Neuropsychological Evidence Research Articles

An Assessment of the Evolution of Executive Functions

Cognitive evolution, as the core subject of fields like paleoanthropology, cognitive archeology, and neuropsychology, has begun to gain more interest in psychology in recent years. Executive functions are viewed from the perspective of cognitive evolution as basic advancements that are crucial to the evolution of language and contemporary cognition. As a metaphor, executive functions refer to advanced cognitive processes (working memory, inhibition, organization, cognitive flexibility, etc.) in the context of complex goal-directed behaviors. Sophisticated cognitive traits like executive functions emerged because of solutions to adaptive issues (survival, reproduction, and social group life) that human ancestors confronted over millions of years and passed them on to their offspring. Although it is accepted that Homo sapiens owes its evolutionary success to Paleolithic living conditions, explaining this process has not always been easy. In this review article, general information about executive functions is presented, followed by a review of scientific explanations about the evolution of executive functions. Evaluations have shown that these alternative scientific explanations based on archaeological, anthropological, and neuropsychological evidence for the evolutionary origins of executive functions do not fit all the pieces of the puzzle. It is believed that novel research models will clarify which of these alternative explanations are proximate causes and which are ultimate causes.

Motor control and working memory in adults with neurological injuries: search neuropsychological and electrophysiological evidence of cognitive-motor interaction

Motor control and working memory in adults with neurological injuries: search neuropsychological and electrophysiological evidence of cognitive-motor interaction

Predictive value for cerebrospinal fluid Alzheimer's disease profile of different measures of verbal episodic memory in patients with MCI

Neuropsychological evidence of memory impairment represents the main feature of the clinical onset of typical Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Rey’s Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT) and Logical Memory (LM) are two tests both assessing verbal episodic memory, widely used in clinical practice. Our aim was to investigate the added value of their combined use in predicting cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) AD biomarkers positivity in a retrospective consecutive series of patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). 169 MCI patients were included. For all of them neuropsychological assessment and CSF analysis were available. According to CSF A/T/(N) profile, 109 were defined as MCI due to AD (A+T+), and 60 were non-AD MCI (A−T−). Logistic regression model and receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves were analyzed to evaluate the discriminatory power of single and combined sub-measures between AD and non-AD patients. The combination of RAVLT-del with LM could acceptably discriminate the two groups (AUC: 0.69, CI 95% 0.617–0.761, sens: 0.75, spec. 0.58, p < 0.001), while the single tests did not show sufficient discriminative performance. Our study shows that the combination of RAVLT delayed recall with LM better predicts the biological AD diagnosis (A+T+), showing a good discriminative power between MCI-AD from non-AD MCI. Since RAVLT and LM assess different components of verbal episodic memory, they should be considered as complementary, rather than interchangeable, tests.

False memories in forensic psychology: do cognition and brain activity tell the same story?

One of the most important problems in forensic psychology is the impossibility of reliably discriminating between true and false memories when the only prosecution evidence comes from the memory of a witness or a victim. Unfortunately, both children and adults can be persuaded that they have been victims of past criminal acts, usually of a sexual nature. In adults, suggestion often occurs in the context of suggestive therapies based on the belief that traumatic events are repressed, while children come to believe and report events that never occurred as a result of repeated suggestive questioning. Cognitive Researchers have designed false memory paradigms (i.e., misinformation effect, Deese-Roediger-McDermott paradigm, event implantation paradigm) to first form false memories and then determine whether it is possible to reliably differentiate between false and true memories. In the present study, we review the contribution of cognitive research to the formation of false memories and the neuropsychological approaches aimed to discriminate between true and false memories. Based on these results, we analyze the applicability of the cognitive and neuropsychological evidence to the forensic setting.

Is implicit memory associated with the hippocampus?

