Mental imagery and visual attentional templates: A dissociation

There is a growing interest in the relationship between mental images and attentional templates as both are considered pictorial representations that involve similar neural mechanisms. Here, we investigated the role of mental imagery in the automatic implementation of attentional templates and their effect on involuntary attention. We developed a novel version of the contingent capture paradigm designed to encourage the generation of a new template on each trial and measure contingent spatial capture by a template-matching visual feature (color). Participants were required to search at four different locations for a specific object indicated at the start of each trial. Immediately prior to the search display, color cues were presented surrounding the potential target locations, one of which matched the target color (e.g., red for strawberry). Across three experiments, our task induced a robust contingent capture effect, reflected by faster responses when the target appeared in the location previously occupied by the target-matching cue. Contrary to our predictions, this effect remained consistent regardless of self-reported individual differences in visual mental imagery (Experiment 1, N = 216) or trial-by-trial variation of voluntary imagery vividness (Experiment 2, N = 121). Moreover, contingent capture was observed even among aphantasic participants, who report no imagery (Experiment 3, N = 91). The magnitude of the effect was not reduced in aphantasics compared to a control sample of non-aphantasics, although the two groups reported substantial differences in their search strategy and exhibited differences in overall speed and accuracy. Our results hence establish a dissociation between the generation and implementation of attentional templates for a visual feature (color) and subjectively experienced imagery.

Irrelevant sights and sounds require spatial suppression: ERP evidence

Both real-world experience and behavioral laboratory research suggest that entirely irrelevant stimuli (distractors) can interfere with a primary task. However, it is as yet unknown whether such interference reflects competition for spatial attention - indeed, prominent theories of attention predict that this should not be the case. Whilst electrophysiological indices of spatial capture and spatial suppression have been well-investigated, experiments have primarily utilized distractors which share a degree of task-relevance with targets, and are limited to the visual domain. The present research measured behavioral and ERP responses to test the ability of salient yet entirely task-irrelevant visual and auditory distractors to compete for spatial attention during a visual task, while also testing for potentially enhanced competition from multisensory distractors. Participants completed a central letter search task, while ignoring lateralized visual (e.g., image of a dog), auditory (e.g., barking), or multisensory (e.g., image + barking) distractors. Results showed that visual and multisensory distractors elicited a P_D component indicative of active lateralized suppression. We also establish for the first time an auditory analog of the P_D component, the P_AD , elicited by auditory and multisensory distractors. Interestingly, there was no evidence to suggest enhanced ability of multisensory distractors to compete for attentional selection, despite previous proposals of a "special" saliency status for such items. Our findings hence suggest that irrelevant multisensory and unisensory distractors are similarly capable of eliciting a spatial "attend-to-me" signal - a precursor of spatial attentional capture - but at least in the present data set did not elicit full spatial attentional capture.

Lapses in the Person Radar: ADHD Symptoms Predict Difficulty in Interpersonal Distancing

OBJECTIVE

Across contexts, from social cognition to the COVID-19 pandemic response, individual variation in the regulation of interpersonal distance has typically been viewed as a voluntary choice. Here we examine the frequency of unintentional lapses in interpersonal distancing, and their relationship with childhood ADHD symptoms.

METHOD

We administered a novel measure of difficulty with interpersonal distancing across three undergraduate samples (total N = 1,225), in addition to measures of recalled childhood ADHD symptoms, mind wandering, and hyperfocus.

RESULTS

Almost all (>97%) participants reported unintentional lapses in maintaining interpersonal distance, with 16% experiencing such lapses frequently. Thirty percent of the variance in these reports was accounted for by attentional traits: Inattentive and hyperactive/impulsive ADHD symptoms jointly predicted difficulties with interpersonal distancing, with the former relationship fully mediated by hyperfocus and spontaneous mind wandering.

CONCLUSION

Both inattentive and hyperactive/impulsive ADHD symptoms confer vulnerability to frequent unintentional lapses in interpersonal distancing.

Faces are not always special for attention: Effects of response-relevance and identity

Research over the past 25 years indicates that stimulus processing is diminished when attention is engaged in a perceptually demanding task of high 'perceptual load'. These results have generalized across a variety of stimulus categories, but a controversy evolved over the question of whether perception of distractor faces (or other categories of perceptual expertise) can proceed irrespective of the level of perceptual load in the attended task. Here we identify task-relevance, and in particular identity-relevance, as a potentially important factor in explaining prior inconsistencies. In four experiments, we tested whether perceptual load in an attended letter or word task modulates the processing of famous face distractors, while varying their task-relevance. Distractor interference effects on task RTs was reduced by perceptual load not only when the faces were entirely task-irrelevant, but also when the face gender was task relevant, within a name gender classification response-competition task, using famous female or male distractor faces. However, when the identity associated with the famous faces was primed by the task using their names, as in prior demonstrations that face distractors are immune to the effects of perceptual load, we were able to replicate these prior findings. Our findings demonstrate a role for identity-priming by the relevant task in determining attentional capture by faces under high perceptual load. Our results also highlight the importance of considering even relatively subtle forms of task-relevance in selective attention research.

Clinical safety of robenacoxib in cats with chronic musculoskeletal disease

Background

Evaluate the clinical safety of robenacoxib in cats with chronic musculoskeletal disease (CMSD).

