Multimodal neuroimaging data from a 5-week heart rate variability biofeedback randomized clinical trial.

We present data from the Heart Rate Variability and Emotion Regulation (HRV-ER) randomized clinical trial testing effects of HRV biofeedback. Younger (N = 121) and older (N = 72) participants completed baseline magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) including T1-weighted, resting and emotion regulation task functional MRI (fMRI), pulsed continuous arterial spin labeling (PCASL), and proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H MRS). During fMRI scans, physiological measures (blood pressure, pulse, respiration, and end-tidal CO2) were continuously acquired. Participants were randomized to either increase heart rate oscillations or decrease heart rate oscillations during daily sessions. After 5 weeks of HRV biofeedback, they repeated the baseline measurements in addition to new measures (ultimatum game fMRI, training mimicking during blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) and PCASL fMRI). Participants also wore a wristband sensor to estimate sleep time. Psychological assessment comprised three cognitive tests and ten questionnaires related to emotional well-being. A subset (N = 104) provided plasma samples pre- and post-intervention that were assayed for amyloid and tau. Data is publicly available via the OpenNeuro data sharing platform.

Modulating heart rate oscillation affects plasma amyloid beta and tau levels in younger and older adults.

Slow paced breathing via heart rate variability (HRV) biofeedback stimulates vagus-nerve pathways that counter noradrenergic stress and arousal pathways that can influence production and clearance of Alzheimer's disease (AD)-related proteins. Thus, we examined whether HRV biofeedback intervention affects plasma Αß40, Αß42, total tau (tTau), and phosphorylated tau-181 (pTau-181) levels. We randomized healthy adults (N = 108) to use slow-paced breathing with HRV biofeedback to increase heart rate oscillations (Osc+) or to use personalized strategies with HRV biofeedback to decrease heart rate oscillations (Osc-). They practiced 20-40 min daily. Four weeks of practicing the Osc+ and Osc- conditions produced large effect size differences in change in plasma Aß40 and Aß42 levels. The Osc+ condition decreased plasma Αß while the Osc- condition increased Αß. Decreases in Αß were associated with decreases in gene transcription indicators of ß-adrenergic signaling, linking effects to the noradrenergic system. There were also opposing effects of the Osc+ and Osc- interventions on tTau for younger adults and pTau-181 for older adults. These results provide novel data supporting a causal role of autonomic activity in modulating plasma AD-related biomarkers.Trial registration: NCT03458910 (ClinicalTrials.gov); first posted on 03/08/2018.

COVID-19 Fear Impact on Israeli and Maltese Female "Help" Profession Students.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this cross-sectional study was to examine the impact of COVID-19 fear on the well-being of Israeli and Maltese female "help" profession (e.g., social work and psychology) undergraduate students. This cross-national comparison includes factors of depression, anxiety, anger, loneliness, nervousness, substance use, eating behavior, burnout, and resilience. The study hypothesis is that country status, even with different social-cultural characteristics including religiosity, is not a significant factor associated with COVID-19 fear impact on select behavioral characteristics of female university students. METHODS: A total of 453 female "help" profession students completed an online survey from January to July 2021. Various statistical methods of analysis including regression were used for this study. RESULTS: The mean COVID-19 fear scores were the same among Israeli and Maltese students. Resilience was found to be higher among Israeli females; burnout was found to be higher among those from Malta. Substance use (i.e., tobacco, alcohol, cannabis, stimulants, or prescription drugs) in the last month was reported by 77.2% of the respondents. No significant differences were found for previous-month substance use based on country status. Regardless of country, respondents who reported more previous-month substance use had higher COVID-19 fear and burnout scores, as well as lower resilience. Due to COVID-19, most respondents (74.3%) reported deterioration of their psycho-emotional well-being in the last month; however, no significant differences were found based on country and religiosity statuses. Furthermore, no significant differences were found for eating behavior changes and weight increase based on country and religiosity statuses. CONCLUSION: Study findings showed the impact of COVID-19 fear on the well-being of Israeli and Maltese female "help" profession undergraduate students. This study examined only female students; however, additional research is needed to address male students and their experiences. Prevention and treatment intervention measures aimed to increase resilience and decrease burnout, including those that can be made available on campus, should be thought about by university administration personnel and student association leaders in consultation with mental health professionals.

Gaming Disorder and Psycho-Emotional Wellbeing among Male University Students and Other Young Adults in Israel.

