METHODS: Nested Knowledge was used to identify articles from PubMed, Europe Pubmed Central, and ClinicalTrials.gov databases. Key search …

Questions About Sentience Are Not Scientific But Cultural, Yoram Gutfreund

Animal Sentience

Abstract: The findings of complex cognitive-like behaviours in plants are surprising and exciting. However, they do not provide a scientific reason for ascribing sentience to plants. The target article, in trying to provide evidence for sentience in plants, exposes the weakness of the science of animal consciousness in general. In this commentary, I try to explain why the scientific method is incapable of resolving the question of which organisms or systems are sentient.

Neurogenetic Function Of Host Cell Factor-1, Victoria Lynn Castro

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Neural precursor cells (NPCs) are the stem-like cells of the developing brain. These cells differentiate into the differentiated cell types of the central nervous system. If disruption occurs in the number of total NPCs formed or their survival, various disorders including learning disabilities, behavioral problems, or epilepsy can occur. This dissertation describes how the HCFC1 gene controls the proliferation and differentiation of NPCs. HCFC1 encodes for a transcriptional co-factor that regulates the growth and metabolism of stem cells, including NPCs. Mutations in HCFC1 cause cblX syndrome, a neural developmental disorder that affects the nervous system and causes microcephaly, epilepsy, and …

Effects Of Withania Somnifera On Zebrafish, Diyari Bekhtyar

Student Works

Withania somnifera (commonly known as Ashwagandha), is a plant in which its root powder is sold as a dietary supplement. It is being commonly used as an anti-anxiety supplement to combat stress. While the sale of Withania somnifera is widely accessible and available throughout the U.S., it is concerning that a number of teens and young adults are taking this supplement without consulting a physician. Previous studies and claims conclude that Withania somnifera has both neuroprotective and antiinflammatory properties in human neuronal cells. We have chosen to test Withania somnifera’s effects on early embryonic development using Danio rerio, zebrafish, as …

Effects Of Diet On Lcn2 Expression And Onset Of Neuroinflammation In An Alzheimer’S Disease Mice Model, Abdirahman A. Hayir

Neuroscience Honors Projects

This project covers the findings regarding the impact of diet on lipocalin 2 (LCN2) and the effects it has on neuroinflammation Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). LCN2 is a protein that is critical to the functionality of mitochondria and inflammatory responses. Evidence has shown that mitochondrial dysfunction is a potential central event in driving AD pathogenesis and contributing to formation of pathological hallmarks such as chronic inflammation. Furthermore, studies have shown that LCN2 can be deficient under metabolic conditions such as high-fat-diet (HFD). This study investigates if HFD induces LCN2 deficiency and increased neuroinflammation in an AD mice model.

Behavioral And Neural Mechanisms Of Serotonin Modulation Of Impulsivity And Reward, Stephanie S. Desrochers

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Despite its prevalence in many psychiatric disorders, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, suicidal depression, schizophrenia, and aggression and motivational disorders, impulsivity and its biological bases remain poorly understood. Subdivisions of impulsivity, including impulsive action (reduced response inhibition) and impulsive choice (reduced delay of gratification), sometimes present in an uncorrelated manner. This complexity renders pathological impulsivity difficult to treat, as different underlying causes likely result in different phenotypic presentations, despite being placed under one umbrella term. In order to study the behavior and biology of one particular facet of impulsivity, this dissertation utilizes the serotonin 1B receptor (5-HT1BR; an inhibitory …

The Neuroscience Of Creativity (Structure And Emotion), Michael Kihanya

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

The cadenza represents musical freedom, creativity, improvisation. A structure is provided but does not place rigid boundaries on the artist. In literature studying creativity it is defined as the generation of novel, useful ideas. Musical improvisation is a form of creativity in a musical context. It requires the real-time generation and evaluation of melody and rhythm. It is one of our most complex cognitive tasks. Studying this task neuroscientifically is no less complicated. How is it we measure the result of musical improvisation, musical creation, the making of something new? What happens in our brain during? After? How does musical …

Role Of Nucleus Accumbens Dopamine Receptor Signaling In The Suppression Of Punished Reward Seeking, Grace M. Joyner, Anna Caroline Toburen