Animals

Four hundred forty‐nine client‐owned cats with CMSD.

Methods

Pooled analysis of safety variables from 4 prospective randomized blinded clinical trials of robenacoxib (n = 222) versus placebo (n = 227), administered orally once daily for 4 to 12 weeks. Safety was evaluated from reported adverse events (AEs) and abnormalities detected on hematology and serum and urine chemistry analyses.

Results

The number of cats with at least 1 AE was not significantly different (P = .15) with robenacoxib (n = 106, 47.8%) compared to placebo (n = 93, 41.0%). The relative risk of at least 1 AE (incidence robenacoxib/placebo) was 1.15 (95% confidence interval 0.93‐1.43). There was no significant difference between groups in the number of clinical signs (range, 0‐9) per cat (P = .23). Serum creatinine concentrations were higher during robenacoxib administration compared to placebo (+4.36 μmol/L, 95% confidence interval 0.21‐8.50), but no related adverse clinical effects were detected. In the subgroup of 126 cats with evidence of chronic kidney disease, the relative risk of at least 1 AE (robenacoxib/placebo) was 1.09 (95% confidence interval 0.78‐1.52, P = .61).

Conclusions and Clinical Importance

Robenacoxib was not associated with increased risk of AEs compared to placebo when administered for 4 to 12 weeks to cats with CMSD. The generalizability of the results to general practice is limited by the fact that cases with severe and uncontrolled concomitant diseases were not included.

Field study to investigate the effectiveness and safety of a novel orally administered combination drug product containing milbemycin oxime and lotilaner (Credelio® Plus) against natural flea and tick infestations on dogs presented as veterinary patients in Europe

BACKGROUND

A pivotal randomised, blinded, positive-controlled, multicentre, European field study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of a novel combination tablet of lotilaner and milbemycin oxime (Credelio® Plus) administered orally to client-owned dogs naturally infested with fleas and/or ticks.

METHODS

In this field study, households with flea- or tick-infested dog(s) were enrolled on Day 0 into the study to provide data for either the tick or flea infestation cohorts. Households were randomised in a 2:1 ratio to receive either the combination investigational product (IP, Credelio Plus® tablets) or the control product (CP: Nexgard Spectra® tablets). Dogs were administered IP (flea cohort n = 135; tick cohort: n = 147) or CP (flea cohort: n = 67; tick cohort: n = 74) once every 4 weeks for a total of three times at a dose rate of 20.0-41.5 mg/kg bodyweight lotilaner and 0.75-1.53 mg/kg bodyweight milbemycin oxime (IP) or as recommended (CP). Percentage reduction was calculated by comparing individual dog flea and tick counts at each assessed post-treatment time point to their respective baseline (pre-treatment) infestation. Resolution of the clinical signs of flea allergy dermatitis (FAD) was assessed in flea-allergic dogs on the days that flea counts were performed.

RESULTS

Flea effectiveness of Credelio Plus® after 3 consecutive monthly treatments was 100% against Ctenocephalides felis, C. canis and Pulex irritans. Tick effectiveness of Credelio Plus® over the same time frame was 99.3% for Ixodes ricinus and 100% against Rhipicephalus sanguineus (s.l.). Flea effectiveness of the CP after three consecutive monthly treatments was 100% against C. felis, C. canis and P. irritans. Tick effectiveness of the CP over the same time frame was 99.8% for I. ricinus and 100% against R. sanguineus. Credelio Plus® was well tolerated based on the safety assessments in all treated dogs in this field study. Within both treatment groups there was a reduction in total FAD scores from baseline.

CONCLUSIONS

This pivotal European field study demonstrated the excellent effectiveness and safety of a combination of lotilaner and milbemycin oxime (Credelio Plus®) administered orally to dogs naturally infested with fleas and/or ticks.

Intact Goal-Driven Attentional Capture in Autistic Adults

BACKGROUND

Autistic individuals have been found to show increased distractibility by salient irrelevant information, yet reduced distractibility by information of personal motivational salience. Here we tested whether these prior discrepancies reflect differences in the automatic guidance of attention by top-down goals.

METHODS

Autistic (self-reported diagnoses, confirmed with scores on the Social Responsiveness Scale) and non-autistic adults, without intellectual disability (IQ > 80 on Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence), searched for a color-defined target object (e.g., red) among irrelevant color objects. Spatially uninformative cues, matching either the target color or a nontarget/irrelevant color, were presented prior to each display.

RESULTS

Replicating previous work, only target color cues reliably captured attention, delaying responses when invalidly versus validly predicting target location. Crucially, this capture was robust for both autistic and neurotypical participants, as confirmed by Bayesian analysis. Limitations: While well powered for our research questions, our sample size precluded investigation of the automatic guidance of attention in a diverse group of autistic people (e.g. those with a range of cognitive abilities).

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings imply that key mechanisms underlying the automatic implementation of top-down attentional goals are intact in autism, challenging theories of reduced top-down control.