The aim of this cross-sectional study was to examine the impact of gaming and gaming disorder on the wellbeing of Israeli male university students and other adults. Gaming disorder (i.e., persistent, and recurrent gaming activity associated with a lack of control that may be clinically diagnosed) was determined using the Internet Gaming Disorder Scale-Short-Form (IGDS9-SF). Survey participants were recruited from gaming associations, clubs and the gaming community using Facebook. Data were collected in June 2022. A total of 526 males completed the survey (30.9% university students and 69.1% other young adults). Various statistical methods of analysis including regression were used for this study. Significant study group differences revealed university students with more indications of gaming disorder, more burnout, less loneliness, more stimulant (i.e., Ritalin) use, a greater consumption of salt- and/or sugar-loaded foods and lower economic wellbeing. The levels of resilience (i.e., the ability to recover from stress), substance use (e.g., tobacco and alcohol) and weight gain were similar for the two groups. Regression analysis showed gaming disorder as a key predictor of burnout, economic wellbeing and resilience. This study examined only male gamers because of the small number of female respondents. However, additional research is needed about female internet gamers, including their possible exposure to online harassment and sexual degradation. Additionally, additional research should be considered to verify the present study's findings about gamers based on demographic factors and gaming disorder levels. Prevention and treatment intervention measures, including those that can be made available on campus, should be thought about by university administration personnel and student association leaders in consultation with professionals who are experienced in reducing gaming disorder and other harmful behaviors among students.

Heart rate variability (HRV) changes and cortical volume changes in a randomized trial of five weeks of daily HRV biofeedback in younger and older adults.

Previous studies indicate that the structure and function of medial prefrontal cortex (PFC) and lateral orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) are associated with heart rate variability (HRV). Typically, this association is assumed to reflect the PFC's role in controlling HRV and emotion regulation, with better prefrontal structural integrity supporting greater HRV and better emotion regulation. However, as a control system, the PFC must monitor and respond to heart rate oscillatory activity. Thus, engaging in regulatory feedback during heart rate oscillatory activity may over time help shape PFC structure, as relevant circuits and connections are modified. In the current study with younger and older adults, we tested whether 5 weeks of daily sessions of biofeedback to increase heart rate oscillations (Osc+ condition) vs. to decrease heart rate oscillations (Osc- condition) affected cortical volume in left OFC and right OFC, two regions particularly associated with HRV in prior studies. The left OFC showed significant differences in volume change across conditions, with Osc+ increasing volume relative to Osc-. The volume changes in left OFC were significantly correlated with changes in mood disturbance. In addition, resting low frequency HRV increased more in the Osc+ than in the Osc- condition. These findings indicate that daily biofeedback sessions regulating heart rate oscillatory activity can shape both resting HRV and the brain circuits that help control HRV and regulate emotion.

Emotion Downregulation Targets Interoceptive Brain Regions While Emotion Upregulation Targets Other Affective Brain Regions.

Researchers generally agree that when upregulating and downregulating emotion, control regions in the prefrontal cortex turn up or down activity in affect-generating brain areas. However, the "affective dial hypothesis" that turning up and down emotions produces opposite effects in the same affect-generating regions is untested. We tested this hypothesis by examining the overlap between the regions activated during upregulation and those deactivated during downregulation in 54 male and 51 female humans. We found that upregulation and downregulation both recruit regulatory regions, such as the inferior frontal gyrus and dorsal anterior cingulate gyrus, but act on distinct affect-generating regions. Upregulation increased activity in regions associated with emotional experience, such as the amygdala, anterior insula, striatum, and anterior cingulate gyrus as well as in regions associated with sympathetic vascular activity, such as periventricular white matter, while downregulation decreased activity in regions receiving interoceptive input, such as the posterior insula and postcentral gyrus. Nevertheless, participants' subjective sense of emotional intensity was associated with activity in overlapping brain regions (dorsal anterior cingulate, insula, thalamus, and frontal pole) across upregulation and downregulation. These findings indicate that upregulation and downregulation rely on overlapping brain regions to control and assess emotions but target different affect-generating brain regions.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Many contexts require modulating one's own emotions. Identifying the brain areas implementing these regulatory processes should advance understanding emotional disorders and designing potential interventions. The emotion regulation field has an implicit assumption we call the affective dial hypothesis: both emotion upregulation and downregulation modulate the same emotion-generating brain areas. Countering the hypothesis, our findings indicate that up- and down-modulating emotions target different brain areas. Thus, the mechanisms underlying emotion regulation might differ more than previously appreciated for upregulation versus downregulation. In addition to their theoretical importance, these findings are critical for researchers attempting to target activity in particular brain regions during an emotion regulation intervention.

Age differences in diffusivity in the locus coeruleus and its ascending noradrenergic tract.

