Emotional information affects fission illusion induced by audio-visual interactions.

Multisensory integration is affected by various types of information coming from different sensory stimuli. It has been suggested that emotional information also influences the multisensory integration process. The perceptual phenomena induced by audio-visual integration are modulated by emotional signals through changing individuals' emotional states. However, the direct effects of emotional information, without changing emotional states on the multisensory integration process have not yet been examined. The present study investigated the effects of an emotional signal on audio-visual integration. The experiments compared the magnitude of audio-visual fission and fusion illusions using facial expression stimuli and simple geometric shapes. Facial expression stimuli altered the criterion difference for discerning the number of flashes when two beeps were simultaneously presented in Experiment 1. These stimuli did not affect the fission illusion's magnitude. For simple geometric shapes, emotional shapes perceptually induced a larger fission illusion in Experiment 2. The present study found that the emotional valence included in simple geometric shapes induced a larger fission illusion. Moreover, current results suggest that emotional faces modulate response criterion for fission illusion in discernment of the number of flashes. Future studies should elucidate in detail the mechanism of emotional valence effects on audio-visual integration.

ω-3 Fatty Acids Ethyl Esters Suppress Cerebral Vasospasm and Improve Clinical Outcome Following Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage.

OBJECTIVE: Occurrence of cerebral vasospasm after onset of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a critical factor determining clinical prognosis. Eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid, both ω-3 fatty acids (ω-3FA), can suppress cerebral vasospasm, and docosahexaenoic acid can relax vessel vasoconstriction and have neuroprotective effects. We investigated whether administration of ω-3FA prevented cerebral vasospasm occurrence and improved clinical outcomes after aneurysmal SAH. METHODS: From 2012 to 2015, 100 consecutive patients with aneurysmal SAH were divided into 2 periods. Between 2012 and 2013 (control period), 45 patients received standard management. Between 2014 and 2015 (ω-3FA period), 55 patients were prospectively treated with additional ω-3FA. Occurrence of cerebral vasospasm, occurrence of cerebral infarction caused by vasospasm, and modified Rankin Scale scores at 30 days and 90 days after onset of SAH for each period were evaluated and compared. RESULTS: The frequency of angiographic cerebral vasospasm in the ω-3FA period was significantly lower than in the control period (12 patients vs. 23 patients, P = 0.004). The frequency of new infarction caused by vasospasm in the ω-3FA period was also significantly lower than in the control period (5 patients vs. 14 patients, P = 0.011). There was a significant difference in modified Rankin Scale scores at 90 days after onset of SAH between the groups (P = 0.031). No adverse events were associated with ω-3FA administration. CONCLUSIONS: Administration of ω-3FA after aneurysmal SAH may reduce the frequency of cerebral vasospasm and may improve clinical outcomes.

Cloning of cDNA encoding a regeneration-associated muscle protease whose expression is attenuated in cell lines derived from Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients.

In the dystrophin-mutant mdx mouse, an animal model for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), damaged skeletal muscles are efficiently regenerated and thus the animals thrive. The phenotypic differences between DMD patients and the mdx mice suggest the existence of factors that modulate the muscle wasting in the mdx mice. To identify these factors, we searched for mRNAs affected by the mdx mutation by using cDNA microarrays with newly established skeletal muscle cell lines from mdx and normal mice. We found that in the mdx muscle cell line, 12 genes, including L-arginine:glycine amidinotransferase and thymosin beta4, are up-regulated, whereas 7 genes, including selenoprotein P and a novel regeneration-associated muscle protease (RAMP), are down-regulated. Northern blot analysis and in situ hybridization revealed that RAMP mRNA is predominantly expressed in normal skeletal muscle and brain, and its production is enhanced in the regenerating area of injured skeletal muscle in mice. RAMP expression was much lower in individual muscle cell lines derived from biopsies of six DMD patients compared to a normal muscle cell line. These results suggest that RAMP may play a role in the regeneration of skeletal muscle and that its down-regulation could be involved in the progression of DMD in humans.