Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Neural Correlates Of Audiovisual Speech Perception In Aphasia And Healthy Aging, Sarah H. Baum

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

Understanding speech in face-to-face conversation utilizes the integration of multiple pieces of information, most importantly the auditory vocal sounds and visual lip movements. Prior studies of the neural underpinnings of audiovisual integration in the brain have provided converging evidence to suggest that neurons within the left superior temporal sulcus (STS) provide a critical neural hub for the integration of auditory and visual information in speech. While most studies of audiovisual processing focus on neural mechanisms within healthy, young adults, we currently know very little about how changes to the brain can affect audiovisual integration in speech. To examine this further, …

The Effects Of 6-Weeks Of Resistance Training On The Neuromuscular Fatigue Threshold In Older Adults, Nadia Emerson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Age-related deficits in muscle mass, strength, and function place an increased burden of work on existing skeletal muscle and may lead to early onset of neuromuscular fatigue (NMF) during activities of daily living. Resistance exercise (RE) is the proven method for improving neuromuscular function in healthy older adults. PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of 6 weeks of RE on the NMF threshold as well as strength and functional performance in older adults. METHODS: Twenty-four older adults were randomly assigned to 6 weeks of RE (EXE; n = 12; age 72 ± 6.3 y; BMI 28.4 kg/m2 ) or control (CONT; …

Changes In Sleep Architecture And Cognition With Age And Psychosocial Stress: A Study In Fischer 344 Rats, Heather M. Buechel

Theses and Dissertations--Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences

Changes in both sleep architecture and cognition are common with age. Typically these changes have a negative connotation: sleep fragmentation, insomnia, and deep sleep loss as well as forgetfulness, lack of focus, and even dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Research has shown that psychosocial stressors, such as isolation from family and friends or loss of a loved one can also have significant negative effects on sleep architecture and cognitive capabilities. This leaves the elderly in a particularly vulnerable situation: suffering from cognitive decline and sleep dysregulation already, and more likely to respond negatively to psychosocial stressors. Taking all of these factors …

Effects Of Intranasally Administered Dnsp-11 On The Central Dopamine System Of Normal And Parkinsonian Fischer 344 Rats, James H. Sonne

Theses and Dissertations--Neuroscience

Due to the blood-brain barrier, delivery of many drugs to the brain has required intracranial surgery which is prone to complication. Here we show that Dopamine Neuron Stimulating Peptide 11 (DNSP-11), following non-invasive intranasal administration, protects dopaminergic neurons from a lesion model of Parkinson’s disease in the rat. A significant and dose-dependent increase in an index of dopamine turnover (the ratio of DOPAC to dopamine) was observed in the striatum of normal young adult Fischer 344 rats by whole-tissue neurochemistry compared to vehicle administered controls.

Among animals challenged with a moderate, unilateral 6-hydroxy-dopamine (6-OHDA) lesion of the substantia nigra, those …