The noradrenergic locus coeruleus (LC) is a small brainstem nucleus that promotes arousal and attention. Recent studies have examined the microstructural properties of the LC using diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging and found unexpected age-related differences in fractional anisotropy - a measure of white matter integrity. Here, we used two datasets (Berlin Aging Study-II, N = 301, the Leipzig Study for Mind-Body-Emotion Interactions, N = 220), to replicate published findings and expand them by investigating diffusivity in the LC's ascending noradrenergic bundle. In younger adults, LC fractional anisotropy was significantly lower, compared to older adults. However, in the LC's ascending noradrenergic bundle, we observed significantly higher fractional anisotropy in younger adults, relative to older adults. These findings indicate that diffusivity in the LC versus the ascending noradrenergic bundle are both susceptible to structural changes in aging that have opposing effects on fractional anisotropy.

Cognitive Correlates of Hippocampal Atrophy and Ventricular Enlargement in Adults with or without Mild Cognitive Impairment.

We analyzed structural magnetic resonance imaging data from 58 cognitively normal and 101 mild cognitive impairment subjects. We used a general linear regression model to study the association between cognitive performance with hippocampal atrophy and ventricular enlargement using the radial distance method. Bilateral hippocampal atrophy was associated with baseline and longitudinal memory performance. Left hippocampal atrophy predicted longitudinal decline in visuospatial function. The multidomain ventricular analysis did not reveal any significant predictors.

Preparatory Encoding of the Fine Scale of Human Spatial Attention.

Our attentional focus is constantly shifting: In one moment, our attention may be intently concentrated on a specific spot, whereas in another moment we might spread our attention more broadly. Although much is known about the mechanisms by which we shift our visual attention from place to place, relatively little is known about how we shift the aperture of attention from more narrowly to more broadly focused. Here we introduce a novel attentional distribution task to examine the neural mechanisms underlying this process. In this task, participants are presented with an informative cue that indicates the location of an upcoming target. This cue can be perfectly predictive of the exact target location, or it can indicate-with varying degrees of certainty-approximately where the target might appear. This cue is followed by a preparatory period in which there is nothing on the screen except a central fixation cross. Using scalp EEG, we examined neural activity during this preparatory period. We find that, with decreasing certainty regarding the precise location of the impending target, participant RTs increased whereas target identification accuracy decreased. Additionally, the multivariate pattern of preparatory period visual cortical alpha (8-12 Hz) activity encoded attentional distribution. This alpha encoding was predictive of behavioral accuracy and RT nearly 1 sec later. These results offer insight into the neural mechanisms underlying how we use information to guide our attentional distribution and how that influences behavior.

Dance Experience and Associations with Cortical Gray Matter Thickness in the Aging Population.

INTRODUCTION: We investigated the effect dance experience may have on cortical gray matter thickness and cognitive performance in elderly participants with and without mild cognitive impairment (MCI). METHODS: 39 cognitively normal and 48 MCI elderly participants completed a questionnaire regarding their lifetime experience with music, dance, and song. Participants identified themselves as either dancers or nondancers. All participants received structural 1.5-tesla MRI scans and detailed clinical and neuropsychological evaluations. An advanced 3D cortical mapping technique was then applied to calculate cortical thickness. RESULTS: Despite having a trend-level significantly thinner cortex, dancers performed better in cognitive tasks involving learning and memory, such as the California Verbal Learning Test-II (CVLT-II) short delay free recall (p = 0.004), the CVLT-II long delay free recall (p = 0.003), and the CVLT-II learning over trials 1-5 (p = 0.001). DISCUSSION: Together, these results suggest that dance may result in an enhancement of cognitive reserve in aging, which may help avert or delay MCI.

Common variants in ABCA7 and MS4A6A are associated with cortical and hippocampal atrophy.

The precise physiologic function of many of the recently discovered Alzheimer's disease risk variants remains unknown. The downstream effects of genetic variants remain largely unexplored. We studied the relationship between the top 10 non-APOE genes with cortical and hippocampal atrophy as markers of neurodegeneration using 1.5T magnetic resonance imaging, 1-million single nucleotide polymorphism Illumina Human Omni-Quad array and Illumina Human BeadChip peripheral blood expression array data on 50 cognitively normal and 98 mild cognitive impairment subjects. After explicit matching of cortical and hippocampal morphology, we computed in 3D, the cortical thickness and hippocampal radial distance measures for each participant. Associations between the top 10 non-APOE genome-wide hits and neurodegeneration were explored using linear regression. Map-wise statistical significance was determined with permutations using threshold of p < 0.01. MS4A6A rs610932 and ABCA7 rs3764650 demonstrated significant associations with cortical and hippocampal atrophy. Exploratory MS4A6A and ABCA7 peripheral blood expression analyses revealed a similar pattern of associations with cortical neurodegeneration. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the effect of ABCA7 and MS4A6A on neurodegeneration.