ABSTRACT According to the traditional memory-systems view, the hippocampus is critical during explicit (conscious) long-term memory, whereas other brain regions support implicit (nonconscious) memory. In the last two decades, some fMRI studies have reported hippocampal activity during implicit memory tasks. The aim of the present discussion paper was to identify whether any implicit memory fMRI studies have provided convincing evidence that the hippocampus is associated with nonconscious processes without being confounded by conscious processes. Experimental protocol and analysis parameters included the stimulus type(s), task(s), measures of subjective awareness, explicit memory accuracy, the relevant fMRI contrast(s) or analysis, and confound(s). A systematic review was conducted to identify implicit memory studies that reported fMRI activity in the hippocampus. After applying exclusion criteria, 13 articles remained for analysis. We found that there were no implicit memory fMRI studies where subjective awareness was absent, explicit memory performance was at chance, and there were no confounds that could have driven the observed hippocampal activity. The confounds included explicit memory (including false memory), imbalanced attentional states between conditions (yielding activation of the default-mode network), imbalanced stimuli between conditions, and differential novelty. As such, not a single fMRI study provided convincing evidence that implicit memory was associated with the hippocampus. Neuropsychological evidence was also considered, and implicit memory deficits were caused by factors known to disrupt brain regions beyond the hippocampus, such that the behavioral effects could not be attributed to this region. The present results indicate that implicit memory is not associated with the hippocampus.

Changes in the Networks of Attention across the Lifespan: A Graphical Meta-Analysis.

Three Posnerian networks of attention (alerting, orienting, and executive control) have been distinguished on the bases of behavioural, neuropsychological, and neuroscientific evidence. Here, we examined the trajectories of these networks throughout the human lifespan using the various Attention Network Tests (ANTs), which were specifically developed to measure the efficacy of these networks. The ANT Database was used to identify relevant research, resulting in the inclusion of 36 publications. We conducted a graphical meta-analysis using network scores from each study, based on reaction time plotted as a function of age group. Evaluation of attentional networks from childhood to early adulthood suggests that the alerting network develops relatively quickly, and reaches near-adult level by the age of 12. The developmental pattern of the orienting network seems to depend on the information value of the spatial cues. Executive control network scores show a consistent decrease (improvement) with age in childhood. During adulthood (ages 19-75), changes in alerting depend on the modality of the warning signal, while a moderate increase in orienting scores was seen with increasing age. Whereas executive control scores, as measured in reaction time, increase (deterioration) from young adulthood into later adulthood an opposite trend is seen when scores are based on error rates.

Neuropsychological impairment in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis-frontotemporal spectrum disorder.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease with a rapid course, characterized by motor neuron dysfunction, leading to progressive disability and death. This Review, which is aimed at neurologists, psychologists and other health professionals who follow evidence-based practice relating to ALS and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), examines the neuropsychological evidence that has driven the reconceptualization of ALS as a spectrum disorder ranging from a pure motor phenotype to ALS-FTD. It focuses on changes in cognition and behaviour, which vary in severity across the spectrum: around 50% individuals with ALS are within the normal range, 15% meet the criteria for ALS-FTD, and the remaining 35% are in the mid-spectrum range with milder and more focal impairments. The cognitive impairments include deficits in verbal fluency, executive functions, social cognition and language, and apathy is the most prevalent behavioural change. The pattern and severity of cognitive and behavioural change predicts underlying regional cerebral dysfunction from brain imaging and post-mortem pathology. Our increased recognition of cognition and behaviour as part of the ALS phenotype has led to the development and standardization of assessment tools, which have been incorporated into research and clinical care. Measuring change over the course of the disease is vital for clinical trials, and neuropsychology is proving to be a biomarker for the earliest preclinical changes.

Current Challenges in the Diagnosis of Progressive Neurocognitive Disorders: A Critical Review of the Literature and Recommendations for Primary and Secondary Care.

