Insular and prelimbic cortices control behavioral accuracy and precision in a temporal decision-making task in rats.

The anterior insular cortex (AIC) comprises a region of sensory integration. It appears to detect salient events in order to guide goal-directed behavior, code tracking errors, and estimate the passage of time. Temporal processing in the AIC may be instantiated by the integration of representations of interoception. Projections between the AIC and the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) - found both in rats and humans - also suggest a possible role for these structures in the integration of autonomic responses during ongoing behavior. Few studies, however, have investigated the role of AIC and mPFC in decision-making and time estimation tasks. Moreover, their findings are not consistent, so the relationship between temporal decision-making and those areas remains unclear. The present study employed bilateral inactivations to explore the role of AIC and prelimbic cortex (PL) in rats during a temporal decision-making task. In this task, two levers are available simultaneously (but only one is active), one predicting reinforcement after a short, and the other after a long-fixed interval. Optimal performance requires a switch from the short to the long lever after the short-fixed interval elapsed and no reinforcement was delivered. Switch behavior from the short to the long lever was dependent on AIC and PL. During AIC inactivation, switch latencies became more variable, while during PL inactivation switch latencies became both more variable and less accurate. These findings point to a dissociation between AIC and PL in temporal decision-making, suggesting that the AIC is important for temporal precision, and PL is important for both temporal accuracy and precision.

Comparison of 17ß-estradiol, bisphenol-A and caffeine concentration levels before and after the water treatment plant.

This article compares the concentration levels of 17ß-estradiol (E2), bisphenol-A (BPA) and caffeine (CAF) in the Sinos River, Brazil, which is a source of drinking water and the presence of contaminants after the conventional treatment in a municipal water treatment plant (WTP). A total of nine sampling campaigns were carried out, with sample collection in the Sinos River, upstream and downstream of the WTP, in addition to a drinking water sample (DW). The samples were extracted with solid phase extraction (SPE) and the concentration by liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS). The maximum concentration in the Sinos River was 6,127.99 ng·L-1 for E2, 3,294.63 ng·L-1 for BPA and 1,221.95 ng·L-1 for CAF. In drinking water, the concentration range of E2, BPA and CAF was from less than the Detection Limit (DL) up to 437.50 ng·L-1,

Time perception and pain: Can a temporal illusion reduce the intensity of pain?

It is commonly known-and previous studies have indicated-that time appears to last longer during unpleasant situations. This study examined whether a reciprocal statement can be made-that is, whether changes in the perception of time can influence our judgment (or rating) of a negative event. We used a temporal illusion method (Pomares et al. Pain 152, 230-234, 2011) to induce distortions in the perception of time. Two stimuli were presented for a constant time: a full clock, which stayed on the screen until its clock hand completed a full rotation (360°); and a short clock, in which the clock hand moved just three-quarters of the way (270°), thus suggesting a reduced interval duration. However, both stimuli were shown for the same amount of time. We specifically investigated (a) whether we could induce a temporal illusion with this simple visual manipulation, and (b) whether this illusion could change participants' ratings of a painful stimulus. In Experiment I (n = 22), to answer (a) above, participants were asked to reproduce the duration in which the different clocks were presented. In Experiment II (n = 30), a painful thermal stimulation was applied on participants' hands while the clocks were shown. Participants were asked to rate the perceived intensity of their pain, and to reproduce its duration. Results showed that, for both experiments, participants reproduced a longer interval after watching the full clock compared with the short clock, confirming that the clock manipulation was able to induce a temporal illusion. Furthermore, the second experiment showed that participants rated the thermal stimuli as less painful when delivered with the short clock than with the full clock. These findings suggest that temporal distortions can modulate the experience of pain.