Ingested but not perceived: Response to satiety cues disrupted by perceptual load

Selective attention research has shown that when perceptual demand is high, unattended sensory information is filtered out at early stages of processing. We investigated for the first time whether the sensory and nutrient cues associated with becoming full (satiety) would be filtered out in a similar manner. One-hundred and twenty participants consumed either a low-satiety (75 kcal) or high-satiety (272 kcal plus thicker texture) beverage, delivered via an intra-oral infusion device while participants simultaneously completed a task which was either low or high in perceptual demand. Among participants who performed the low perceptual load task, ingestion of the high-satiety beverage increased rated satiety and reduced consumption at a subsequent snack test. However, both effects were eliminated by the high perceptual load task. Therefore, the processing of satiety cues was dependent on the availability of attention, identifying a novel perceptual load mechanism of inattentive eating and supporting more recent cognitive models of appetite control.

Involving research participants in a pan-European research initiative: the EPAD participant panel experience

BACKGROUND

Including participants in patient and public involvement activities is increasingly acknowledged as a key pillar of successful research activity. Such activities can influence recruitment and retention, as well as researcher experience and contribute to decision making in research studies. However, there are few established methodologies of how to set up and manage participant involvement activities. Further, there is little discussion of how to do so when dealing with collaborative projects that run across countries and operate in multiple linguistic and regulatory contexts.

METHODS

In this paper we describe the set-up, running and experiences of the EPAD participant panel. The EPAD study was a pan-European cohort study with the aim to understand risks for developing Alzheimer's disease and build a readiness cohort for Phase 2 clinical trials. Due to the longitudinal nature of this study, combined with the enrolment of healthy volunteers and those with mild cognitive impairments, the EPAD team highlighted participant involvement as crucial to the success of this project. The EPAD project employed a nested model, with local panels meeting in England, France, Scotland, Spain and The Netherlands, and feeding into a central study panel. The local panels were governed by terms of reference which were adaptable to local needs.

RESULTS

The impact of the panels has been widespread, and varies from feedback on documentation, to supporting with design of media materials and representation of the project at national and international meetings.

CONCLUSIONS

The EPAD panels have contributed to the success of the project and the model established is easily transferable to other disease areas investigating healthy or at-risk populations.

Multisensory enhancement of attention depends on whether you are already paying attention

Multisensory stimuli are argued to capture attention more effectively than unisensory stimuli due to their ability to elicit a super-additive neuronal response. However, behavioural evidence for enhanced multisensory attentional capture is mixed. Furthermore, the notion of multisensory enhancement of attention conflicts with findings suggesting that multisensory integration may itself be dependent upon top-down attention. The present research resolves this discrepancy by examining how both endogenous attentional settings and the availability of attentional capacity modulate capture by multisensory stimuli. Across a series of four studies, two measures of attentional capture were used which vary in their reliance on endogenous attention: facilitation and distraction. Perceptual load was additionally manipulated to determine whether multisensory stimuli are still able to capture attention when attention is occupied by a demanding primary task. Multisensory stimuli presented as search targets were consistently detected faster than unisensory stimuli regardless of perceptual load, although they are nevertheless subject to load modulation. In contrast, task irrelevant multisensory stimuli did not cause greater distraction than unisensory stimuli, suggesting that the enhanced attentional status of multisensory stimuli may be mediated by the availability of endogenous attention. Implications for multisensory alerts in practical settings such as driving and aviation are discussed, namely that these may be advantageous during demanding tasks, but may be less suitable to signaling unexpected events.

Community bioirrigation potential (BIPc), an index to quantify the potential for solute exchange at the sediment-water interface

BIOIRRIGATION: the animal-induced exchange of solutes between pore water and overlying water - is a key process in sediments with profound implications for biogeochemical processes such as nutrient cycling and organic matter regeneration at the sediment water interface. There is an urgent need to understand how a changing environment will affect the irrigation activity of macrofauna and vice versa. A shift in species composition (e.g. from deep burrowing species to smaller, more opportunistic and shallow burrowing species) will have large effects on bioirrigation and thus on ecosystem function (such as benthic pelagic coupling). Considering the difficulties to determine area-covering rates of bioirrigation (e.g. in terms tracer-based fluxes) and the complexity of interactions of multiple species in the community that prohibit a direct measure of bioirrigation attributable to each species, a mechanistically-based approach is needed to predict relative intensities of bioirrigation activity based on the fundamental functional traits. We propose a conceptual framework to develop an index of bioirrigation that takes into account the biological mechanisms of bioirrigation and provides a simplified, yet functionally based approach to quantify the bioirrigation potential of benthic communities. We developed the community bioirrigation potential (BIP_c) that provides a biomass- and abundance-weighted scoring system considering functional traits related to pore water and solute exchange. It may be used as a supplement to established methods to assess the function of marine soft sediments related bioirrigation. In analogy to the particle-related community bioturbation potential of Solan et al. (2004), context dependent organismal traits that affect ventilation and bioirrigation (feeding type, morphology of burrows, and burrowing depth) are combined with the data on abundance and biomass of the respective species. These are subsequently summed up to a community bioirrigation potential (BIP_c). This review considers ecological traits relevant for bioirrigation and their classification into a bioirrigation index. Furthermore the necessary simplifications in the index (e.g. limiting its applicability to interfacial nutrient fluxes) are discussed. We also provide a working example from the southwestern Baltic Sea to illustrate the practical application of the index and a compilation of key species related to this area containing their classification into the considered bioirrigation traits.

