Department Of Neurobiology Research Articles

Introducing medical students to cadaveric dissection: Which aspects of an orientation are most beneficial?

We appreciate the insight and comments shared by Patera and Khamuani (2021) in response to the article, "Fear of death and examination performance in a gross anatomy course with cadaveric dissection" (Allison et al., 2021). In their letter, Patera and Khamuani (2021) presented a few concerns regarding this article, which included: (1) lack of insight into why students' fear of death had increased, (2) findings were contradictory to previously published results, (3) information concerning an introduction to the anatomy course was omitted, and (4) the questionnaire structure and manner of distribution may have influenced students' responses.

Implementing An Active Learning, Large‐Enrollment Online Physiology Course During The COVID‐19 Pandemic

The Department of Neurobiology & Behavior at Stony Brook University offers a large‐enrollment gateway undergraduate physiology course, BIO 203 ‐ Fundamentals of Biology: Cellular and Organ Physiology. BIO 203 is a required course in the biology and biochemistry majors and in the pre‐health curriculum, and undergraduates typically register for BIO 203 in their sophomore year. Since Fall 2015, BIO 203 has been offered in two formats, traditional PowerPoint‐based lectures presented twice per week (80 min / session) in a 570‐seat auditorium with individual fixed seats and a flipped, active‐learning format delivered once per week (113 min / session) in a 250‐seat auditorium with shared desks and rotating chairs. Students in both sections had equal access to prerecorded lectures and online activities (content quizzes, journal activities and thought questions). The focus of the lecture section was content delivery while the flipped section emphasized active group learning facilitated by instructors and experienced undergraduate teaching assistants. Student learning was evaluated by performance on common high‐stakes multiple choice exams. On average, students in the flipped section exhibited better performance on the common exams than students in the lecture section (Fall 2019 exam total, p < 0.05 in two sample t test and Wilcoxon rank sum test). As a result of the COVID‐19 pandemic, Stony Brook University required large‐enrollment courses to switch to online instruction starting in March 2020 and continuing through the Fall 2020 semester. The BIO 203 instructors implemented a synchronous online version of BIO 203 based on the active‐learning curriculum developed for the flipped section. In Fall 2020, this synchronous online version of BIO 203 was offered simultaneously to two sections. Students in both sections had access to the same online resources (recorded lectures, content quizzes and activities) and were evaluated using low‐stakes quizzes (administered during scheduled class time) and a common cumulative final exam (administered during a common final exam period). The primary difference between the two sections was the frequency and duration of the synchronous online meetings with instructors and teaching assistants. Section 01 (595 students) met twice a week for 80 min per session, whereas section 02 (257 students) met once a week for 130 min. A preliminary analysis of the scores on the common final exam indicates that students in section 01 (two meetings per week) performed better than students in section 02 (1 meeting per week) (p < 0.05 in two sample t test and Wilcoxon rank sum test). These preliminary findings are consistent with the hypothesis that student learning is enhanced by frequent engagement in active learning.

Ancient foes and helpers: Research sheds new light on the role that retroviruses play in disease, innate immunity and neural plasticity.

Ancient retrovirus infections played a role in human evolution and are still involved in innate immunity and neural plasticity.

Neuroscience Gateway � Cyberinfrastructure Providing Supercomputing Resources for Large Scale Computational Neuroscience Research

Neuroscience Gateway � Cyberinfrastructure Providing Supercomputing Resources for Large Scale Computational Neuroscience Research

Differences in coordination of ventral neck muscles for individuals with whiplash-associated disorder and healthy controls

G. Peterson1,2, D. Nilsson3, A. Dedering 4, J. Trygg5, T. Wallman1, A. Peolsson2 1Uppsala University, Centre for Clinical Research Sormland, Eskilstuna, Sweden; 2 Linkoping University, Department of Medical and Health, Linkoping, Sweden; 3 Umea University, Department of Chemistry, Computational Life Science Cluster, Umea, Sweden; 4 Karolinska Institutet, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Stockholm, Sweden; 5 Umea University, Department of Chemistry, Computational Life Science Cluster, Unea, Sweden

Molecular Mechanism of TRPV1 Activation by Capsaicin

Molecular Mechanism of TRPV1 Activation by Capsaicin

Mental health-promoting dialogues from the perspective of community-dwelling seniors with multimorbidity.