Análise da Viabilidade de Uso do FNIRS em Atividades Educacionais com Crianças e Jovens com Deficiência Intelectual e Autismo / Analysis of FNIRS Usability in Educational Activities with Children and Young People with Intellectual Disability and Autism

RESUMO: Métodos em neurociência cognitiva podem auxiliar o planejamento educacional de docentes no contexto da Educação Especial, por favorecerem práticas personalizadas que valorizem a velocidade individual de aprendizagem de estudantes com transtorno do espectro do autismo (TEA) e/ou deficiência intelectual (DI). Assim sendo, este estudo objetivou verificar a viabilidade de uso da Espectroscopia Funcional de Infravermelho Próximo (fNIRS) em situação naturalística clínica com crianças e jovens com TEA e/ou DI durante tarefas de ensino. Ademais, o estudo buscou identificar as estratégias de treino para que as crianças e os jovens utilizassem o equipamento durante a realização da atividade. Sete estudantes com diagnóstico de TEA e/ou DI foram treinados com atividades de matemática, leitura e expressividade emocional, de acordo com seus respectivos currículos educacionais prévios. Cada participante foi exposto a duas tarefas em cada atividade, uma na qual já apresentava domínio e outra que necessitava de apoio para emitir uma resposta independente. Os resultados indicaram a viabilidade de uso do fNIRS nesse contexto natural da criança e do jovem e forneceram medidas implícitas para além das medidas observacionais de acerto e erro na tarefa. Esta é uma importante demonstração da viabilidade do uso do fNIRS em experimentos no contexto da Educação Especial.

ABSTRACT: Methods in cognitive neuroscience can assist educational planning of teachers in the context of Special Education, as they favor personalized practices that value individual students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and/or Intellectual Deficiency (ID). Therefore, this study aimed to verify the feasibility of using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) in clinical naturalistic situation with children and young people with ASD and/or ID during teaching tasks. In addition, the study sought to identify training strategies so that children and young people use the equipment during the activity. Seven students diagnosed with ASD and/or ID were trained with mathematics, reading and emotional expressiveness, according to their respective previous educational curricula. Each participant was exposed to two tasks in each activity, one in which he/she already had a domain and one that needed support to issue an independent response. The results indicated the feasibility of using fNIRS in this natural context of the child and the young student and provided implicit measures beyond the observational arrangement measures and task error. This is an important demonstration of the feasibility of using fNIRS in experiments in the context of Special Education.

Time encoding migrates from prefrontal cortex to dorsal striatum during learning of a self-timed response duration task.

Although time is a fundamental dimension of life, we do not know how brain areas cooperate to keep track and process time intervals. Notably, analyses of neural activity during learning are rare, mainly because timing tasks usually require training over many days. We investigated how the time encoding evolves when animals learn to time a 1.5 s interval. We designed a novel training protocol where rats go from naive- to proficient-level timing performance within a single session, allowing us to investigate neuronal activity from very early learning stages. We used pharmacological experiments and machine-learning algorithms to evaluate the level of time encoding in the medial prefrontal cortex and the dorsal striatum. Our results show a double dissociation between the medial prefrontal cortex and the dorsal striatum during temporal learning, where the former commits to early learning stages while the latter engages as animals become proficient in the task.

Efficiency of electrocoagulation in the treatment of laundromat greywater / Tratamento por eletrofloculação de efluentes oriundos de lavandeiras domésticas

ABSTRACT The high consumption of water and the generation of greywater in laundromats underscore the need to investigate advanced treatment techniques to reuse this effluent. Based on the estimated growth figures of the laundromat sector in Brazil, this study looked into the efficiency of electrocoagulation to treat laundromat greywater. Electrodes were connected to an EC reactor on a monopolar parallel connection mode, with electric current of 6 A and current density of 400 A.m2. The highest efficiency to treat laundromat greywater was observed at a distance of 15 mm between electrodes, voltage of 17.14 V, and operation time of 30 min, when the removal values of apparent color, true color, turbidity, biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, and surfactants were 92, 97, 88, 91, 98, and 96%, respectively. Electrode consumption was measured at 1.82 g.h, while energy consumption was 20.54 kWh.m3 and the total cost was US$ 4.10 per cubic meter of treated effluent. However, despite the high efficiency of the treatment, reuse of treated laundromat effluent requires polishing in order to meet the standards defined by Brazilian regulations.

