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Romeo Z, Dolfi S, D'Amelio M, Mioni G. Duration, numerosity and length processing in healthy ageing and Parkinson's disease. Eur J Ageing 2024; 21:14. [PMID: 38656628 PMCID: PMC11043296 DOI: 10.1007/s10433-024-00807-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024] Open
Abstract
People constantly process temporal, numerical, and length information in everyday activities and interactions with the environment. However, it is unclear whether quantity perception changes during ageing. Previous studies have provided heterogeneous results, sometimes showing an age-related effect on a particular quantity, and other times reporting no differences between young and elderly samples. However, three dimensions were never compared within the same study. Here, we conducted two experiments with the aim of investigating the processing of duration, numerosity and length in both healthy and pathological ageing. The experimental paradigm consisted of three bisection tasks in which participants were asked to judge whether the presented stimulus (i.e. a time interval, a group of dots, or a line) was more similar to the short/few or long/many standards. The first study recruited healthy young and elderly participants, while the second recruited healthy elderly participants and patients with Parkinson's disease, a clinical condition commonly associated with temporal impairments. The results of both experiments showed that discrimination precision differed between domains in all groups, with higher precision in the numerosity task and lower sensitivity in judging duration. Furthermore, while discrimination abilities were affected in healthy elderly and, even more so, in Parkinson's disease group, no domain-specific impairments emerged. According to our research, reduced discrimination precision might be explained by an alteration of a single system for all quantities or by an age-related general cognitive decline.
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Affiliation(s)
- Z Romeo
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Via Venezia, 8, 35131, Padua, Italy.
- Neuroscience Institute, National Research Council (CNR), Padua, Italy.
| | - S Dolfi
- Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialization, University of Padova, Padua, Italy
| | | | - G Mioni
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Via Venezia, 8, 35131, Padua, Italy.
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2
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Liang T, Peng RC, Rong KL, Li JX, Ke Y, Yung WH. Disparate processing of numerosity and associated continuous magnitudes in rats. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadj2566. [PMID: 38381814 PMCID: PMC10881051 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adj2566] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
The studies of number sense in different species are severely hampered by the inevitable entanglement of non-numerical attributes inherent in nonsymbolic stimuli representing numerosity, resulting in contrasting theories of numerosity processing. Here, we developed an algorithm and associated analytical methods to generate stimuli that not only minimized the impact of non-numerical magnitudes in numerosity perception but also allowed their quantification. We trained number-naïve rats with these stimuli as sound pulses representing two or three numbers and demonstrated that their numerical discrimination ability mainly relied on numerosity. Also, studying the learning process revealed that rats used numerosity before using magnitudes for choices. This numerical processing could be impaired specifically by silencing the posterior parietal cortex. Furthermore, modeling this capacity by neural networks shed light on the separation of numerosity and magnitudes extraction. Our study helps dissect the relationship between magnitude and numerosity processing, and the above different findings together affirm the independent existence of innate number and magnitudes sense in rats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tuo Liang
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Rong-Chao Peng
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- School of Biomedical Engineering, Guangdong Medical University, Dongguan, Guangdong, China
| | - Kang-Lin Rong
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Jia-Xin Li
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Ya Ke
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Wing-Ho Yung
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
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3
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Howard E, Ballinger S, Kinney NG, Balgenorth Y, Ehrhardt A, Phillips JS, Irwin DJ, Grossman M, Cousins KA. Frontal Atrophy and Executive Dysfunction Relate to Complex Numbers Impairment in Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. J Alzheimers Dis 2022; 88:1553-1566. [PMID: 35811515 PMCID: PMC9915885 DOI: 10.3233/jad-215327] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Previous research finds a range of numbers impairments in Parkinsonian syndromes (PS), but has largely focused on how visuospatial impairments impact deficits in basic numerical processes (e.g., magnitude judgments, chunking). Differentiation between these basic functions and more complex numerical processes often utilized in everyday tasks may help elucidate neurocognitive and neuroanatomic bases of numbers deficits in PS. OBJECTIVE To test neurocognitive and neuroanatomic correlates of complex numerical processing in PS, we assessed number abilities, neuropsychological performance, and cortical thickness in progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and Lewy body spectrum disorders (LBSD). METHODS Fifty-six patients (LBSD = 35; PSP = 21) completed a Numbers Battery, including basic and complex numerical tasks. The Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE), letter fluency (LF), and Judgment of Line Orientation (JOLO) assessed global, executive, and visuospatial functioning respectively. Mann-Whitney U tests compared neuropsychological testing and rank-transformed analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) compared numbers performance between groups while adjusting for demographic variables. Spearman's and partial correlations related numbers performance to neuropsychological tasks. Neuroimaging assessed cortical thickness in disease groups and demographically-matched healthy controls. RESULTS PSP had worse complex numbers performance than LBSD (F = 6.06, p = 0.02) but similar basic numbers performance (F = 0.38, p > 0.1), covarying for MMSE and sex. Across syndromes, impaired complex numbers performance was linked to poor LF (rho = 0.34, p = 0.01) but not JOLO (rho = 0.23, p > 0.05). Imaging revealed significant frontal atrophy in PSP compared to controls, which was associated with worse LF and complex numbers performance. CONCLUSION PSP demonstrated selective impairments in complex numbers processing compared to LBSD. This complex numerical deficit may relate to executive dysfunction and frontal atrophy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erica Howard
- Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Samantha Ballinger
- Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Nikolas G. Kinney
- Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Yvonne Balgenorth
- Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Annabess Ehrhardt
- Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Jeffrey S. Phillips
- Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - David J. Irwin
- Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Digital Neuropathology Laboratory, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Murray Grossman
- Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Katheryn A.Q. Cousins
- Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Correspondence to: Katheryn A.Q. Cousins, PhD, 3400 Spruce St, Department of Neurology, 3W Gates Building, Philadel phia, PA 19104, USA. Tel.: +1 215 349 5863; Fax: +1 215 349 8464;
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4
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Zhuang JY, Wang JX, Lei Q, Zhang W, Fan M. Neural Basis of Increased Cognitive Control of Impulsivity During the Mid-Luteal Phase Relative to the Late Follicular Phase of the Menstrual Cycle. Front Hum Neurosci 2020; 14:568399. [PMID: 33304251 PMCID: PMC7693576 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2020.568399] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2020] [Accepted: 10/13/2020] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Hormonal changes across the menstrual cycle have been shown to influence reward-related motivation and impulsive behaviors. Here, with the aim of examining the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive control of impulsivity, we compared event-related monetary delay discounting task behavior and concurrent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) revealed brain activity as well as resting state (rs)-fMRI activity, between women in the mid-luteal phase (LP) and women in the late follicular phase (FP). The behavioral data were analyzed and related to neural activation data. In the delay discounting task, women in the late FP were more responsive to short-term rewards (i.e., showed a greater discount rate) than women in the mid-LP, while also showing greater activity in the dorsal striatum (DS). Discount rate (transformed k) correlated with functional connectivity between the DS and dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), consistent with previous findings indicating that DS-dlPFC circuitry may regulate impulsivity. Our rs-fMRI data further showed that the right dlPFC was significantly more active in the mid-LP than in late FP, and this effect was sensitive to absolute and relative estradiol levels during the mid-LP. DS-dlPFC functional connectivity magnitude correlated negatively with psychometric impulsivity scores during the late FP, consistent with our behavioral data and further indicating that relative estradiol levels may play an important role in augmenting cognitive control. These findings provide new insight into the treatment of conditions characterized by hyper-impulsivity, such as obsessive compulsive disorder, Parkinson disease, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. In conclusion, our results suggest that cyclical gonadal hormones affect cognitive control of impulsive behavior in a periodic manner, possibility via DS-dlPFC circuitry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jin-Ying Zhuang
- Faculty of Education, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China.,School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jia-Xi Wang
- School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Qin Lei
- School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Weidong Zhang
- School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Mingxia Fan
- Department of Physics, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
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5
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Number is special: time, space, and number interact in a temporal reproduction task. Cogn Process 2020; 21:449-459. [PMID: 32212029 DOI: 10.1007/s10339-020-00968-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2019] [Accepted: 03/16/2020] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Space, time, and number are among fundamental aspects of behavior and reasoning about the environment. Recent studies have shown that these dimensions highly interact with each other. To explain such interaction, two theories have been proposed: A Theory of Magnitude (ATOM), which posits the existence of a common magnitude system, and Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), which proposes abstract domains such as time and number are mapped through more concrete domains such as space. The present study investigates the interaction of number, time and space in a single experimental paradigm using a temporal reproduction task with a visuospatial component. We also investigated whether mathematical education and continuous involvement with calculations and numbers change the processing precision related to number, time, and space. Two groups of students in mathematics (n = 28) and Persian literature (n = 28) participated in a time reproduction task. The stimuli included Arabic numbers 1, 2, 8, and 9, which were presented to the participants over short (300, 400, 500 ms) and long durations (1000, 1100, 1200 ms) on both sides (left and right) of the monitor. The interaction effect of spatialـnumerical and temporal-numerical was found to be significant. There was no overall time-space interaction, but the triple interaction effect between number, time, and space was significant suggesting the existence of a common representational system. This main result was slightly in line with recent proposed theories. Furthermore, the results showed that the main effect of group was not significant. In addition, we found that among the three factors (number, time, and space) the effect of number is more prominent, i.e., when number disappeared the interaction effect was not observed. The results also suggest that the nature of interactions between these factors is not influenced by cognitive and educational factors. The findings of the study are finally discussed in terms of symmetrical or asymmetrical cross-dimensional influences within the frameworks of ATOM and CMT theories.
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6
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Salillas E, Korostenskaja M, Kleineschay T, Mehta S, Vega A, Castillo EM. A MEG Study on the Processing of Time and Quantity: Parietal Overlap but Functional Divergence. Front Psychol 2019; 10:139. [PMID: 30778314 PMCID: PMC6369182 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2018] [Accepted: 01/15/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
A common magnitude system for the processing of time and numerosity, supported by areas in the posterior parietal cortex, has been proposed by some authors. The present study aims to investigate possible intersections between the neural processing of non-numerical (time) and numerical magnitudes in the posterior parietal lobe. Using Magnetoencephalography for the comparison of brain source activations during the processing of duration and numerosity contrasts, we demonstrate parietal overlap as well as dissociations between these two dimensions. Within the parietal cortex, the main areas of overlap were bilateral precuneus, bilateral intraparietal sulci, and right supramarginal gyrus. Interestingly, however, these regions did not equivalently correlated with the behavior for the two dimensions: left and right precuneus together with the right supramarginal gyrus accounted functionally for durational judgments, whereas numerosity judgments were accounted by the activation pattern in the right intraparietal sulcus. Present results, indeed, demonstrate an overlap between the neural substrates for processing duration and quantity. However, the functional relevance of parietal overlapping areas for each dimension is not the same. In fact, our data indicates that the same parietal sites rule differently non-numerical and numerical dimensions, as parts of broader networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena Salillas
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Milena Korostenskaja
- Functional Brain Mapping and Brain Computer Interface Laboratory, Florida Hospital for Children, Orlando, FL, United States.,MEG Lab, Florida Hospital for Children, Orlando, FL, United States.,Florida Epilepsy Center, Florida Hospital, Orlando, FL, United States
| | - Tara Kleineschay
- MEG Lab, Florida Hospital for Children, Orlando, FL, United States.,Florida Epilepsy Center, Florida Hospital, Orlando, FL, United States
| | - Shivani Mehta
- Functional Brain Mapping and Brain Computer Interface Laboratory, Florida Hospital for Children, Orlando, FL, United States
| | - Alexandra Vega
- Functional Brain Mapping and Brain Computer Interface Laboratory, Florida Hospital for Children, Orlando, FL, United States
| | - Eduardo Martinez Castillo
- MEG Lab, Florida Hospital for Children, Orlando, FL, United States.,Florida Epilepsy Center, Florida Hospital, Orlando, FL, United States
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7
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Number, time, and space are not singularly represented: Evidence against a common magnitude system beyond early childhood. Psychon Bull Rev 2019; 26:833-854. [PMID: 30684249 DOI: 10.3758/s13423-018-1561-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Our ability to represent temporal, spatial, and numerical information is critical for understanding the world around us. Given the prominence of quantitative representations in the natural world, numerous cognitive, neurobiological, and developmental models have been proposed as a means of describing how we track quantity. One prominent theory posits that time, space, and number are represented by a common magnitude system, or a common neural locus (i.e., Bonn & Cantlon in Cognitive Neuropsychology, 29(1/2), 149-173, 2012; Cantlon, Platt, & Brannon in Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 13(2), 83-91, 2009; Meck & Church in Animal Behavior Processes, 9(3), 320, 1983; Walsh in Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 7(11), 483-488, 2003). Despite numerous similarities in representations of time, space, and number, an increasing body of literature reveals striking dissociations in how each quantity is processed, particularly later in development. These findings have led many researchers to consider the possibility that separate systems may be responsible for processing each quantity. This review will analyze evidence in favor of a common magnitude system, particularly in infancy, which will be tempered by counter evidence, the majority of which comes from experiments with children and adult participants. After reviewing the current data, we argue that although the common magnitude system may account for quantity representations in infancy, the data do not provide support for this system throughout the life span. We also identify future directions for the field and discuss the likelihood of the developmental divergence model of quantity representation, like that of Newcombe (Ecological Psychology, 2, 147-157, 2014), as a more plausible account of quantity development.