Mental health promotion needs to be studied more deeply within the context of primary care, because persons with multiple chronic conditions are at risk of developing poor mental health. In order to make progress in the understanding of mental health promotion, the aim of this study was to describe the experiences of health-promoting dialogues from the perspective of community-dwelling seniors with multimorbidity – what these seniors believe is important for achieving a dialogue that may promote their mental health. Seven interviews with six women and one man, aged 83–96 years, were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. The results were summarized into nine subcategories and three categories. The underlying meaning of the text was formulated into an overarching theme that embraced every category, “perceived and well-managed as a unique individual”. These seniors with multimorbidity missed someone to talk to about their mental health, and needed partners that were accessible for health dialogues that could promote mental health. The participants missed friends and relatives to talk to and they (crucially) lacked health care or social service providers for health-promoting dialogues that may promote mental health. An optimal level of care can be achieved through involvement, continuity, and by providing a health-promoting dialogue based on seniors’ needs and wishes, with the remembrance that general health promotion also may promote mental health. Implications for clinical practice and further research are discussed.

Individual olfactory fingerprints: from mapping odors in people-space to mapping people in odor-space

not submitted for publication. Published: 16 April 2014 doi:10.1186/2044-7248-3-S1-P17 Cite this article as: Secundo et al.: Individual olfactory fingerprints: from mapping odors in people-space to mapping people in odor-space. Flavour 2014 3(Suppl 1):P17. Submit your next manuscript to BioMed Central and take full advantage of: • Convenient online submission • Thorough peer review • No space constraints or color figure charges • Immediate publication on acceptance • Inclusion in PubMed, CAS, Scopus and Google Scholar • Research which is freely available for redistribution Submit your manuscript at www.biomedcentral.com/submit Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel Secundo et al. Flavour 2014, 3(Suppl 1):P17 http://www.flavourjournal.com/content/3/S1/P17 © 2014 Secundo et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.

A metric approach to olfactory space

not submitted for online publication. Published: 16 April 2014 doi:10.1186/2044-7248-3-S1-K4 Cite this article as: Sobel: A metric approach to olfactory space. Flavour 2014 3(Suppl 1):K4. Submit your next manuscript to BioMed Central and take full advantage of: • Convenient online submission • Thorough peer review • No space constraints or color figure charges • Immediate publication on acceptance • Inclusion in PubMed, CAS, Scopus and Google Scholar • Research which is freely available for redistribution Submit your manuscript at www.biomedcentral.com/submit Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel Sobel Flavour 2014, 3(Suppl 1):K4 http://www.flavourjournal.com/content/3/S1/K4 © 2014 Sobel; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.

Introduction of an anatomy multi‐station integrated table conference (343.1)

Assessment is the culmination for any educational activity. Anatomy assessments in medical school traditionally consist of multiple choice and cadaver practical exams. When the University of Utah School of Medicine adopted an integrated curriculum the mode of assessments also changed including the addition of Objective Structured Clinical Exams (OSCEs) as the summative form of clinical assessment. An OSCE is a one‐on‐one exam with multiple stations testing communication, physical exam, clinical knowledge, and radiographic interpretation among other skills. We asked the question, “How can we as anatomy professors create an assessment similar to the OSCE?” We implemented an anatomy multi‐station, integrated table conference into the dissection schedule. Three times throughout the Foundations of Medicine Unit medical and dental students were tested one‐on‐one regarding their knowledge of anatomy. The anatomy questions were standardized and had correlations to clinical medicine, histology, embryology and radiology. The students rotated from station to station using a combination of cadavers, skeletons, and images (either on iPads or printed and placed on the wall) to answer the questions. As a result, students were graded not only on their knowledge of anatomy but also their verbalization of this knowledge within an integrated context of medicine and clinical sciences.Grant Funding Source: Supported by the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy

Predicting odor perceptual similarity from odor structure

not submitted for publication. Published: 16 April 2014 doi:10.1186/2044-7248-3-S1-O2 Cite this article as: Snitz et al.: Predicting odor perceptual similarity from odor structure. Flavour 2014 3(Suppl 1):O2. Submit your next manuscript to BioMed Central and take full advantage of: • Convenient online submission • Thorough peer review • No space constraints or color figure charges • Immediate publication on acceptance • Inclusion in PubMed, CAS, Scopus and Google Scholar • Research which is freely available for redistribution Submit your manuscript at www.biomedcentral.com/submit Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel Snitz et al. Flavour 2014, 3(Suppl 1):O2 http://www.flavourjournal.com/content/3/S1/O2 © 2014 Snitz et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.

