Neuroscience and Neurobiology Commons^™

Ashwagandha And Sexual Health In Women With Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder: Exploring Extent Of Adaptogenic Properties, Rhea Chatterjee

AUCTUS: The Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Scholarship

Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder (HSDD) affects 40% of women and potentially decreases their quality of life. Currently, the primary treatment for HSDD is Flibanserin, which is a serotonergic agonist and an antidepressant. However, the limited efficacy of Flibanserin encourages the exploration of the utilization of traditional drugs such as Withania somnifera, otherwise known as Ashwagandha, as an alternative treatment for HSDD. Minimal studies examine ayurvedic medications or the symptoms of illnesses that traditional Western medicines are unable to treat. This comprehensive literature review investigated the efficacy of Ashwagandha in improving sexual function in women with HSDD. The paper evaluated …

Distracted But Still Listening: How Cognitive And Perceptual Load Affect Multisensory Integration, Eddie Lee

Honors Theses

There is an ongoing debate about whether multisensory integration (MSI) occurs automatically and before attention is allocated or if multisensory integration occurs after attention is allocated and is subject to top-down attentional control. A recent study investigated this by manipulating the availability of attentional resources in a dual-task paradigm, finding that when the demands of the secondary task increased, susceptibility to the Sound-Induced-Flash-Illusion, a non-speech audiovisual illusion, also increased (Michail & Keil, 2018). This was taken as evidence for the role of post-attentive, top-down control during MSI. In the present study, we extend this logic to explore the role of …

Plasma S100Β Is A Predictor For Pathology And Cognitive Decline In Alzheimer’S Disease, Geetika Nehra, Bryan J. Maloney, Rebecca Smith, Wijitra Chumboatong, Erin L. Abner, Peter T. Nelson, Björn Bauer, Anika M. S. Hartz

UK CARES Faculty Publications

Background Blood–brain barrier dysfunction is one characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and is recognized as both a cause and consequence of the pathological cascade leading to cognitive decline. The goal of this study was to assess markers for barrier dysfunction in postmortem tissue samples from research participants who were either cognitively normal individuals (CNI) or diagnosed with AD at the time of autopsy and determine to what extent these markers are associated with AD neuropathologic changes (ADNC) and cognitive impairment.

Methods We used postmortem brain tissue and plasma samples from 19 participants: 9 CNI and 10 AD dementia patients who …

Influences Of Sex, Alcohol, And Stress On Conditioned Fear Responses, Heyam K. Mayberry

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

Learned fear responses are acquired through the identification and association of threatening stimuli with aversive outcomes. Fear responding and the proper maintenance of defensive behaviors is integral to survival. However, without the homeostasis of such systems, fear responses can become maladaptive and lead to dysregulated behavioral responding. Psychological conditions such as alcohol use disorder (AUD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) often lead to impairments in fear learning, deficits in fear memory, and heightened fear responses. While there are clear sex differences in the prevalence of both AUD and PTSD, development of either disorder increases the risk for comorbid AUD/PTSD, leading …

Atorvastatin Alters Neuronal Morphology Data Set, Carolyn L. Pytte

Publications and Research

Statins are highly effective and widely prescribed cholesterol lowering drugs. However, statins cross the blood-brain barrier and decrease neural cholesterol in animal models, raising concern that long-term statin use may impact cholesterol-dependent structures and functions in the brain. Cholesterol is a fundamental component of cell membranes and experimentally decreasing membrane cholesterol has been shown to alter cell morphology in vitro. In addition, brain regions that undergo adult neurogenesis rely on local brain cholesterol for the manufacture of new neuronal membranes. Thus neurogenesis may be particularly vulnerable to long-term statin use. Here we asked whether oral statin treatment impacts neurogenesis …

Investigating The Role Of The Liver-Brain Axis In Addiction, Camryn Holt, Isabella Roque, Shimran Sharma, Chris Galbraith, Jordan T. Yorgason

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2025

Ethanol (EtOH) increases dopamine (DA) release, leading to addictive behaviors.

Ex vivo, EtOH only alters DA release at supraphysiological levels.

The liver metabolizes EtOH, and metabolites can escape into systemic circulation and cross the blood-brain barrier.

We hypothesize that these metabolites may induce changes in the mesolimbic circuitry and thus contribute to the reinforcing effects of EtOH.

We examined the effects of bile acids (BAs) and other EtOH metabolites on accumbal DA release and CIN firing.

We also investigated downstream effects of EtOH metabolism, such as macrophage migration and TGR5-mediated release of glucagon- like peptide-1 (GLP-1).