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8
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De Visscher A, Noël MP, Pesenti M, Dormal V. Developmental Dyscalculia in Adults: Beyond Numerical Magnitude Impairment. JOURNAL OF LEARNING DISABILITIES 2017; 51:600-611. [PMID: 28942712 DOI: 10.1177/0022219417732338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Numerous studies have tried to identify the core deficit of developmental dyscalculia (DD), mainly by assessing a possible deficit of the mental representation of numerical magnitude. Research in healthy adults has shown that numerosity, duration, and space share a partly common system of magnitude processing and representation. However, in DD, numerosity processing has until now received much more attention than the processing of other non-numerical magnitudes. To assess whether or not the processing of non-numerical magnitudes is impaired in DD, the performance of 15 adults with DD and 15 control participants was compared in four categorization tasks using numerosities, lengths, durations, and faces (as non-magnitude-based control stimuli). Results showed that adults with DD were impaired in processing numerosity and duration, while their performance in length and face categorization did not differ from controls' performance. Our findings support the idea of a nonsymbolic magnitude deficit in DD, affecting numerosity and duration processing but not length processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice De Visscher
- 1 Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- 2 KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Mauro Pesenti
- 1 Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Valérie Dormal
- 1 Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
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9
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Lewis EA, Zax A, Cordes S. The impact of emotion on numerical estimation: A developmental perspective. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2017; 71:1300-1311. [PMID: 28415903 DOI: 10.1080/17470218.2017.1318154] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Recent literature has revealed underestimation effects in numerical judgments when adult participants are presented with emotional stimuli (as opposed to neutral). Whether these numerical biases emerge early in development however, or instead reflect overt, learned responses to emotional stimuli across development are unclear. Moreover, reported links between numerical acuity and mathematics achievement point to the importance of exploring how numerical approximation abilities in childhood may be influenced in real-world affective contexts. In this study, children (aged 6-10 years) and adults were presented with happy and neutral facial stimuli in the context of a numerical bisection task. Results reveal that children, like adults, underestimate number following emotional (i.e., happy) faces (relative to neutral). However, children's, but not adult's, responses were also significantly more precise following emotional stimuli. In a second experiment, adult judgments revealed a similar increase in precision following emotional stimuli when numerical discriminations were more challenging (involving larger sets). Together, results are the first to reveal children, like adults, underestimate number in the context of emotional stimuli and this underestimation bias is accompanied with enhanced response precision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily A Lewis
- 1 Department of Psychology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA
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10
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Smith CT, Wallace DL, Dang LC, Aarts E, Jagust WJ, D'Esposito M, Boettiger CA. Modulation of impulsivity and reward sensitivity in intertemporal choice by striatal and midbrain dopamine synthesis in healthy adults. J Neurophysiol 2016; 115:1146-56. [PMID: 26683066 PMCID: PMC4808128 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00261.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2015] [Accepted: 12/15/2015] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Converging evidence links individual differences in mesolimbic and mesocortical dopamine (DA) to variation in the tendency to choose immediate rewards ("Now") over larger, delayed rewards ("Later"), or "Now bias." However, to date, no study of healthy young adults has evaluated the relationship between Now bias and DA with positron emission tomography (PET). Sixteen healthy adults (ages 24-34 yr; 50% women) completed a delay-discounting task that quantified aspects of intertemporal reward choice, including Now bias and reward magnitude sensitivity. Participants also underwent PET scanning with 6-[(18)F]fluoro-l-m-tyrosine (FMT), a radiotracer that measures DA synthesis capacity. Lower putamen FMT signal predicted elevated Now bias, a more rapidly declining discount rate with increasing delay time, and reduced willingness to accept low-interest-rate delayed rewards. In contrast, lower FMT signal in the midbrain predicted greater sensitivity to increasing magnitude of the Later reward. These data demonstrate that intertemporal reward choice in healthy humans varies with region-specific measures of DA processing, with regionally distinct associations with sensitivity to delay and to reward magnitude.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher T. Smith