RESUMO O elevado consumo de água potável e a consequente geração de efluentes associados ao segmento de lavanderias domésticas justificam o estudo de tratamentos avançados que proporcionem o reuso dessas águas. Considerando-se uma perspectiva de crescimento desse setor em nível nacional, esta pesquisa avaliou a eletrocoagulação como tecnologia de tratamento de tais efluentes. Foram executados testes de bancada utilizando eletrodos em alumínio, arranjados como monopolar paralelo. A corrente elétrica e a densidade de corrente foram fixadas em 6A e 400A.m², respectivamente. Entre as variáveis avaliadas estão a distância entre eletrodos, o tempo de operação, o tipo de roupa, a utilização de alvejante e o suporte para eletrólise. O melhor tratamento foi obtido sem a utilização do suporte para eletrólise, para uma distância entre eletrodos de 15 mm, tensão elétrica aplicada no sistema de 17,14 V e tempo de operação igual a 30 min. Nessas condições, as eficiências do tratamento obtidas foram de 92% para cor aparente, 97% para cor verdadeira, 88% para turbidez, 91% para demanda bioquímica de oxigênio, 98% para demanda química de oxigênio e 96% para surfactantes. O sistema resultou no consumo de eletrodo de 1,83 g.h e no consumo de energia elétrica igual a 20,57 kWh.m³. O custo final do tratamento foi calculado em US$ 4,10.m³ de efluente tratado. Embora tenham sido obtidas elevadas remoções nas concentrações dos poluentes, para o reuso do efluente ainda é necessário um tratamento adicional.

Correction to: Rules of Conduct for Behavior Analysts in the Presence of Hypothetical Constructs: A Commentary on Eckard and Lattal (2020).

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1007/s40614-020-00272-w.].

Reward signaling by the rodent medial frontal cortex.

The anatomical relevance and functional significance of medial parts of the rodent frontal cortex have been intensely debated over the modern history of neuroscience. Early studies emphasized common functions among medial frontal regions in rodents and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex of primates. Behavioral tasks emphasized memory-guided performance and persistent neural activity as a marker of working memory. Over time, it became clear that long-standing concerns about cross-species homology were justified and the view emerged that rodents are useful for understanding medial parts of the frontal cortex in primates, and not the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Here, we summarize a series of studies on the rodent medial frontal cortex that began with an interest in studying working memory in the perigenual prelimbic area and ended up studying reward processing in the medial orbital region. Our experiments revealed a role for a 4-8Hz "theta" rhythm in tracking engagement in the consumption of rewarding fluids and denoting the value of a given reward. Evidence for a functional differentiation between the rostral and caudal medial frontal cortex and its relationship to other frontal cortical areas is also discussed with the hope of motivating future work on this part of the cerebral cortex.

Equivalence relations do exist before they are tested: Confirmatory evidence revealed by EEG measurements.

We examined equivalence-based N400 effects by comparing EEG data from participants with different experiences with equivalence testing. Before a priming task used in EEG measurement, Group 1 was given only matching-to-sample training trials whereas Group 2 was exposed to matching-to-sample training and equivalence probe trials. We asked whether exposure to the reinforcement contingency was sufficient to bring about an N400 outcome that might indicate potentially emergent equivalence relations or if such a response depended on experience with equivalence tests. Results showed robust N400 in both groups. Experience with equivalence tests did not further increase the N400 effects. Our findings add confirmatory evidence that equivalence relations may originate via the reinforcement contingency alone. Furthermore, complementary EEG data collected from priming tasks involving words from natural language showed functional overlap between laboratory-defined equivalence and natural word-based N400 effects.

Differences in perceived durations between plausible biological and non-biological stimuli.