Screening for early symptoms of cognitive impairment enables timely interventions for patients and their families. Despite the advances in dementia diagnosis, the current nosography of neurocognitive disorders (NCDs) seems to overlook some clinical manifestations and predictors that could contribute to understanding the conversion from an asymptomatic stage to a very mild one, eventually leading to obvious disease. The present review examines different diagnostic approaches in view of neurophysiological and neuropsychological evidence of NCD progression, which may be subdivided into: (1) preclinical stage; (2) transitional stage; (3) prodromal or mild stage; (4) major NCD. The absence of univocal criteria and the adoption of ambiguous or narrow labels might complicate the diagnostic process. In particular, it should be noted that: (1) only neuropathological hallmarks characterize preclinical NCD; (2) transitional NCD must be assessed through proactive neuropsychological protocols; (3) prodromal/mild NCDs are based on cognitive functional indicators; (4) major NCD requires well-established tools to evaluate its severity stage; (5) insight should be accounted for by both patient and informants. Therefore, the examination of evolving epidemiological and clinical features occurring at each NCD stage may orient primary and secondary care, allowing for more targeted prevention, diagnosis, and/or treatment of both cognitive and functional impairment.

Slippage of the attentional beam when searching in space and in time

“Slippage” of attention in time and space has been studied separately, using visual search (e.g., Snyder, 1972) and rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) (e.g., McLean, Broadbent, & Broadbent, 1982). The primary purpose of the current study was to see if we could replicate these findings of slippage and if we did, to use individual differences to explore relationships between slippage in the temporal and spatial domains. The participants identified and localized targets in visual search and in RSVP sequences. In Experiment 1, we used visual search and RSVP tasks closely replicating the methods of Snyder and McLean et al. In Experiment 2, we closely equated the two tasks as far as possible while maintaining the crucial space/time difference. Consistent with the previous studies, and reflecting binding errors (or slippage) in both space and time, erroneously reported identities were predominantly from items adjacent to the targets. Correlations between measures of the slippage in space (visual search) and time (RSVP) were near zero, suggesting that different attentional ‘beams’ bind features in space and time, a possibility that is consistent with other behavioural as well as neuropsychological evidence.

A cross-sectional study of sensory-motor neuropsychological function among sewage plant and sewage net workers exposed to hydrogen sulphide when handling wastewater.

Workers at sewage treatment plants are exposed to a complex mixture of toxins, including hydrogen sulphide (H2S). An issue of concern among sewage workers, is possible negative nervous system effects from low-level H2S exposure. Empirical neuropsychological evidence indicates both that low-dose exposure to H2S exposure affects the nervous system, and the contrary, that such exposure may facilitate nervous system function, since H2S is an endogenously produced central nervous system (CNS) gasotransmitter. The aim of this study is to describe a possible association between the H2S component of the total exposure and long-term effects on neuropsychological motor function among wastewater workers. Workers (N = 138) treating wastewater in 6 sewage-treatment plants, or in the sewer net system participated in a cross-sectional study. H2S exposure was expressed in a dichotomous exposure variable defining currently H2S-exposed (N = 112) and unexposed referent workers (N = 26), and a variable defining a job-exposure matrix for long-term total typical workplace H2S exposure. The participants went through neuropsychological tests for hand coordination, reaction time (SRT), and balance, and completed questionnaires. Pearson chi-square test or independent samples t-test was used when comparing the currently H2S-exposed workers with the unexposed control group. Multiple linear regression was used to assess associations between the independent variables age, smoking and exposure variables, and the neuropsychological tests. The analyses indicate increased SRT in the currently H2S-exposed group compared to controls (mean [SD] = 225.8 [29.9] versus 210.7 [26.3] ms, P = 0.019), and an association between increased SRT and current H2S-exposure in the total study sample (β = 14.7, P = 0.026, R2 = 0.06, P = 0.050). Blindfolded balance testing indicates a nonsignificant trend in the total study sample, of reduced balance in the highest versus lowest H2S total long-term exposure-index group (Sway area [mean {SD}, mm2: 702 [410] versus 581 [278]), and a significant association between total long-term H2S exposure and reduced balance among smokers (Sway area, mm2 [β = 38.7, P = 0.039], mean sway, mm [β = 0.3, P = 0.015]). The observed trends and associations may be due to exposure peaks in certain work operations and pinpoint the importance of minimizing and avoiding exposure peaks, also when H2S time-weighted average measurements do not exceed an occupational exposure limit of 5 ppm.