Goal-driven attentional capture by appetitive and aversive smoking-related cues in nicotine-dependent smokers

BACKGROUND

Conventionally, involuntary attentional capture by tobacco cues in smokers are seen as an implicit bias, operating independently of current search goals. Prominent attention research, however, has suggested that search goals can induce an involuntary attentional capture. In the current investigation, we tested whether appetitive and aversive smoking images affected attention through such a mechanism and whether there were group differences based on nicotine dependence.

METHODS

We instructed non-smokers (NS), occasional smokers (OS; low dependence), and nicotine-dependent smokers (NDS; moderate-high dependence), to hold search goals for either an aversive or appetitive smoking category, or a category of non-smoking images. These images were presented in a stream of briefly appearing filler images, while task-irrelevant distractors were presented outside the stream. Distractors could be aversive or appetitive smoking images or a category of non-smoking images. Therefore, in some conditions, the distractors matched the current category being searched for, while in others it was incongruent.

RESULTS

Task-irrelevant smoking distractors reduced target detection, compared to the non-smoking distractors, only when they were congruent with the specific category being searched for. There was no effect of either aversive or appetitive smoking distractors on performance when participants were searching for the non-smoking targets. Distractor interference did not differ between smokers and non-smokers.

CONCLUSIONS

The results support a goal-driven mechanism underpinning involuntary attentional capture by smoking cues. These findings can be used to inform models of addiction and attention, and the display of health warnings.

"What Smell?" Temporarily Loading Visual Attention Induces a Prolonged Loss of Olfactory Awareness

The human sense of smell is highly sensitive, often conveying important biological signals. Yet anecdotal evidence suggests that we commonly fail to notice suprathreshold environmental olfactory stimuli. The determinants of olfactory awareness are, as yet, unknown. Here, we adapted the inattentional-blindness paradigm to test whether olfactory awareness is dependent on attention. Across three experiments, participants performed a visual search task with either a high or low perceptual load (a well-established attentional manipulation) while exposed to an ambient coffee aroma. Consistent with our hypothesis, results showed that task load modulated olfactory awareness: 42.5% fewer participants in the high- than in the low-load condition reported noticing the coffee aroma. Our final experiment demonstrates that because of unique characteristics of olfactory habituation, the consequences of inattentional anosmia can persist even once attention becomes available. These findings establish the phenomenon of inattentional anosmia and have applied implications for predicting when people may miss potentially important olfactory information.

Evaluation of a fixed-dose combination of benazepril and pimobendan in dogs with congestive heart failure: a randomized non-inferiority clinical trial

A fixed-dose combination tablet of benazepril and pimobendan (Fortekor Plus; Elanco Animal Health) was tested in dogs with congestive heart failure (CHF) caused by myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD) in a three-arm, masked, randomized, non-inferiority clinical trial in Japan. The test group (n = 34) received Fortekor Plus twice daily. Two control groups received registered formulations of benazepril (Fortekor; Elanco Animal Health) and pimobendan (Vetmedin; Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica) with administration of Vetmedin twice daily and Fortekor twice (Control I, n = 14) or once (Control II, n = 19) daily. Diuretics were used in 22 dogs (32.8%). Global clinical scores decreased significantly from baseline in all groups; there were no significant differences between groups, and non-inferiority of Fortekor Plus compared to Control I, Control II, and combined Control I + II groups was demonstrated. There were no significant differences between groups for relevant clinical chemistry and hematology variables or frequency of all adverse events. Frequency of emesis was significantly (p = 0.0042) lower in the Fortekor Plus (8.8%) group than in the Control I + II (39.4%) group. In conclusion, Fortekor Plus had non-inferior efficacy and was associated with significantly less emesis compared to Fortekor and Vetmedin in dogs with CHF caused by MMVD.

Putting attention in the spotlight: The influence of APOE genotype on visual search in mid adulthood

The Apolipoprotein E e4 allele is associated with greater cognitive decline with age, yet effects of this gene are also observed earlier in the lifespan. This research explores genotype differences (e2, e3, e4) in the allocation of visuospatial attention in mid-adulthood. Sixty-six volunteers, aged 45-55 years, completed two paradigms probing the active selection of information at the focus of attention (a dynamic scaling task) and perceptual capacity differences. Two methods of statistical comparison (parametric statistics, Bayesian inference) found no significant difference between e4 carriers and the homozygous e3 group on either the dynamic scaling or perceptual load task. E2 carriers, however, demonstrated less efficient visual search performance on the dynamic scaling task. The lack of an e4 difference in visuospatial attention, despite previous suggestion in the literature of genotype effects, indicates that select attentional processes are intact in e4 carriers in mid-adulthood. The association of e2 genotype with slower visual search performance complicates the premised protective effects of this allele in cognitive ageing.