Visual motion stimuli can sometimes distort our perception of time. This effect is dependent on the apparent speed of the moving stimulus, where faster stimuli are usually perceived lasting longer than slower stimuli. Although it has been shown that neural and cognitive processing of biological motion stimuli differ from non-biological motion stimuli, no study has yet investigated whether perceived durations of biological stimuli differ from non-biological stimuli across different speeds. Here, a prospective temporal reproduction task was used to assess that question. Biological motion stimuli consisted of a human silhouette running in place. Non-biological motion stimuli consisted of a rectangle moving in a pendular way. Amount and plausibility of movement for each stimulus and frame-rate (speed) were evaluated by an independent group of participants. Although the amount of movement perceived was positively correlated to frame rate both for biological and non-biological stimuli, movie clips involving biological motion stimuli were judged to last longer than non-biological motion stimuli only at frame rates for which movement was rated as plausible. These results suggest that plausible representations of biomechanical movement induce additional temporal distortions to those modulated by increases in stimulus speed. Moreover, most studies reporting neural and cognitive differences in the processing of biological and non-biological motion stimuli acquired neurophysiological data using fMRI. Here, we report differences in the processing of biological and non-biological motion stimuli across different speeds using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), a less costly and portable form of neurophysiological data acquisition.

Rules of Conduct for Behavior Analysts in the Presence of Hypothetical Constructs: A Commentary on Eckard and Lattal (2020).

Eckard and Lattal (2020) summarized the behavioristic view of hypothetical constructs and theories, and then, in a novel and timely manner, applied this view to a critique of internal clock models of temporal control. In our three-part commentary, we aim to contribute to the authors' discussion by first expanding upon their view of the positive contributions afforded by constructs and theories. We then refine and question their view of the perils of reifying constructs and assigning them causal properties. Finally, we suggest to behavior analysts four rules of conduct for dealing with mediational theories: tolerate constructs proposed with sufficient reason; consider them seriously, both empirically and conceptually; develop alternative, behavior-analytic models with overlapping empirical domains; and contrast the various models. Through variation and selection, behavioral science will evolve.

A Computational Model of Tonal Tension Profile of Chord Progressions in the Tonal Interval Space.

In tonal music, musical tension is strongly associated with musical expression, particularly with expectations and emotions. Most listeners are able to perceive musical tension subjectively, yet musical tension is difficult to be measured objectively, as it is connected with musical parameters such as rhythm, dynamics, melody, harmony, and timbre. Musical tension specifically associated with melodic and harmonic motion is called tonal tension. In this article, we are interested in perceived changes of tonal tension over time for chord progressions, dubbed tonal tension profiles. We propose an objective measure capable of capturing tension profile according to different tonal music parameters, namely, tonal distance, dissonance, voice leading, and hierarchical tension. We performed two experiments to validate the proposed model of tonal tension profile and compared against Lerdahl's model and MorpheuS across 12 chord progressions. Our results show that the considered four tonal parameters contribute differently to the perception of tonal tension. In our model, their relative importance adopts the following weights, summing to unity: dissonance (0.402), hierarchical tension (0.246), tonal distance (0.202), and voice leading (0.193). The assumption that listeners perceive global changes in tonal tension as prototypical profiles is strongly suggested in our results, which outperform the state-of-the-art models.

Polineuropatia desmielinizante como manifestação inicial isolada de hanseníase: relato de caso / Demyelinating polyneuropathy as an isolated initial manifestation of leprosy: case report

RESUMO: Modelo do Estudo: Relato de caso. Importância do problema: No mundo, mais de três milhões de pessoas estão vivendo com deficiência física devido à hanseníase. O Brasil é o segundo país com o maior número de casos novos registrados.A magnitude e o alto risco de incapacidade mantêm a doença como problema de saúde pública. O diagnóstico de hanseníase em geral é simples. Porém, quadros com ausência de lesões cutâneas características, somente com alterações neurais, representam um desafio para o diagnóstico diferencial com outras doenças neurológicas. Comentários: Relatamos o caso de um paciente encaminhado ao serviço de neurologia com história clínica e eletroneuromiografia compatíveis com polineuropatia desmielinizante, sem qualquer lesão cutânea ao exame de admissão. O raciocínio clínico inicial foi direcionado para o diagnóstico das polineuropatias desmielinizantes inflamatórias adquiridas como Polineuropatia Desmielinizante Inflamatória Crônica (CIDP) e suas variantes. No entanto, após anamnese e exame físico detalhados, chamou a atenção a ausência do componente atáxico e a presença predominante de alterações sensitivas de fibra fina, espessamento de nervo e importante fator epidemiológico para hanseníase, motivando a suspeita e a in-vestigação desta enfermidade por meio da biópsia de nervo que foi sugestiva de hanseníase. Após três meses, em novo exame do paciente para biopsiar áreas de anestesia para reforçar o diagnóstico, observou-se o surgimento de extensas lesões levemente hipocrômicas no tronco e membros inferiores, cuja biópsia definiu o diagnóstico de hanseníase. (AU)