Altered brain degree centrality and functional connectivity in adults with executive dysfunction after trauma exposure

Losing an only child is undoubtedly a huge blow that can adversely affect the prefrontal lobe, a highly sensitive brain region. Neuropsychological evidence emphasizes that executive function (EF) is closely related to the optimal functioning of the frontal cortex. However, the characteristics and potential mechanisms underlying changes in executive function following the huge shock of losing an only child remain insufficiently studied and understood. In this study, we performed degree centrality (DC) and functional connectivity (FC) analyses to explore the organization of the executive function deficits (EFD) network among adults who have lost their only child. In addition, we performed correlation analyses to establish an association between abnormal DC and FC values and post-traumatic stress symptoms. Finally, we used support vector machine analyses to assess the accuracy of abnormal DC and FC values in distinguishing adults with EFD who have lost their only child from those without EFD. Our findings revealed increased DC in the left superior frontal gyrus and right angular gyrus (ANG), whereas decreased DC in the left superior occipital gyrus among adults with EFD. Further FC analysis revealed that the altered FC primarily involved the prefrontal and temporal lobes and cerebellum. Notably, the altered FC between the right ANG and left inferior temporal gyrus exhibited a negative correlation with irritability symptoms (R = -0.047, p = 0.003) in the EFD group. A combined model incorporating altered DC and FC values enabled the classification of 96.69% of adults with EFD, with a sensitivity of 0.8837 and specificity of 0.9558. These findings provide valuable insights into the neural mechanisms underlying distinct EF statuses following trauma exposure, distinguishing adults with and without EFD.

Activation Map Reveals Language Impairment in Children with Benign Epilepsy with Centrotemporal Spikes (BECTS).

Neuropsychological evidence revealed language impairment in children with benign epilepsy with centrotemporal spikes (BECTS). This study investigates language function using task-activated fMRI. We conducted a language task fMRI study on three groups on a 3.0T MRI scanner, including a new onset drug naïve group (NODN-BECTS, n=11, age=9.6±1.6), an established epilepsy with medication-treated group (Med-BECTS, n=17, age=10.7±2.2) and a healthy control group (HC, n=18, age=10.8±1.7). We use MATLAB14 and SPM12 to pre-process and analyze the data. A one-sample t-test was used to identify task-related brain activation changes in each group, based on the general linear model (GLM). And, then two sample t-test was performed to compare different activated regions between groups. In addition, scores on the most recent Mandarin school exams were acquired to examine and contrast extra-scanner language performance. Statistical results show that some language-related brain regions (such as the left superior frontal gyrus and cerebellar vermis) were additionally activated in the NODN-BECTS group compared with the HC group. Compared with NODN-BECTS and HC groups, decreased activations were found in language-related regions in the Med-BECTS group, including the left insula, superior and middle frontal gyri, and bilateral middle occipital gyri. On the Mandarin school exams, the average score for HC was 87.3±8.2, NODN was 84.8±7.8, and Med was 78.2±13.2. There was a trend toward statistical significance between the Med and the HC (p = 0.074) as well as NODN (p = 0.092) groups. No statistically significant differences were found between the HC and the NODN-BECTS groups. Language task fMRI reveals additional areas of activation in new onset BECTS compared to healthy controls which may be compensatory in nature. Antiseizure medications (ASMs) and/or longer duration of BECTS additionally appears to affect language-related regions and reduce their functional ability.

Dissociable Cognitive Systems for Recognizing Places and Navigating through Them: Developmental and Neuropsychological Evidence.