- 1Neurobiology Curriculum, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina;
| | - Deanna L. Wallace
- 2Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California;
| | - Linh C. Dang
- 2Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California; ,3Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California;
| | - Esther Aarts
- 2Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California; ,4Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; and
| | - William J. Jagust
- 2Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California; ,3Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California;
| | - Mark D'Esposito
- 2Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California;
| | - Charlotte A. Boettiger
- 1Neurobiology Curriculum, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina; ,5Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, and Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
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11
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Norris JE, McGeown WJ, Guerrini C, Castronovo J. Aging and the number sense: preserved basic non-symbolic numerical processing and enhanced basic symbolic processing. Front Psychol 2015; 6:999. [PMID: 26236269 PMCID: PMC4502343 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2015] [Accepted: 07/02/2015] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Aging often leads to general cognitive decline in domains such as memory and attention. The effect of aging on numerical cognition, particularly on foundational numerical skills known as the number sense, is not well-known. Early research focused on the effect of aging on arithmetic. Recent studies have begun to investigate the impact of healthy aging on basic numerical skills, but focused on non-symbolic quantity discrimination alone. Moreover, contradictory findings have emerged. The current study aimed to further investigate the impact of aging on basic non-symbolic and symbolic numerical skills. A group of 25 younger (18-25) and 25 older adults (60-77) participated in non-symbolic and symbolic numerical comparison tasks. Mathematical and spelling abilities were also measured. Results showed that aging had no effect on foundational non-symbolic numerical skills, as both groups performed similarly [RTs, accuracy and Weber fractions (w)]. All participants showed decreased non-symbolic acuity (accuracy and w) in trials requiring inhibition. However, aging appears to be associated with a greater decline in discrimination speed in such trials. Furthermore, aging seems to have a positive impact on mathematical ability and basic symbolic numerical processing, as older participants attained significantly higher mathematical achievement scores, and performed significantly better on the symbolic comparison task than younger participants. The findings suggest that aging and its lifetime exposure to numbers may lead to better mathematical achievement and stronger basic symbolic numerical skills. Our results further support the observation that basic non-symbolic numerical skills are resilient to aging, but that aging may exacerbate poorer performance on trials requiring inhibitory processes. These findings lend further support to the notion that preserved basic numerical skills in aging may reflect the preservation of an innate, primitive, and embedded number sense.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jade E Norris
- Department of Psychology, University of Hull Hull, UK
| | - William J McGeown
- School of Psychological Sciences and Health, University of Strathclyde Glasgow, UK
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12
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Hoffmann D, Pigat D, Schiltz C. The impact of inhibition capacities and age on number–space associations. Cogn Process 2014; 15:329-42. [DOI: 10.1007/s10339-014-0601-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2013] [Accepted: 01/10/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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13
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Aagten-Murphy D, Iversen J, Williams C, Meck W. Novel Inversions in Auditory Sequences Provide Evidence for Spontaneous Subtraction of Time and Number. TIMING & TIME PERCEPTION 2014. [DOI: 10.1163/22134468-00002028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Animals, including fish, birds, rodents, non-human primates, and pre-verbal infants are able to discriminate the duration and number of events without the use of language. In this paper, we present the results of six experiments exploring the capability of adult rats to count 2–6 sequentially presented white-noise stimuli. The investigation focuses on the animal’s ability to exhibit spontaneous subtraction following the presentation of novel stimulus inversions in the auditory signals being counted. Results suggest that a subtraction operation between two opposite sensory representations may be a general processing strategy used for the comparison of stimulus magnitudes. These findings are discussed within the context of a mode-control model of timing and counting that relies on an analog temporal-integration process for the addition and subtraction of sequential events.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Aagten-Murphy
