Human slow wave sleep: A review and appraisal of recent findings,with implications for sleep functions,and psychiatric illness

Recent findings concerning human slow wave sleep (hSWS-stages 3+4; delta EEG activity) are critically reviewed. Areas covered include the significance of the first hSWS cycle; hSWS in extended sleep; relationship between hSWS, prior wakefulness and sleep loss; hSWS influence on sleep length; problems with hSWS deprivation; influence of the circadian rhythm; individual differences in hSWS, especially, age, gender and constitutional variables such as physical fitness and body composition. Transient increases in hSWS can be produced by increasing both the quality and quantity of prior wakefulness, with an underlying mechanism perhaps relating to the waking level of brain metabolism. Whilst there may also be thermoregulatory influences on hSWS, hypotheses that energy conservation and brain cooling are major roles for hSWS are debatable. hSWS seems to offer some form of cerebral recovery, with the prefrontal cortex being particularly implicated. The hSWS characteristics of certain forms of major psychiatric disorders may well endorse this prefrontal link.     

近亲游仆虫接合生殖的研究

应用蛋白银染色方法和扫描电子显微镜技术研究了近亲游仆虫的接合生殖过程。并对接合生殖过程中皮层的两次演化,大、小核的不同变化,新、老结构的关系和老结构的命运等进行了讨论。     

Right prefrontal laterality of Chinese boys during a Chinese high conflict Stroop task measured by multi-channel near-infrared spectroscopy imaging

Some studies have shown that native Chinese speakers have different laterality in matched Stroop tasks from native English speakers. Recently, many imaging data, which show left laterality of English-matched Stroop interference, have been reported. And a few functional imaging studies have been conducted to investigate the phenomenon of the Chinese version of Stroop task. In this study, functional activity in the lateral prefrontal cortex of a group of normal Chinese boys with functional near-infrared imaging during a Stroop color-word task was measured to show different Stroop interferences in the prefrontal cortex. The results show obvious fluctuation of the cerebral blood volume in the right prefrontal cortex in all boys, which agrees with the finding of previous studies, that is, Chinese native boys have right laterality in their brain when the Chinese version of Stroop color-word task is applied.     

Right prefrontal laterality of Chinese boys during a Chinese high conflict Stroop task measured by multi-channel near-infrared spectroscopy imaging

Some studies have shown that native Chinese speakers have different laterality in matched Stroop tasks from native English speakers.Recently,many imaging data,which show left laterality of English-matched Stroop interference,have been reported.And a few functional imaging studies have been conducted to investigate the phenomenon of the Chinese version of Stroop task.In this study,functional activity in the lateral prefrontal cortex of a group of normal Chinese boys with functional near-infrared imaging during a Stroop color-word task was measured to show different Stroop interferences in the prefrontal cortex.The results show obvious fluctuation of the cerebral blood volume in the right prefrontal cortex in all boys,which agrees with the finding of previous studies,that is,Chinese native boys have right laterality in their brain when the Chinese version of Stroop color-word task is applied.     

不同状态下运动皮层连通性仿真

为了研究脑卒中后运动功能损伤与康复的机制以寻找促进脑卒中患者康复的有效途径,用有向图表示运动相关区域连接成的网络,并将其视为动力学系统,通过复杂度反映系统功能分离和整合的程度,利用模式搜索方法优化网络结构,研究在静止状态、运动状态、中风损伤后运动皮层连通性的变化.仿真结果显示:运动状态下各区域间有较强的连接,而在损伤状态下,连接强度降低,与发生部位有关;在这两种状态下大脑半球内部区域间连接均大于其它类型连接,区域自连接较弱.研究结果表明该模型可以定性反映大脑运动皮层的连通性变化或者可塑性.     

NADP-isocitric dehydrogenase of gerbil adrenal mitochondria: Support of steroid hydroxylation

Summary In gerbil adrenal cortex the activity of intramitochondrial NADP-linked isocitric dehydrogenase (IDH) is up to 10-fold greater than the NAD-linked IDH. The NADP-IDH, apparent K_m 0.58 mM, V_max 280 nmoles/min/mg mitochondrial protein, appears to be the major source of reducing equivalents to support adrenal mitochondrial steroid 11B- and 19-hydroxylation in this species.     

数序认知的特征及神经机制

数序认知是数认知的一个重要方面。研究发现:数序具有进化和个体发育的连续性;行为学上显示了与数量认知相似的行为学效应;但是数序和数量认知的加工在顶区和前额区显示了空间和时间进程上的差异。数序表征是否具有特异性脑区;它和数量表征是否存在两种不同的表征系统,或者它们是部分分离的,有关这些问题的研究结论并不明朗。     

Does the FRN in brain potentials reflect motivational/affective consequence of outcome evaluation?

Electrophysiological studies have utilized event-related brain potentials (ERPs) to investigate neural processes related to the evaluation of the outcome of behavioral performance or to the evaluation of external feedback. The feedback-related negativity (FRN) in brain potentials has been shown to be sensitive to information indicating monetary loss or negative feedback. Since monetary loss usually indicates both the consequence of previous performance and the reward value of stimuli, it is controversial whether the FRN reflects the cognitive process of error detection per se and/or the motivational/affective process related to the subjective evaluation of the error. This study manipulated the motivational/affective significance of negative feedback by penalizing errors in a context-dependent way in a line judgment task. Participants could lose more money in the loss incentive condition or win less money in the win incentive condition if their subsequent judgment of line segments was less accurate, whereas they could receive performance feedback but without monetary incentive in the neutral condition. Results showed that the size of the FRN effect as well as the size of the P300 effect, as assessed by comparing brain responses to the error trials with the responses to the correct trials, increased linearly over the loss, neutral, and win conditions, suggesting that the FRN is sensitive to the motivational/affective evaluation of the performance outcome.     

不同生理状态时脑电时间序列的皮层信息传输

引用一种“信息传输”理论来研究不同生理状态时的脑电时间序列，比较了正常人和在急性缺氧条件下、睡眠条件下及局灶性癫痫病患者的大脑皮层信息传输，发现在各种情况下的大脑皮层信息传输有非常特殊的现象：在急性缺氧时，人的大脑皮层信息传输量各导联均较正常人高；当深睡时，各导联的信息传输量均较正常人低；局灶性癫痫病人痫性导联与其他导联间的皮层信息传输量有明显增加，而非痫性导联信息传输量 对降低，用脑皮层信息传输量来分析在不同生理状态下的脑电信号是一个极有潜力的方法，可能为研究和理解大脑的活动机理提供一条新的途径。