Alzheimer’S Disease And The Immune System: The Emerging Role Of Temra Cells, Edric D. Winford, Adam D. Bachstetter

Neuroscience Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Loss Of Lgl1 Increases Expression Of C-Jun And Dcx In The Svz And Rms Of The Mouse Brain, Madison Leigh Gutierrez

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Glioblastoma (GBM), the most aggressive and treatment-resistant subtype of glioma, accounts for the majority of brain tumor–related mortality. A defining feature of GBM is its ability to invade healthy brain tissue through extensive cell migration, which severely limits the effectiveness of surgical and pharmacological treatments. Increasing evidence suggests that GBM cells activate gene programs known to drive normal neural stem and progenitor cell (NSPC) migration; however, the precise molecular mechanisms shared between NSPCs and GBM cells remain poorly understood. Lethal (2) giant larvae 1 (Lgl1), a conserved cortical cytoskeletal protein, has emerged as a key regulator of polarity and migration. …

Lifetime History Of Concussions In Relation To Blind Perceptual Distance Estimation Ability, Mackenzie K. Miller

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study examined the relationship between visuospatial estimation and a lifetime history of concussions. Current literature on concussions investigates visuospatial working memory and estimation ability separately, but not conjointly. In order to examine this relationship, a novel neuropsychological task was designed to measure visuospatial estimation ability in working memory, named the Perceptual Estimation Test (PET). This novel task was designed with three variations that would increase in complexity as they progressed, and each variation would include three trials. Participants were scored on their accuracy performance during the PET. Participants aged 18-25 were recruited from students attending the University of Central …

Cardiac Timing Effects On Response Speed Are Modulated By Blood Pressure But Not Heart Rate Variability In Healthy Young Adults, Xiao Yang, Catalina Roldan, Michael Gazzanigo, Yasmine Nabulsi, Fang Fang

Research and Infrastructure Service Enterprise (RISE) Faculty Publications

Cardiac timing effects reflect the dynamic interplay between interoceptive and exteroceptive processes. Human information processing tends to be facilitated during cardiac diastole and inhibited during systole, reflecting autonomic regulation and the neuromodulation by baroreceptor afferents. Thus, blood pressure (BP) and vagally-mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV) are potential modulators of those effects. Additionally, cognitive control appears to play a critical role in the processes. However, whether cardiac timing effects are influenced by those factors remains unclear. The present study aimed to clarify these relationships. Fifty-one healthy young adults completed three experimental sessions to assess BP, short-term HRV, and cardiac timing effects. …

Racial Health Disparities Among Pregnant Women Of Color In New York City: Biological And Systemic Impacts, Kaylin Peña

Pitzer Senior Theses

Racial Health Disparities Among Pregnant Women of Color in New York City: Biological and Systemic Impacts

Abstract

This thesis aims to explore how racial health disparities, underrepresentation in gynecology, and socioeconomic barriers contribute to adverse pregnancy outcomes among women of color in New York City. Through an interdisciplinary approach that combines resources from medical anthropology and human biology, this research will examine the biological implications of chronic stress, specifically HPA axis dysregulation, and its role in maternal health outcomes. With the idea of intersectionality, as conceptualized by Kimberlé Crenshaw, the study analyzes the various effects of systemic inequities and social …

Neuroimmune Toll-Like Receptor Signaling Modulates C. Elegans Feeding Behavior In A Hunger State-Dependent Manner, Retwika Ganguly

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Animals face the risk of encountering pathogenic microbes while searching for nutritive resources. Assessing the interplay between the benefits of nutrition vs. the risk of infection might influence the behavioral regulation of immune processes. In Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans), a nematode roundworm, behavioral immunity is partially regulated by the innate immune molecule TOL-1: a homolog of vertebrate Toll-like Receptor (TLR) proteins. TOL-1 influences C. elegans pathogen avoidance behaviors by promoting the development of CO2-detecting chemosensory neurons, which detect a signal linked to the presence of harmful pathogens. While TOL-1′s role in pathogen avoidance is well established, its impact in an …

Using Rna Sequencing To Examine Encephalic Gene Expression In Cactus Mice, Sarah A. Nicholls

Honors Theses and Capstones

Many of the exact mechanisms by which desert-adapted animals avoid dehydration-induced complications are unknown, though there are likely ties to the general mammalian dehydration response, a multisystem process spearheaded by the brain. Peromyscus eremicus, the cactus mouse, can survive its whole life without intaking water and is commonly used as a model to study desert adaptations. In this study, we have used bulk transcriptomics to characterize the differential gene expression across hydrated and dehydrated P. eremicus in five major regions of the brain: the cerebral cortex (referred to throughout much of this paper as the cortex), hippocampus, thalamus, midbrain, …

Understanding How Hearing Works, Cecilia Zoutewelle

A. The Science of Sound

A 7-page introductory overview of the anatomical and neurological processes of hearing, with illustrations and bullet-point summaries. 