Senior Theses

Previous studies have shown that within the nucleus accumbens (NAc), a brain region associated with motivation and reinforcement learning, activity of neurons expressing the dopamine D2 receptor (D2R neurons) act as a “break” on risky behavior associated with negative outcomes. Moreover, when these neurons are stimulated, rats were found to become more risk averse. However, the impact of dopamine signaling through NAc D2R neurons in risk avoidance is still unclear. To further explore the role of NAc dopamine signaling in punished reward-seeking, we tested rats in a novel punished food-seeking paradigm in which subjects are trained to choose between a …

The Effects Of Joint Angle And Anchoring Scheme On Performance Fatigability And Neuromuscular Responses Following Isometric Forearm Flexion Tasks To Failure, Jocelyn E. Arnett, Robert W. Smith, Tyler J. Neltner, John Paul V. Anders, Dolores G. Ortega, Terry J. Housh, Richard J. Schmidt, Glen O. Johnson

Journal for Sports Neuroscience

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of joint angle on MVIC and neuromuscular responses at task failure following sustained, isometric forearm flexion tasks anchored to a rating of perceived exertion (RPE) of 8 (RPE = 8) and anchored to the initial torque that corresponded to RPE = 8 (TRQ). Methods: Ten women (age: 21.0 ± 2.8 yrs; height: 168.5 ± 7.2 cm; body mass: 68.0 ± 7.2 kg) performed 2, 3 s MVICs at joint angles (JA) of 75°, 100°, and 125° (randomized order) before and after sustained, isometric forearm flexion tasks to failure at …

Transferring Organelles Into Native Neurons: A Disease-Modifying Therapy For Neurodegenerative Disorders, Lohiny Balendran

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Currently, there are no disease-modifying therapies to counter the progression of neurodegenerative diseases that are associated with mitochondrial dysfunction in the early stages. In this study, we have used a novel strategy of cell fusion to transfer mitochondria from one cell to another using fusogens (syncytin 1 and syncytin 2). Syncytins are placental proteins encoded by endogenous retroviral envelope genes that promote cellular fusion. In this study, we have proposed that donor cells engineered to stably express syncytin when cocultured with recipient cells will allow fusion and facilitate the transfer of mitochondria into recipient cells. Syncytin-mediated systems revealed about 16.6-18.5% …

Glutamate, And Its Relationship To Task-Induced Functional Connectivity In The Human Brain: A Focus On Schizophrenia, Kathleen Liu Young, John Kopchick, Jeffrey Stanley, Vaibhav Diwadkar

Medical Student Research Symposium

Glutamate is the brain’s major excitatory neurotransmitter mediating both neuroplasticity and network function (Zhou & Danbolt, 2014). Basal glutamate (Glu) measured using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) provides insight into a region’s density of neuropil related to the glutamatergic system. Moreover, given the role of glutamate in mediating brain network function, Glu levels may play a role in the brain’s functional connectivity (FC), which is typically estimated from functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) time series data. These questions converge when considering the clinical syndrome of schizophrenia (SCZ). Patients with SCZ show abnormalities in basal Glu in the hippocampus and prefrontal …

Gabaergic Interneurons And Prenatal Ethanol Exposure: From Development To Aging, Adelaide R. Tousley

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders are the most common non-genetic cause of neurodevelopmental disability worldwide. Individuals with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder experience clinical symptoms including differences in physical, cognitive and behavioral development beginning in early childhood, but continue to face challenges into adulthood. There is a critical need to examine the effects of prenatal ethanol exposure across early development, and to establish how the developmental effects of prenatal ethanol exposure may or may not progress in aging individuals. To contribute to these two areas, I asked how a binge-type prenatal ethanol exposure might affect: (1) early postnatal development of striatal neurons …

Neural Mechanisms Of Language Development In Infancy, Scott Huberty, Christian O'Reilly, Virginia Carter Leno, Mandy Steiman, Sara J. Webb, Mayada Elsabbagh, The Basis Team

Publications

Understanding the neural processes underpinning individual differences in early language development is of increasing interest, as it is known to vary in typical development and to be quite heterogeneous in neurodevelopmental conditions. However, few studies to date have tested whether early brain measures are indicative of the developmental trajectory of language, as opposed to language outcomes at specific ages. We combined recordings from two longitudinal studies, including typically developing infants without a family history of autism, and infants with increased likelihood of developing autism (infant-siblings) (N = 191). Electroencephalograms (EEG) were recorded at 6 months, and behavioral assessments at …