Specific Sorting and Post-Golgi Trafficking of Dendritic Potassium Channels in Living Neurons

Proper membrane localization of ion channels is essential for the function of neuronal cells. Particularly, the computational ability of dendrites depends on the localization of different ion channels in specific subcompartments. However, the molecular mechanisms that control ion channel localization in distinct dendritic subcompartments are largely unknown. Here, we developed a quantitative live cell imaging method to analyze protein sorting and post-Golgi vesicular trafficking. We focused on two dendritic voltage-gated potassium channels that exhibit distinct localizations: Kv2.1 in proximal dendrites and Kv4.2 in distal dendrites. Our results show that Kv2.1 and Kv4.2 channels are sorted into two distinct populations of vesicles at the Golgi apparatus. The targeting of Kv2.1 and Kv4.2 vesicles occurred by distinct mechanisms as evidenced by their requirement for specific peptide motifs, cytoskeletal elements, and motor proteins. By live cell and super-resolution imaging, we identified a novel trafficking machinery important for the localization of Kv2.1 channels. Particularly, we identified non-muscle myosin II as an important factor in Kv2.1 trafficking. These findings reveal that the sorting of ion channels at the Golgi apparatus and their subsequent trafficking by unique molecular mechanisms are crucial for their specific localizations within dendrites.

Ras and autophagy in cancer development and therapy

Autophagy, a process of self-degradation and turnover of cellular components, plays a complex role in cancer. Evidence exists to show that autophagy may support tumor growth and cell survival, whereas it can also contribute to tumor suppression and have anti-survival characteristics in different cellular systems. Numerous studies have described the effects of various oncogenes and tumor suppressors on autophagy. The small GTPase Ras is an oncogene involved in the regulation of various cell-signaling pathways, and is mutated in 33% of human cancers. In the present review, we discuss the interplay between Ras and autophagy in relation to oncogenesis. It appears that Ras can upregulate or downregulate autophagy through several signaling pathways. In turn, autophagy can affect the tumorigenicity driven by Ras, resulting in either tumor progression or repression, depending on the cellular context. Furthermore, Ras inhibitors were shown to induce autophagy in several cancer cell lines.

Commentary: “Leaning in” to Support Sex Differences in Basic Science and Clinical Research

Women’s Health Research Institute (T.K.W., M.R.K., A.S.P., F.W.T., C.S.W.), Department of Surgery (M.R.K.) and Departments of Dermatology and Pediatrics (A.S.P.), Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago Illinois 60611; and Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Feinberg School of Medicine and Molecular Biosciences (T.K.W.) and Department of Neurobiology (F.W.T., C.S.W.), Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences 60208

David Hubel (1926–2013): the man who developed our understanding of vision

David Hubel (1926–2013): the man who developed our understanding of vision

Hippocampal DBS affects disease development in the kainic acid rat model for temporal lobe epilepsy

Hippocampal DBS affects disease development in the kainic acid rat model for temporal lobe epilepsy

Cancer Prevention and Control: Where are the Kids?