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Münich, Germany
| | - John R. Iversen
- Swartz Center for Computational Neuroscience and Institute for Neural Computation, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | | | - Warren H. Meck
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
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14
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Baker JM, Rodzon KS, Jordan K. The impact of emotion on numerosity estimation. Front Psychol 2013; 4:521. [PMID: 23950754 PMCID: PMC3739062 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2013] [Accepted: 07/24/2013] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Both time and numerosity can be represented continuously as analog properties whose discrimination conforms to Weber’s Law, suggesting that the two properties may be represented similarly. Recent research suggests that the representation of time is influenced by the presence of emotional stimuli. If time and numerosity share a common cognitive representation, it follows that a similar relationship may exist between emotional stimuli and the representation of numerosity. Here, we provide evidence that emotional stimuli significantly affect humans’ estimation of visual numerosity. During a numerical bisection task, enumeration of emotional stimuli (angry faces) was more accurate compared to enumeration of neutrally valenced stimuli (neutral faces), demonstrating that emotional stimuli affect humans’ visual representation of numerosity as previously demonstrated for time. These results inform and broaden our understanding of the effect of negative emotional stimuli on psychophysical discriminations of quantity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph M Baker
- Department of Psychology, Utah State University, 2810 Old Main Hill Logan, UT, USA
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15
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Masson N, Pesenti M, Dormal V. Spatial bias in symbolic and non-symbolic numerical comparison in neglect. Neuropsychologia 2013; 51:1925-32. [PMID: 23774183 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2013.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2013] [Revised: 05/22/2013] [Accepted: 06/05/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Masson
- Institut de Recherche en Sciences Psychologiques and Institute of Neuroscience, Université Catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
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16
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Crollen V, Grade S, Pesenti M, Dormal V. A common metric magnitude system for the perception and production of numerosity, length, and duration. Front Psychol 2013; 4:449. [PMID: 23885244 PMCID: PMC3717486 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2013] [Accepted: 06/28/2013] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Numerosity, length, and duration processing may share a common functional mechanism situated within the parietal cortex. A strong parallelism between the processing of these three magnitudes has been revealed by similar behavioral signatures (e.g., Weber–Fechner's law, the distance effect) and reciprocal interference effects. Here, we extend the behavioral evidence for a common magnitude processing mechanism by exploring whether the under- and overestimation patterns observed during numerical perception and production tasks are also present in length and duration perception and production. In a first experiment, participants had to perform two estimation tasks (i.e., perception and production) on three magnitudes (i.e., numerosities, lengths, and durations). The results demonstrate similar patterns for the three magnitudes: underestimation was observed in all perception tasks, whereas overestimation was found in all production tasks. A second experiment ensured that this pattern of under- and over-estimation was not solely generated by the mere process of perceiving or producing something. Participants were required to estimate the alphabetical position of a letter (i.e., perception task) or to produce the letter corresponding to a given position (i.e., production task). No under- or overestimation were observed in this experiment, which suggests that the process of perceiving or producing something alone cannot explain the systematic pattern of estimation observed on magnitudes. Together, these findings strengthen the idea that magnitude estimations share a common metric system, requiring similar mechanisms and/or representations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Virginie Crollen
- Institut de Recherche en Sciences Psychologiques, Université catholique de Louvain Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
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17
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Van Opstal F, Verguts T. Is there a generalized magnitude system in the brain? Behavioral, neuroimaging, and computational evidence. Front Psychol 2013; 4:435. [PMID: 23874319 PMCID: PMC3711208 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2013] [Accepted: 06/25/2013] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Filip Van Opstal
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University Ghent, Belgium
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