Prefrontal cortex stimulation does not affect emotional bias, but may slow emotion identification

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has recently garnered attention as a putative depression treatment. However, the cognitive mechanisms by which it exerts an antidepressant effect are unclear: tDCS may directly alter 'hot' emotional processing biases, or alleviate depression through changes in 'cold' (non-emotional) cognitive function. Here, 75 healthy participants performed a facial emotion identification task during 20 minutes of anodal or sham tDCS over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) in a double-blind, within-subject crossover design. A subset of 31 participants additionally completed a task measuring attentional distraction during stimulation. Compared to sham stimulation, anodal tDCS of the left DLPFC resulted in an increase in response latency across all emotional conditions. Bayesian analysis showed definitively that tDCS exerted no emotion-dependent effect on behaviour. Thus, we demonstrate that anodal tDCS produces a general, rather than an emotion-specific, effect. We also report a preliminary finding in the subset of participants who completed the distractibility task: increased distractibility during active stimulation correlated significantly with the degree to which tDCS slowed emotion identification. Our results provide insight into the possible mechanisms by which DLPFC tDCS may treat symptoms of depression, suggesting that it may not alter emotional biases, but instead may affect 'cold' cognitive processes.

High Perceptual Load Makes Everybody Equal

Perceptual load has been found to be a powerful determinant of distractibility in laboratory tasks. The present study assessed how the effects of perceptual load on distractibility in the laboratory relate to individual differences in the likelihood of distractibility in daily life. Sixty-one subjects performed a response-competition task in which perceptual load was varied. As expected, individuals reporting high levels of distractibility (on the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire, an established measure of distractibility in daily life) experienced greater distractor interference than did individuals reporting low levels. The critical finding, however, was that this relationship was confined to task conditions of low perceptual load: High perceptual load reduced distractor interference for all subjects, eliminating any individual differences. These findings suggest that the level of perceptual load in a task can predict whether individual differences in distractibility will be found and that high-load modifications of daily tasks may prove useful in preventing unwanted consequences of high distractibility.

Establishing the Attention-Distractibility Trait

Failures to focus attention will affect any task engagement (e.g., at work, in the classroom, when driving). At the clinical end, distractibility is a diagnostic criterion of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In this study, we examined whether the inability to maintain attentional focus varies in the overall population in the form of an attention-distractibility trait. To test this idea, we administered an ADHD diagnostic tool to a sample of healthy participants and assessed the relationship between ADHD symptoms and task distraction. ADHD symptom summary scores were significantly positively associated with distractor interference in letter-search and name-classification tasks (as measured by reaction time), as long as the distractors were irrelevant (cartoon images) rather than relevant (i.e., compatible or incompatible with target names). Higher perceptual load during a task eliminated distraction irrespective of ADHD score. These findings suggest the existence of an attention-distractibility trait that confers vulnerability to irrelevant distraction, which can be remedied by increasing the level of perceptual load during the task.

The nature of affect attunement used by disability support workers interacting with adults with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities

BACKGROUND

The interactions experienced by adults with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD) with their disability support workers (DSWs) may have a large impact on life quality. However, defining good-quality interaction has presented challenges for this group. It has been suggested that in typically developing infant-mother dyads, the presence of affect attunement may be an indicator of quality. Affect attunement refers to the recasting of one person's affect by another with emphasis.

METHOD

The presence and nature of affect attunement in interactions between 21 pairs of adults with PIMD and their DSWs were explored in this study. Natural interactions were videorecorded for 21 pairs of adults with PIMD and their DSWs. The recordings were analysed for the presence and nature of affect attunement incidents, and analysed using descriptive statistics.

RESULTS

Affect attunement incidents were observed in 16 of the pairs. The DSW's attunement behaviour was in response to subtle, short duration behaviours of participants with PIMD.

CONCLUSION

These brief moments of connection may be a basis of good-quality interaction.

Moderate threat causes longer lasting disruption to processing in anxious individuals

Anxiety is associated with increased attentional capture by threat. Previous studies have used simultaneous or briefly separated (<1 s) presentation of threat distractors and target stimuli. Here, we tested the hypothesis that high trait anxious participants would show a longer time window within which distractors cause disruption to subsequent task processing, and that this would particularly be observed for stimuli of moderate or ambiguous threat value. A novel temporally separated emotional distractor task was used. Face or house distractors were presented for 250 ms at short (∼1.6 s) or long (∼3 s) intervals prior to a letter string comprising Xs or Ns. Trait anxiety was associated with slowed identification of letter strings presented at long intervals after face distractors with part surprise/part fear expressions. In other words, these distractors had an impact on high anxious individuals’ speed of target identification seconds after their offset. This was associated with increased activity in the fusiform gyrus and amygdala and reduced dorsal anterior cingulate recruitment. This pattern of activity may reflect impoverished recruitment of reactive control mechanisms to damp down stimulus-specific processing in subcortical and higher visual regions. These findings have implications for understanding how threat-related attentional biases in anxiety may lead to dysfunction in everyday settings where stimuli of moderate, potentially ambiguous, threat value such as those used here are fairly common, and where attentional disruption lasting several seconds may have a profound impact.

Plugging the attention deficit: perceptual load counters increased distraction in ADHD

OBJECTIVE

Increased vulnerability to extraneous distraction is a key symptom of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), which may have particularly disruptive consequences. Here we apply Load Theory of attention to increase understanding of this symptom, and to explore a potential method for ameliorating it. Previous research in nonclinical populations has highlighted increased perceptual load as a means of improving the ability to focus attention and avoid distraction. The present study examines whether adults with ADHD can also benefit from conditions of high perceptual load to improve their focused attention abilities.

