First Longitudinal Study Using Binaural Beats on Parkinson Disease

The Effect of Rhythmic Audio-Visual Stimulation on Inhibitory Control: An ERP Study

Inhibitory control, as an essential cognitive ability, affects the development of higher cognitive functions. Rhythmic perceptual stimulation has been used to improve cognitive abilities. It is unclear, however, whether it can be used to improve inhibitory control. This study used the Go/NoGo task and the Stroop task to assess various levels of inhibitory control using rhythmic audio-visual stimuli as the stimulus mode. Sixty subjects were randomly divided into three groups to receive 6 Hz, 10 Hz, and white noise stimulation for 30 min. Two tasks were completed by each subject both before and after the stimulus. Before and after the task, closed-eye resting EEG data were collected. The results showed no differences in behavioral and EEG measures of the Go/NoGo task among the three groups. While both 6 Hz and 10 Hz audio-visual stimulation reduced the conflict effect in the Stroop task, only 6 Hz audio-visual stimulation improved the amplitude of the N2 component and decreased the conflict score. Although rhythmic audio-visual stimulation did not enhance response inhibition, it improved conflict inhibition.

Neonatal White Matter Damage Analysis Using DTI Super-Resolution and Multi-Modality Image Registration

Punctate White Matter Damage (PWMD) is a common neonatal brain disease, which can easily cause neurological disorder and strongly affect life quality in terms of neuromotor and cognitive performance. Especially, at the neonatal stage, the best cure time can be easily missed because PWMD is not conducive to the diagnosis based on current existing methods. The lesion of PWMD is relatively straightforward on T1-weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging (T1 MRI), showing semi-oval, cluster or linear high signals. Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Image (DT-MRI, referred to as DTI) is a noninvasive technique that can be used to study brain microstructures in vivo, and provide information on movement and cognition-related nerve fiber tracts. Therefore, a new method was proposed to use T1 MRI combined with DTI for better neonatal PWMD analysis based on DTI super-resolution and multi-modality image registration. First, after preprocessing, neonatal DTI super-resolution was performed with the three times B-spline interpolation algorithm based on the Log-Euclidean space to improve DTIs' resolution to fit the T1 MRIs and facilitate nerve fiber tractography. Second, the symmetric diffeomorphic registration algorithm and inverse b0 image were selected for multi-modality image registration of DTI and T1 MRI. Finally, the 3D lesion models were combined with fiber tractography results to analyze and predict the degree of PWMD lesions affecting fiber tracts. Extensive experiments demonstrated the effectiveness and super performance of our proposed method. This streamlined technique can play an essential auxiliary role in diagnosing and treating neonatal PWMD.