Effect Of Paxlovid On Neurodevelopmental Disorder Diagnosis Outcomes In Offspring Of Mothers Infected With Sars-Cov-2 During Pregnancy, Simone Rogers

CMC Senior Theses

The onset of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic brought concern over the effects that this virus would have on pregnancy and fetal outcomes, specifically neurodevelopmental outcomes. Maternal immune activation (MIA), caused by infection during pregnancy, is known to result in neurodevelopmental disorder (NDD) diagnosis in offspring, typically autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This effect has already been observed in mothers who were infected with COVID-19 during pregnancy. However, in 2023, Paxlovid, the COVID-19 antiviral drug, became available to patients experiencing symptoms of the virus, including pregnant women. Consequently, this study seeks to determine whether the risk of …

A Spectroscopy Study Of The Brain: Exploring Sex Differences In Healthy Older Adults, Angela Gushue

CMC Senior Theses

Cognitive decline and aging-related disorders, such as Alzheimer’s, disproportionately affect patients based on sex, but the mechanisms underlying these skewed effects are unknown. This proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-MRS) study seeks to understand if sex disparities in aging exist in neurometabolite concentrations of older adult brains. Sixty-seven participants, ranging from 60 to 85 years of age, underwent the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and H-MRS of the brain. Concentrations of myo-inositol, total creatine, total NAA, and total choline were calculated in the dorsal posterior cingulate cortex, left hippocampal cortex, left medial temporal gyrus, left primary sensorimotor cortex, and right dorsolateral prefrontal …

The Garden Of Pdyn: The Impact Of Pdyn Gene Deletion On Ethanol Self-Administration And Reinforcement In Female Mice, Catherine Ruan

CMC Senior Theses

Debilitating over-consumption of alcohol, often culminating into a prevalent psychiatric disorder known as alcohol use disorder (AUD), stands as one of the United States’ most expensive societal battles to face (Harwood et al., 1998). Consequently, the public’s desire and scientists’ motivation to develop novel pharmacological solutions to treat it is high. Recent and ongoing research presents new insights into the role of the dynorphin/kappa opioid receptor (DYN/KOR) system as an inhibitor of dopamine release and a regulator of the negative affective states that come with alcohol withdrawal (Karkhanis et al., 2017). However, this growing body of literature is predominantly conducted …

Exploring Neurodiversity & The Role Of Flexible Workplaces For Organizational Neuroinclusion, Miranda Chen

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis conducted a thorough literature review on the experiences and outcomes of neurodiverse individuals in the workplace and found consistently lower outcomes in well-being, work performance, intention to leave, and job satisfaction compared to neurotypical workers. It examined how the emergence of remote work presents new opportunities for mitigating some workplace challenges around stress and sensory overload, while recognizing that remote work alone falls short as being a definitive solution for the unique challenges faced by neurodiverse people. Instead, it argued for Flexible Work Arrangements (FWA’s) as a comprehensive and systemic strategy to address individual needs and organizational inclusion, …

The Meditative Mind In Sync: The Effects Of Meditative Interpersonal Synchrony On Self-Other Merging, Self-Representation, And Social Connection., Nathan Verba

CMC Senior Theses

This study investigates the effects of meditative interpersonal synchrony, operationalized through OM group chanting meditation (OM-GCM), on self-other merging, self-referential thinking, and the quality of social interactions between strangers. Interpersonal synchrony and meditation have been widely studied as distinct phenomena; however, this thesis is the first to examine the potential amplifying effects of their combination. This thesis hypothesized that OM-GCM would lead to higher conversation quality, increased self-other merging, and reduced self-referential thinking compared to a non-meditative synchronous control: humming. To test this, twenty-eight college students, paired into dyads of strangers, engaged in either the OM-GCM or humming condition, followed …

The Development And Validation Of A Dimensional Childhood Adversity Measure, Angelina Pei-Tzu Tsai, Peter F. Halpin, Lucy Lurie, Meredith Gruhn, Maya L. Rosen, Donald H. Baucom, Michael B. Sarabosing, Sneha Sai Boda, Katie A. Mclaughlin, Margaret A. Sheridan

Neuroscience: Faculty Publications

Research on the developmental consequences of early adversity has grown rapidly, yet measures of childhood adversity have not kept pace with evolving theoretical models. Existing measures often lack comprehensive assessment and psychometric evidence. This study addresses these gaps by developing the Deprivation and Threat—Adult Self-report (DT-AS) measure, a psychometrically sound scale assessing childhood threat and deprivation exposure, evaluated in young adults. Psychometric analysis was performed in waves on a total sample of N=796 participants. Pilot data (n₁=210; n₂=208) were analyzed using Classical Test Theory (CTT) and Item Response Theory (IRT) to refine item selection andoptimize response …