METHOD

We tested adults with ADHD and age- and IQ-matched controls on a novel measure of irrelevant distraction under load, designed to parallel the form of distraction that is symptomatic of ADHD. During a letter search task, in which perceptual load was varied through search set size, participants were required to ignore salient yet entirely irrelevant distractors (colorful images of cartoon characters) presented infrequently (10% of trials).

RESULTS

The presence of these distractors produced a significantly greater interference effect on the search RTs for the adults with ADHD compared with controls, p = .005, ηp² = .231. Perceptual load, however, significantly reduced distractor interference for the ADHD group and was as effective in reducing the elevated distractor interference in ADHD as it was for controls.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings clarify the nature of the attention deficit underlying increased distraction in ADHD, and demonstrate a tangible method for overcoming it.

Resting state correlates of subdimensions of anxious affect

Resting state fMRI may help identify markers of risk for affective disorder. Given the comorbidity of anxiety and depressive disorders and the heterogeneity of these disorders as defined by DSM, an important challenge is to identify alterations in resting state brain connectivity uniquely associated with distinct profiles of negative affect. The current study aimed to address this by identifying differences in brain connectivity specifically linked to cognitive and physiological profiles of anxiety, controlling for depressed affect. We adopted a two-stage multivariate approach. Hierarchical clustering was used to independently identify dimensions of negative affective style and resting state brain networks. Combining the clustering results, we examined individual differences in resting state connectivity uniquely associated with subdimensions of anxious affect, controlling for depressed affect. Physiological and cognitive subdimensions of anxious affect were identified. Physiological anxiety was associated with widespread alterations in insula connectivity, including decreased connectivity between insula subregions and between the insula and other medial frontal and subcortical networks. This is consistent with the insula facilitating communication between medial frontal and subcortical regions to enable control of physiological affective states. Meanwhile, increased connectivity within a frontoparietal-posterior cingulate cortex-precunous network was specifically associated with cognitive anxiety, potentially reflecting increased spontaneous negative cognition (e.g., worry). These findings suggest that physiological and cognitive anxiety comprise subdimensions of anxiety-related affect and reveal associated alterations in brain connectivity.

Unraveling the anxious mind: anxiety, worry, and frontal engagement in sustained attention versus off-task processing

Much remains unknown regarding the relationship between anxiety, worry, sustained attention, and frontal function. Here, we addressed this using a sustained attention task adapted for functional magnetic resonance imaging. Participants responded to presentation of simple stimuli, withholding responses to an infrequent “No Go” stimulus. Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) activity to “Go” trials, and dorsal anterior cingulate (dACC) activity to “No Go” trials were associated with faster error-free performance; consistent with DLPFC and dACC facilitating proactive and reactive control, respectively. Trait anxiety was linked to reduced recruitment of these regions, slower error-free performance, and decreased frontal-thalamo-striatal connectivity. This indicates an association between trait anxiety and impoverished frontal control of attention, even when external distractors are absent. In task blocks where commission errors were made, greater DLPFC-precuneus and DLPFC-posterior cingulate connectivity were associated with both trait anxiety and worry, indicative of increased off-task thought. Notably, unlike trait anxiety, worry was not linked to reduced frontal-striatal-thalamo connectivity, impoverished frontal recruitment, or slowed responding during blocks without commission errors, contrary to accounts proposing a direct causal link between worry and impoverished attentional control. This leads us to propose a new model of the relationship between anxiety, worry and frontal engagement in attentional control versus off-task thought.

Distracted by your mind? Individual differences in distractibility predict mind wandering

Attention may be distracted from its intended focus both by stimuli in the external environment and by internally generated task-unrelated thoughts during mind wandering. However, previous attention research has focused almost exclusively on distraction by external stimuli, and the extent to which mind wandering relates to external distraction is as yet unclear. In the present study, the authors examined the relationship between individual differences in mind wandering and in the magnitude of distraction by either response-competing distractors or salient response-unrelated and task-irrelevant distractors. Self-reported susceptibility to mind wandering was found to positively correlate with task-irrelevant distraction but not with response-competition interference. These results reveal mind wandering as a manifestation of susceptibility to task-irrelevant distraction and establish a laboratory measure of general susceptibility to irrelevant distraction, including both internal and external sources.

Distraction and mind-wandering under load

Attention research over the last several decades has provided rich insights into the determinants of distraction, including distractor characteristics, task features, and individual differences. Load Theory represented a particularly important breakthrough, highlighting the critical role of the level and nature of task-load in determining both the efficiency of distractor rejection and the stage of processing at which this occurs. However, until recently studies of distraction were restricted to those measuring rather specific forms of distraction by external stimuli which I argue that, although intended to be irrelevant, were in fact task-relevant. In daily life, attention may be distracted by a wide range of stimuli, which may often be entirely unrelated to any task being performed, and may include not only external stimuli but also internally generated stimuli such as task-unrelated thoughts. This review outlines recent research examining these more general, entirely task-irrelevant, forms of distraction within the framework of Load Theory. I discuss the relation between different forms of distraction, and the universality of load effects across different distractor types and individuals.