Recent neural evidence suggests that the human brain contains dissociable systems for "scene categorization" (i.e., recognizing a place as a particular kind of place, for example, a kitchen), including the parahippocampal place area, and "visually guided navigation" (e.g., finding our way through a kitchen, not running into the kitchen walls or banging into the kitchen table), including the occipital place area. However, converging behavioral data - for instance, whether scene categorization and visually guided navigation abilities develop along different timelines and whether there is differential breakdown under neurologic deficit - would provide even stronger support for this two-scene-systems hypothesis. Thus, here we tested scene categorization and visually guided navigation abilities in 131 typically developing children between 4 and 9 years of age, as well as 46 adults with Williams syndrome, a developmental disorder with known impairment on "action" tasks, yet relative sparing on "perception" tasks, in object processing. We found that (1) visually guided navigation is later to develop than scene categorization, and (2) Williams syndrome adults are impaired in visually guided navigation, but not scene categorization, relative to mental age-matched children. Together, these findings provide the first developmental and neuropsychological evidence for dissociable cognitive systems for recognizing places and navigating through them.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Two decades ago, Milner and Goodale showed us that identifying objects and manipulating them involve distinct cognitive and neural systems. Recent neural evidence suggests that the same may be true of our interactions with our environment: identifying places and navigating through them are dissociable systems. Here we provide converging behavioral evidence supporting this two-scene-systems hypothesis - finding both differential development and breakdown of "scene categorization" and "visually guided navigation." This finding suggests that the division of labor between perception and action systems is a general organizing principle for the visual system, not just a principle of the object processing system in particular.

Emotion regulation and choice of bilateral mastectomy for the treatment of unilateral breast cancer.

There has been steadily increasing use of bilateral mastectomy (BMX) in the treatment of primary breast cancer (BC). In this study, we utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine the influence of emotion regulation on the decision of newly diagnosed BC patients to choose BMX rather than non-BMX treatments. We recruited 123 women with unilateral BC, 61 of whom received BMX and 62 of whom received non-BMX treatments, and 39 healthy controls. While participants were in the fMRI scanner, we showed them BC-related and non-BC-negative images. In one condition, they were instructed to watch the images naturally. In another, they were instructed to regulate their negative emotion. We compared the fMRI signal during these conditions throughout the brain. With non-BC-negative images as the baseline, BC patients showed greater self-reported reactivity and neural reactivity to BC-related images in brain regions associated with self-reflection than did controls. Among the BC patients, the BMX group showed weaker activation in prefrontal emotion regulation brain regions during emotion regulation than did the non-BMX group. BC patients are understandably emotionally hyper-reactive to BC-related stimuli and those who ultimately received BMX experience more difficulty in regulating BC-related negative emotion than non-BMX BC patients. These findings offer neuropsychological evidence that difficulty in managing anxiety related to the possibility of cancer recurrence is a factor in surgical treatment decision-making and may be an intervention target with the goal of strengthening the management of cancer-related anxiety by nonsurgical means. NCT03050463.

Resisting Visual, Phonological, and Semantic Interference - Same or Different Processes? A Focused Mini-Review.

The unitary nature of resistance to interference (RI) processes remains a strongly debated question: are they central cognitive processes or are they specific to the stimulus domains on which they operate? This focused mini-review examines behavioral, neuropsychological and neuroimaging evidence for and against domain-general RI processes, by distinguishing visual, verbal phonological and verbal semantic domains. Behavioral studies highlighted overall low associations between RI capacity across domains. Neuropsychological studies mainly report dissociations for RI abilities between the three domains. Neuroimaging studies highlight a left vs. right hemisphere distinction for verbal vs. visual RI, with furthermore distinct neural processes supporting phonological versus semantic RI in the left inferior frontal gyrus. While overall results appear to support the hypothesis of domain-specific RI processes, we discuss a number of methodological caveats that ask for caution in the interpretation of existing studies.

Neuropsychological Evidence Underlying Counterclockwise Bias in Running: Electroencephalography and Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Studies of Motor Imagery