The Journal of Cancer Education May 2012 supplement #2 (27) entitled “Workforce Gaps and Opportunities in Cancer Prevention & Control” focused on the expanding need for a larger and more efficient cancer prevention workforce. Topics discussed ranged from the number of physician and nurse oncologists to communication and funding problems. In the “recommendations” sections of the papers in this special issue, no mention of cancer education/prevention opportunities for school-age children was made. Yet this is the age group that begins to make lifestyle choices such as tobacco and/or tanning booth use. Without proper health science information regarding these practices, youngsters are at risk of making uninformed and therefore poor lifestyle decisions. School-age children should be a major target for cancer prevention education. For example, in the 2012 Report of the Surgeon General on “Preventing Tobacco Use Among Youth and Young Adults” (http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco), it was stated that “tobacco use is a pediatric epidemic, around the world as well as in the United States with nearly all tobacco use beginning in childhood and adolescence.” This editorial suggests a way to provide cancer prevention education to school-age children. The kids are there . order were: first—anatomy and physiology; second— science and medicine; third—genetics and reproduction; fourth—behavior, neurobiology, and the mind; fifth— man and animal relationships; and sixth—biotechnology. For example, 68 % of the grade K-8 children ranked anatomy and physiology, and sickness and medicine as their primary interests. Regarding their primary interests, only 11 % listed genetics and reproduction and 1.4 % listed biotechnology [1]. The teachers of these interested students, however, usually are not trained in science/health science education leaving it untaught. Two quotes from middle school students are revealing: “A lot of my teachers tell me that smoking causes lung cancer – but none of them can tell me how this happens” and “Skin cancer can be prevented I think. We haven't really discussed that in school” [2]. The problem of teachers being poorly prepared to teach science has been documented [3]. In summary, students will not be able to learn science if their teachers do not have adequate knowledge on the science they teach. Teachers need better preservice and inservice training in science to deepen their knowledge on the science content of the curriculum. Proper training of teachers in the health sciences, especially cancer prevention education, obviously is needed. It has been suggested that future advances made in improving the nation's health will not result from spectacular biomedical breakthroughs, but from advances in personally initiated actions that are directly influenced by the individual's health-related attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge through school-based health science education. It has been recommended that there be increased in-service and preservice professional development opportunities and incentives for persons responsible for teaching health education. Preservice professional preparation of all teachers should include E. R. Burns (*) Department of Neurobiology and Developmental Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 4301 West Markham St., Little Rock, AR 72205, USA e-mail: burnsbob@uams.edu J Canc Educ (2014) 29:209–210 DOI 10.1007/s13187-013-0582-x

Cognitive Decline in HIV/AIDS Linked to Lipid Disorder

Risk factors found in cerebrospinal fluid increase the likelihood that individuals with HIV disease will develop dementia or other neurocognitive disorders.

Ral mediates activity-dependent growth of postsynaptic membranes via recruitment of the exocyst

Remodelling neuronal connections by synaptic activity requires membrane trafficking. We present evidence for a signalling pathway by which synaptic activity and its consequent Ca(2+) influx activate the small GTPase Ral and thereby recruit exocyst proteins to postsynaptic zones. In accord with the ability of the exocyst to direct delivery of post-Golgi vesicles, constitutively active Ral expressed in Drosophila muscle causes the exocyst to be concentrated in the region surrounding synaptic boutons and consequently enlarges the membrane folds of the postsynaptic plasma membrane (the subsynaptic reticulum, SSR). SSR growth requires Ral and the exocyst component Sec5 and Ral-induced enlargement of these membrane folds does not occur in sec5(-/-) muscles. Chronic changes in synaptic activity influence the plastic growth of this membrane in a manner consistent with activity-dependent activation of Ral. Thus, Ral regulation of the exocyst represents a control point for postsynaptic plasticity. This pathway may also function in mammals as expression of activated RalA in hippocampal neurons increases dendritic spine density in an exocyst-dependent manner and increases Sec5 in spines.

What secrets can functional MRI reveal about the developing infant brain?

Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, Columbia University, 351 Engineering Terrace, 1210 Amsterdam Avenue, NY 10027, USA Functional MRI (fMRI) has provided unprecedented insights into the workings of the human brain since its inception over 20 years ago. However, one intractable complication in interpreting fMRI data is that its signal is derived from changes in the brain’s blood flow and blood oxygenation levels. fMRI is not a direct measure of neuronal activity. Moreover, contrary to popular belief, the fMRI blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signal is not dominated by the consumption of oxygen by activated neurons. A normal ‘positive’ fMRI BOLD response corresponds to a decrease in the local concentration of deoxyhemoglobin resulting from a strong overperfusion and hyperoxygenation of a particular region of the brain. While in many cases the relation between neuronal activity and localized blood flow increases is fairly robust [1,2], relatively little is understood about how the brain’s ‘blood flow response’ is initiated and controlled in relation to neuronal activity at a cellular level. As a result, interpretation of fMRI can be complicated in situations in which neurovascular coupling may be altered, for example in pathologies such as stroke, Alzheimer’s disease or brain cancer, and, according to a recent study, during postnatal brain development [3,4].