Mglu5 Inhibition In The Basolateral Amygdala Prevents Estrous Cycle-Dependent Changes In Cue-Induced Cocaine Seeking, Claire M. Corbett, Emily N. D. Miller, Jessica A. Loweth

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Faculty Scholarship

Drug associated cues are a common relapse trigger for individuals recovering from cocaine use disorder. Sex and ovarian hormones influence patterns of cocaine use and relapse vulnerability, with studies indicating that females show increased cue-induced craving and relapse vulnerability compared to males. In a rodent model of cocaine craving and relapse vulnerability, cue-induced cocaine seeking behavior following weeks of withdrawal from extended-access cocaine self-administration is higher in females in the estrus stage of the reproductive (estrous) cycle (Estrus Females) compared to both Males and females in all other stages (Non-Estrus Females). However, the neuronal substrates and cellular mechanisms underlying these …

Intellectual Disability Related To De Novo Germline Loss Of The Distal End Of The P-Arm Of Chromosome 17: A Case Report, Eden Pope, Matthew Huertas, Amar Paul, Braden Cunningham, Matthew Jennings, Ryan Perry, Stephanie Chavez, John A. Kriak, Kyle B. Bills, David W. Sant

Annual Research Symposium

Hypothesis/Purpose: In this report we present a case of a 20-year-old female with congenital intellectual disability, stunted growth, and hypothyroidism. Competitive genetic hybridization (CHG) revealed a loss of 17p13.3, and the deletion was not present in either parent. This deletion has not previously been characterized, but mutations on the p-arm of chromosome 17 are responsible for Miller-Dieker Syndrome and Isolated Lissencephaly Sequence, both of which share symptoms in common with the patient.

Methods: Peripheral mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were used for karyotyping and competitive genetic hybridization (CHG). Bioinformatic analysis was carried out using the Genome Data Viewer (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/genome/gdv).

Results: Karyotype was …

Reversible Emerging Neuropsychological Pattern In Chronic Intractable Migraine, Tanner Williford, Pooja Chemiti, Mason Allen, Brandon Burrell, Stephanie Chavez, Jude Emego, Bridger Gunter, Matthew Huertas, Matthew Jennings, Roshni Jogin, Paulo Kelly, Laura Minor, Steven Salazar, Jameson Williams, David W. Sant, John A. Kriak, Kyle B. Bills

Annual Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

The Role Of The Kcc2 In Substance Use And Abuse: A Systematic Review [Protocol], Alfred Amendolara, Steven Salazar, Chad Thompson, Hyrum Wright, Andrew Payne

Annual Research Symposium

This poster presents the protocol for an ongoing systematic review investigating the role of potassium chloride co-transporter 2 (KCC2) in substance use, abuse, and addiction.

A Systematic Review: Toxoplasma Gondii Infection And Drugs Of Abuse, Amani Sastry

Annual Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

Appearance Of Two Distinct Clusters Of Glucose Dysregulation In Chronic Intractable Migraine, Roshni Jogin, Kaitlyn Mcfarland, Aparna Naik, Tanner Williford, Matthew Conway, Amar Paul, John A. Kriak, David W. Sant, Kyle B. Bills

Annual Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

Heterodyned Whole-Body Vibration Ameliorates Anxiety In Opioid-Use Disorder, Kailee Edwards, Braden Cunningham, Alfred Amendolara, Marryam Anwar, Jon Gonzales, Roshni Jogin, Wyatt Magoffin, Amar Paul, Ryan Perry, James Pike, Nathan Swallow, Steven Tung, Mary Seamons, Andrew Payne, John A. Kriak, David W. Sant, David W. Sant

Annual Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

Development Of A Neural Network Model To Identify Abnormalities In Cervical X-Rays, Alex P. Sheppert, Nasif Islam, Race Peterson, Michael T. Sullivan, John A. Kriak, David W. Sant, Kyle B. Bills