Noncanonical control of C. elegans germline apoptosis by the insulin/IGF-1 and Ras/MAPK signaling pathways

The insulin/IGF-1 pathway controls a number of physiological processes in the nematode worm Caenorhabditis elegans, including development, aging and stress response. We previously found that the Akt/PKB ortholog AKT-1 dampens the apoptotic response to genotoxic stress in the germline by negatively regulating the p53-like transcription factor CEP-1. Here, we report unexpected rearrangements to the insulin/IGF-1 pathway, whereby the insulin-like receptor DAF-2 and 3-phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase PDK-1 oppose AKT-1 to promote DNA damage-induced apoptosis. While DNA damage does not affect phosphorylation at the PDK-1 site Thr350/Thr308 of AKT-1, it increased phosphorylation at Ser517/Ser473. Although ablation of daf-2 or pdk-1 completely suppressed akt-1-dependent apoptosis, the transcriptional activation of CEP-1 was unaffected, suggesting that daf-2 and pdk-1 act independently or downstream of cep-1 and akt-1. Ablation of the akt-1 paralog akt-2 or the downstream target of the insulin/IGF-1 pathway daf-16 (a FOXO transcription factor) restored sensitivity to damage-induced apoptosis in daf-2 and pdk-1 mutants. In addition, daf-2 and pdk-1 mutants have reduced levels of phospho-MPK-1/ERK in their germ cells, indicating that the insulin/IGF-1 pathway promotes Ras signaling in the germline. Ablation of the Ras effector gla-3, a negative regulator of mpk-1, restored sensitivity to apoptosis in daf-2 mutants, suggesting that gla-3 acts downstream of daf-2. In addition, the hypersensitivity of let-60/Ras gain-of-function mutants to damage-induced apoptosis was suppressed to wild-type levels by ablation of daf-2. Thus, insulin/IGF-1 signaling selectively engages AKT-2/DAF-16 to promote DNA damage-induced germ cell apoptosis downstream of CEP-1 through the Ras pathway.

Stable low-fouling plasma polymer coatings on polydimethylsiloxane

Polydimethylsiloxane (DMS) is a popular material for microfluidics, but it is hydrophobic and is prone to non-specific protein adsorption. In this study, we explore methods for producing stable, protein resistant, tetraglyme plasma polymer coatings on PDMS by combining extended baking processes with multiple plasma polymer coating steps. We demonstrate that by using this approach, it is possible to produce a plasma polymer coatings that resist protein adsorption (<10 ng/cm(2)) and are stable to storage over at least 100 days. This methodology can translate to any plasma polymer system, enabling the introduction of a wide range of surface functionalities on PDMS surfaces.

Behavioural and emotional problems in people with severe and profound intellectual disability

BACKGROUND

People with severe and profound levels of intellectual disability (ID) are frequently examined as a single group in research. However, these two groups may be significantly different, particularly in the area of emotional and behavioural difficulties.

METHOD

The Developmental Behaviour Checklist (DBC) was completed by parents and caregivers of 107 people with severe ID and 22 people with profound ID at four time periods across 12 years. Regression analyses were used to examine trends in sub-scale scores across time and groups.

RESULTS

Significant differences between the groups of people with severe and profound ID were found. People with profound ID had significantly lower scores across all sub-scales except Social Relating. This was usually related to fewer items being selected as present for people with profound ID, as opposed to the scores being attributable to lower item severity scores.

CONCLUSIONS

There are significant differences between groups of people with severe and profound ID in scores on the DBC, indicating differences in behavioural and emotional problems. Caution should be exercised by researchers treating these two disparate groups as a single group, and by practitioners translating such findings into practice.

Failures to ignore entirely irrelevant distractors: the role of load

In daily life (e.g., in the work environment) people are often distracted by stimuli that are clearly irrelevant to the current task and should be ignored. In contrast, much applied distraction research has focused on task interruptions by information that requires a response and therefore cannot be ignored. Moreover, the most commonly used laboratory measures of distractibility (e.g., in the response-competition and attentional-capture paradigms), typically involve distractors that are task relevant (e.g., through response associations or location). A series of experiments assessed interference effects from stimuli that are entirely unrelated to the current task, comparing the effects of perceptual load on task-irrelevant and task-relevant (response competing) distractors. The results showed that an entirely irrelevant distractor can interfere with task performance to the same extent as a response-competing distractor and that, as with other types of distractors, the interfering effects of the irrelevant distractors can be eliminated with high perceptual load in the relevant task. These findings establish a new laboratory measure of a form of distractibility common to everyday life and highlight load as an important determinant of such distractibility.

[Killing of cattle via electrical stunning]

For disease control in the case of epidemics killing of cattle via electrical stunning is a method of choice. The official veterinarian is responsible for monitoring the adhesion to animal welfare principles during electrical stunning and killing. This requires specialised knowledge and experience as the symptoms of effective stunning are quite variable in cattle. Signs of effective and ineffective stunning are described below. In addition to suitable technical equipment, restraint of the animals and correct use of the equipment, neurophysiological processes have to be considered. Calm handling of the animals avoiding stress is a prerequisite for ensuring animal welfare and minimising pain especially when killing cattle using electrical methods.