ABSTRACT: Study: Case report. Importance: Worldwide over three million people are living with disabilities due to leprosy. Brazil is the second country with the highest number of new cases registered. The magnitude and high risk of disability make the disease a public health problem. The diagnosis of leprosy can be simple. However, in the absence of skin lesions and with many possibilities of neurological impairment, diagnosis can become a challenge. Comments: We report the case of a patient referred to the neurology service with a clinical history and electrophysiological tests compatible with demyelinating polyneuropathy, without any skin lesion at admission examination. The initial clinical research was directed to the diagnosis of acquired inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathies such as Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP)and its variants. However, after anamnesis and detailed physical examination, the absence of the ataxic component and the predominant presence of sensory alterations of fine fiber, nerve thickening and important epidemiological factor for leprosy,led to the suspicion and investigation of this disease by nerve biopsy that was suggestive of leprosy. After three months, in a new patient examination "to perform a biopsy in areas of anesthesia" to reinforce the diagnosis, there was the appearance of extensive slightly hypochromic lesions in the trunk and lower limbs, whose biopsy defined the diagnosis of leprosy.(AU)

Temporal regularity and stimulus control in multiple fixed interval schedules.

In multiple fixed interval schedules of reinforcement, different time intervals are signaled by different environmental stimuli which acquire control over behavior. Previous work has shown that temporal performance is controlled not only by external stimuli but also by temporal aspects of the task, depending on the order in which the different intervals are trained - intermixed across trials or in blocks of several trials. The aim of this study was to further describe the training conditions under which the stimuli acquire control over temporal performance. We manipulated the number of consecutive trials of each fixed interval (FI) per training block (Experiment I) and the number of FIs trained (Experiment II). The results suggest that when trained in blocks of several consecutive trials of the same FI, temporal performance is controlled by temporal regularities across trials and not by the visual stimuli that signal the FIs. One possible account for those data is that the temporal cues overshadow the visual stimuli for the control of temporal performance. Similar results have also been observed with humans, which suggest that temporal regularity overcomes the stimuli in the control of behavior in temporal tasks across species.

Rats can learn a temporal task in a single session.

Fixed interval, peak interval, and temporal bisection procedures have been used to assess cognitive functions and address questions such as how animals perceive, represent, and reproduce time intervals. They have also been extensively used to test the effects of drugs on behavior, and to describe the neural correlates of interval timing. However, those procedures usually require several weeks of training for behavior to stabilize. Here, we investigated a variation of the Differential Reinforcement of Response Duration (DRRD) task with a target time of 1.2 s. We compared three types of training protocols and reported a procedure in which performance by the end of the very first session nearly matches the performance of long-term training. We also showed that the initial distribution of the responses is uni-modal and, as training evolves (and rats improve their performance), a second peak emerges and progressively shifts toward longer times. This one-day training protocol can be used to investigate temporal learning and may be especially useful to electrophysiological and neuropharmacological studies.

Beyond the target area: an integrative view of tDCS-induced motor cortex modulation in patients and athletes.

Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive technique used to modulate neural tissue. Neuromodulation apparently improves cognitive functions in several neurologic diseases treatment and sports performance. In this study, we present a comprehensive, integrative review of tDCS for motor rehabilitation and motor learning in healthy individuals, athletes and multiple neurologic and neuropsychiatric conditions. We also report on neuromodulation mechanisms, main applications, current knowledge including areas such as language, embodied cognition, functional and social aspects, and future directions. We present the use and perspectives of new developments in tDCS technology, namely high-definition tDCS (HD-tDCS) which promises to overcome one of the main tDCS limitation (i.e., low focality) and its application for neurological disease, pain relief, and motor learning/rehabilitation. Finally, we provided information regarding the Transcutaneous Spinal Direct Current Stimulation (tsDCS) in clinical applications, Cerebellar tDCS (ctDCS) and its influence on motor learning, and TMS combined with electroencephalography (EEG) as a tool to evaluate tDCS effects on brain function.