Annual Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

Characteristics Analysis And Inspiration Of The Us Brain Initiative, Mian Zu, Ying Wang, Wei Liu, Zexi Xin, Lei Wang

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Major countries have launched brain initiatives for competition, aiming to gain strategic priority in the area of brain ultimate frontier for human being in the course of recognizing nature. The US BRAIN Initiative is a scientific project comparable to the Human Genome Project in scale and potential impact. Accelerating the development and application of new technologies and tools is the driving force for the US BRAIN Initiative, which takes the lead in race owing to its realistic and innovative development mode. This study briefly reviews the implementation progress, the strategic reports and research achievements of the US BRAIN Initiative, and …

From Scanner To Court: A Neuroscientifically Informed “Reasonable Person” Test Of Trademark Infringement, Zhihao Zhang, Maxwell Good, Vera Kulikov, Femke Van Horen, Mark Bartholomew, Andrew S. Kayser, Ming Hsu

Journal Articles

Many legal decisions center on the thoughts or perceptions of some idealized group of individuals, referred to variously as the “average person,” “the typical consumer,” or the “reasonable person.” Substantial concerns exist, however, regarding the subjectivity and vulnerability to biases inherent in conventional means of assessing such responses, particularly the use of self-report evidence. Here, we addressed these concerns by complementing self-report evidence with neural data to inform the mental representations in question. Using an example from intellectual property law, we demonstrate that it is possible to construct a parsimonious neural index of visual similarity that can inform the reasonable …

Probing Amyloid-Beta Protein Structure And Dynamics With A Selective Antibody, Shikha Grover

Dissertations

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. The AD brain is characterized by significant neuronal loss and accumulation of insoluble fibrillar amyloid-β protein (Aβ) plaques and tau protein neurofibrillary tangles in the brain. However, over the last decade, many studies have shown that the neurodegenerative effect of Aβ may in fact be caused by various soluble oligomeric forms as opposed to the insoluble fibrils. Furthermore, the data suggest that a pre-fibrillar aggregated form, termed protofibrils, mediates direct neurotoxicity, and triggers a robust neuroinflammatory response.

Antibodies targeting the various conformation of Aβ are important therapeutic agents to prevent the progression …

Childhood Trauma And Brain Structure In Children And Adolescents, Matthew Peverill, Maya L. Rosen, Lucy A. Lurie, Kelly A. Sambrook, Margaret A. Sheridan, Katie A. Mclaughlin

Neuroscience: Faculty Publications

The dimensional model of adversity proposes that experiences of threat and deprivation have distinct neurodevelopmental consequences. We examined these dimensions, separately and jointly, with brain structure in a sample of 149 youth aged 8–17—half recruited based on exposure to threat-related experiences. We predicted that greater threat would be uniquely associated with reduced cortical thickness and surface area in brain regions associated with salience processing including ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and insula, and that deprivation experiences would be uniquely associated with reductions in cortical thickness and surface area in frontoparietal areas associated with cognitive control. As predicted, …

Dendritic Spine Density And Morphology In The Dorsolateral Striatum Following A High Fat Diet, Tikva Nabatian

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Obesity rates have been dramatically rising in recent years and in 2017-2018 more than 42% of adults in the United States were obese. Obesity is associated with numerous health problems, including cardiovascular disease, stroke, insulin resistance, and type II diabetes. The prevalence of highly palatable and calorically dense foods high in fats and sugars is a significant factor in the increase in obesity rates. Many suggest that palatable food affects the brain in ways similar to drugs of abuse, reinforcing the consumption of highly palatable foods in the same way drugs reinforce drug use. While numerous weight loss programs and …

Quantifying Psychostimulant-Induced Sensitization Effects On Dopamine And Acetylcholine Release Across Different Timescales, Georg Lange

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Drug-induced behavioral sensitization describes the phenomenon that behavioral response to a drug of abuse is getting stronger if the same psychostimulant is delivered multiple times which is much more pronounced if done in the same environmental context. A proposed neural basis is the formation of an association between contextual cues and the rewarding drug which is mediated by dopamine. Dopamine operates at different timescales and to fully understand dopamine sensitization, it is necessary to investigate dopamine release at slow (tens of minutes) but also faster (sub-second) timescales. But creating a holistic view has been difficult due to a lack of …