We aimed to answer the question "why do people run the track counterclockwise (CCW)?" by investigating the neurophysiological differences in clockwise (CW) versus CCW direction using motor imagery. Three experiments were conducted with healthy adults. Electroencephalography (EEG) was used to examine hemispheric asymmetries in the prefrontal, frontal, and central regions during CW and CCW running imagery (n = 40). We also evaluated event-related potential (ERP) N200 and P300 amplitudes and latencies (n = 66) and conducted another experiment using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) (n = 30). EEG data indicated greater left frontal cortical activation during CCW imagery, whereas right frontal activation was more dominant during CW imagery. The prefrontal and central asymmetries demonstrated greater left prefrontal activation during both CW and CCW imagery, with CCW rotation exhibiting higher, though statistically insignificant, asymmetry scores than CW rotation. As a result of the fMRI experiment, greater activation was found during CW than during CCW running imagery in the brain regions of the left insula, Brodmann area 18, right caudate nucleus, left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, left superior parietal cortex, and supplementary motor area. In the ERP experiment, no significant differences were found depending on direction. These findings suggest that CCW rotation might be associated with the motivational approach system, behavioral activation, or positive affect. However, CW rotation reflects withdrawal motivation, behavioral inhibition, or negative affect. Furthermore, CW rotation is understood to be associated with neural inefficiency, increased task difficulty, or unfamiliarity.

Neuropsychological Mechanisms and Evidence of Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Addiction

Mindfulness meditation is a contemplative practice that involves focused attention and open monitoring. Due to its effectiveness in emotion regulation and attention regulation, mindfulness-based interventions combine mindfulness and other cognitive and behavioral practices to treat substance abuse and behavioral disorders. This article focuses on the neuropsychological mechanisms and empirical research of mindfulness-oriented recovery enhancement (MORE) and mindfulness-based relapse prevention (MBRP). MORE is a cognitive-behavioral treatment that uses mindfulness to cultivate reappraisal and savoring skills. MBRP is another cognitive-behavioral treatment that incorporates mindfulness meditation and core components of relapse prevention. It analyzes the neural mechanism of addiction, mindfulness, and mindfulness-based interventions. Moreover, it provides empirical research evidence of MORE and MBRP, proving that these two are effective treatments for addiction-related problems, including substance abuse and behavioral disorders.

Impairment and Control: Bilateral Relationship between Alcohol Use Disorder and Working Memory

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a common addictive psychological disease in modern society. AUD can induce a cluster of health and working memory (WM) problems, including Korsakoff's syndrome, irrational decision-making, impaired executive function, and impulsivity. Neuropsychological evidence shows that prefrontal cortex (PFC) function is impaired in AUD patients and their dopamine (DA) level is unstable. The present essay aims to discuss the relationship between AUD and WM from three points of view. Firstly, the behavioral and neuropsychological deficits of AUD subjects were summarized and categorized in detail. Secondly, the potential mechanism of WM impairment is discussed. Thirdly, various kinds of neuropsychological and behavioral treatments for AUD were critically reviewed and evaluated. While the pharmacological treatment was supported by various empirical studies and validated in different subtypes of AUD, the emerging behavioral therapy was revealed to be more secure and side-effect free than traditional medications.

Cortical areas involved in grasping and reaching actions with and without visual information: An ALE meta-analysis of neuroimaging studies.

The functional specialization of the ventral stream in Perception and the dorsal stream in Action is the cornerstone of the leading model proposed by Goodale and Milner in 1992. This model is based on neuropsychological evidence and has been a matter of debate for almost three decades, during which the dual-visual stream hypothesis has received much attention, including support and criticism. The advent of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has allowed investigating the brain areas involved in Perception and Action, and provided useful data on the functional specialization of the two streams. Research on this topic has been quite prolific, yet no meta-analysis so far has explored the spatial convergence in the involvement of the two streams in Action. The present meta-analysis (N=53 fMRI and PET studies) was designed to reveal the specific neural activations associated with Action (i.e., grasping and reaching movements), and the extent to which visual information affects the involvement of the two streams during motor control. Our results provide a comprehensive view of the consistent and spatially convergent neural correlates of Action based on neuroimaging studies conducted over the past two decades. In particular, occipital-temporal areas showed higher activation likelihood in the Vision compared to the No vision condition, but no difference between reach and grasp actions. Frontal-parietal areas were consistently involved in both reach and grasp actions regardless of visual availability. We discuss our results in light of the well-established dual-visual stream model and frame these findings in the context of recent discoveries obtained with advanced fMRI methods, such as multivoxel pattern analysis.

Memory at the Center of Our Life

Memory at the Center of Our Life