Diaphragm quantitative electromyography in difficult-to-treat asthmatic patients.

Quantitative electromyography is an important tool to evaluate myopathies, and some difficult-to-treat asthmatic patients may have a subclinical corticosteroid myopathic process, using only inhaled corticosteroid, according to some studies. In this report, diaphragm quantitative electromyography was used to evaluate asthmatic difficult-to-treat patients, comparing them with a control group. Significant differences were obtained in amplitude, duration and size index of motor unit action potentials, with lower parameters in the asthmatic patients, which may indicate a myopathic process.

A model for the peak-interval task based on neural oscillation-delimited states.

Specific mechanisms underlying how the brain keeps track of time are largely unknown. Several existing computational models of timing reproduce behavioral results obtained with experimental psychophysical tasks, but only a few tackle the underlying biological mechanisms, such as the synchronized neural activity that occurs throughout brain areas. In this paper, we introduce a model for the peak-interval task based on neuronal network properties. We consider that Local Field Potential (LFP) oscillation cycles specify a sequence of states, represented as neuronal ensembles. Repeated presentation of time intervals during training reinforces the connections of specific ensembles to downstream networks - sets of neurons connected to the sequence of states. Later, during the peak-interval procedure, these downstream networks are reactivated by previously experienced neuronal ensembles, triggering behavioral responses at the learned time intervals. The model reproduces experimental response patterns from individual rats in the peak-interval procedure, satisfying relevant properties such as the Weber law. Finally, we provide a biological interpretation of the parameters of the model.

Diaphragm quantitative electromyography in difficult-to-treat asthmatic patients / Eletromiografia quantitativa do diafragma em pacientes com asma de difícil controle

ABSTRACT Quantitative electromyography is an important tool to evaluate myopathies, and some difficult-to-treat asthmatic patients may have a subclinical corticosteroid myopathic process, using only inhaled corticosteroid, according to some studies. In this report, diaphragm quantitative electromyography was used to evaluate asthmatic difficult-to-treat patients, comparing them with a control group. Significant differences were obtained in amplitude, duration and size index of motor unit action potentials, with lower parameters in the asthmatic patients, which may indicate a myopathic process.

RESUMO Eletromiografia quantitativa é uma ferramenta importante para a avaliação de miopatias, e alguns pacientes asmáticos de difícil controle podem ter um processo miopático subclínico, mesmo usando apenas corticosteroides inalatórios, de acordo com alguns artigos. Nesse artigo a eletromiografia quantitativa do diafragma foi usada para avaliar os pacientes asmáticos de difícil controle, comparando com um grupo controle. Diferenças significativas nas amplitudes, durações e índices de tamanho dos potenciais de unidades motoras foram encontradas, com parâmetros mais baixos nos pacientes asmáticos, o que pode indicar um processo miopático.

Efficiency of rice husk ash to adsorb chromium(VI) using the Allium cepa toxicity test.

Adsorption is widely used in the treatment of effluents and contaminated water. However, the removal of the pollutant alone does not ensure that the effluent can be safely discharged in the environment. Controlling effluent toxicity may become an important tool to ensure that the quality of the treated effluent is compatible with that of the receiving water body. In this sense, this study evaluated the efficiency of rice husk ash (RHA) to adsorb chromium(VI) using the Allium cepa toxicity test. Adsorption was assessed based on the variables adsorption time, initial concentration, and pH. The data obtained were fitted the pseudo-second-order and the pseudo-first-order models, and the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms. Kinetic analysis indicated removal rates between 43 and 100%. All data were best fitted by the pseudo-second-order model. Also, pH 1 and pH 2 data were best fitted by the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms, respectively. In the Allium cepa test, pH 2 solutions were toxic. At pH 7, the Alium cepa test confirmed the efficiency of chromium(VI) adsorption by RHA, ensuring acceptable germination index values.