Large outbreak of infection with Escherichia coli O157 PT21/28 in Eccleston, Lancashire, due to cross contamination at a butcher's counter

An outbreak of infection with Escherichia coli O157 Phage Type 21/28 occurred between the 23rd November 2001 and the 7th December 2001 in Eccleston, Lancashire. There were 30 confirmed cases (23 with positive faecal isolates and seven serologically positive). Eccleston is a village of approximately 5,000 inhabitants with a single medical practice where many of the cases were patients. Initial investigations identified the suspected source as a butcher's counter, operated as a franchise, in a supermarket in Eccleston. The butcher closed voluntarily on the 24th November. The median age of cases was 60 with a mean of 56 and a range of 2-91 years. Of the 30 confirmed cases, 22 were admitted to hospital. Two patients developed serious complications but all 30 made a full recovery. Microbiological investigations confirmed the butcher's counter as the source of the outbreak. The epidemiological evidence implicated cooked meats and microbiological evidence confirmed that contamination had occurred between raw and cooked meats. The deficiencies in meat hygiene practice that were identified could have led to the cross contamination. This outbreak illustrates the risk associated with the handling of raw and cooked meats in the same shop. Complete physical separation of raw and cooked meat operations reduces the risk of such outbreaks.

Crickets in space: morphological, physiological and behavioral alterations induced by space flight and hypergravity

"Crickets in Space" was a Neurolab experiment by which the balance between genetic programs and the gravitational environment for the development of a gravity sensitive neuronal system was studied. The model character of crickets was justified by their external gravity receptors, identified position-sensitive interneurons (PSI) and gravity-related compensatory head response, and by the specific relation of this behavior to neuronal arousal systems activated by locomotion. These advantages allowed to study the impact of modified gravity on cellular processes in a complex organism. Eggs, 1st, 4th and 6th stage larvae of Acheta domesticus were used. Post-flight experiments revealed a low susceptibility of the behavior to micro- and hypergravity while the physiology of the PSI was significantly affected. Immunocytological investigations revealed a stage-dependent sensitivity of thoracic GABAergic motoneurons to 3 g-conditions concerning their soma sizes but not their topographical arrangement. The morphology of neuromuscular junctions was not affected by 3 g-hypergravity. Peptidergic neurons from cerebral sensorimotor centers revealed no significant modifications by microgravity (micro g). The contrary physiological and behavioral results indicate a facilitation of 1 g-readaptation originating from accessory gravity, proprioceptive and visual sense organs. Absence of anatomical modifications point to an effective time window of micro g or 3 g-expo-sure related to the period of neuronal proliferation. The analysis of basic mechanisms of how animals and man adapt to altered gravitational conditions will profit from a continuation of the project "Crickets in Space".

Crickets in space

"Crickets in Space" (CRISP) was a Neurolab experiment by which the balance between genetic programs and the gravitational environment for the development of a gravity sensitive neuronal system was studied. The model character of crickets was justified by their external gravity receptors, identified position-sensitive interneurons (PSI) and gravity-related compensatory head response, and by the specific relation of this behavior to neuronal activation systems. These advantages allowed us to study the impact of modified gravity on cellular processes in a complex organism. Eggs, 1st, 4th and 6th stage larvae of Acheta domesticus were used. Post-flight experiments revealed a low susceptibility of the behavior to microgravity and hypergravity (hg) while the physiology of the PSI was significantly affected. Immunocytological investigations revealed a stage-dependent sensitivity of thoracic GABAergic motoneurons to 3g-conditions concerning their soma sizes but not their topographical arrangement. Peptidergic neurons from cerebral sensorimotor centers revealed no significant modifications by microgravity. The contrary physiological and behavioral results indicate a facilitation of 1g-readaptation by accessory gravity. proprioceptive and visual sense organs. Absence of anatomical modifications point to an effective time window of microgravity or hg-exposure related to the period of neuronal proliferation. Grant numbers: 50WB9553-7.

Size of gastroesophageal varices: its behavior after the surgical treatment of portal hypertension

The size of gastroesophageal varices is one of the most important factors leading to hemorrhage related to portal hypertension. An endoscopic evaluation of the size of gastroesophageal varices before and after different operations for portal hypertension was performed in 73 patients with schistosomiasis, as part of a randomized trial: proximal splenorenal shunt (PSS n=24), distal splenorenal shunt (DSS n=24), and esophagogastric devascularization with splenectomy (EGDS n=25). The endoscopic evaluation was performed before and up to 10 years after the operations. Variceal size was graded according to Palmer's classification: grade 1 - up to 3 mm, grade 2 - from 3 to 6 mm, grade 3 - greater than 6 mm, and were analyzed in four anatomical locations: inferior, middle or superior third of the esophagus, and proximal stomach. The total number of points in the pre-operative grading minus the number of points in the post-operative grading gave a differential grading, allowing statistical comparison among the surgical groups. Good results, in terms of disappearance or decrease of variceal size, were observed more frequently after PSS than after DSS or EGDS - 95.8%, 83.3%, and 72%, respectively. When differential grading was analyzed, a statistically significant difference was observed between PSS and EGDS, but not between proximal and distal splenorenal shunts. In conclusion, shunt surgeries were more efficient than devascularization in diminishing variceal size.