An entire year has passed since I have assumed. my post as the Neuropsychophysiology. Lab direction. I was anticipating a rather

Transcription

1 NEWSLETTER October 2014 Neuropsychophysiology Lab Editorial Editorial Year One Lab Presentations Lab Director Recent publications Conference presentations Travelling Around Ph.D. defenses Verão no campus An entire year has passed since I have assumed my post as the Neuropsychophysiology Lab direction. I was anticipating a rather challenging task ahead of me, since inheriting a strong lab with exciting group of researchers did not seem easy. However, despite even the status quo of scientific research in Portugal, our lab was able to get funding for post-doc, PhD and graduate students. Additionally, our lab productivity was heightened with an effortful and successful attempt to increase the quantity and impact factor of our scientific publications. In fact, currently, we have 15 published papers, 10 papers in press (some in collaboration with other labs) and one international chapter. Moreover, we had two completed PhDs and 2 more scheduled for the upcoming months. In terms of space, we enlarged our research area by getting an extra open space for researchers together with additional reorganization and reconstruction of our experimental rooms. However, we also had the loss of funding for two excellent researchers which is now mitigated with an outstanding assessment in the phase I of the government investigator-hiring program. As a final note, I think as a group, we have achieved scientific goals for this year and I feel I was able to achieve main objectives drawn for the lab. As I have mentioned before, this is due to the unconditional support and unwavering determination of our lab members in pursuing outstanding and ambitious deeds for the scientific development of our evergrowing international and interdisciplinary Neuropsychophysiology Lab. Visiting our lab

2 2 Lab Presentations The green-eyed monster and malicious joy: the neuroanatomical bases of envy and gloating (schadenfreude). Catarina Fernandes Ph.D. student Catarina presented an article of Simone G. Shamay-Tsoory, YasminTibi- Elhanany and Judith Aharon-Peretz on the neuroanatomical bases of envy and gloating. The article says that facing a protagonist s emotional mental state can trigger social emotions such as envy or gloating, which reflect one s assessment of the consequences of the other s fortune. The authors suggest that these social emotions are mediated by the mentalizing network and explore the notion that the understanding of social competitive emotions is particularly impaired in patients with ventromedial (VM) prefrontal lesions. Shamay-Tsoory and colleagues tested the ability of patients with localized lesions to understand fortune of others emotions: envy and gloating (schadenfreude). The article suggests that the mentalizing network including the VM has a fundamental role in mediating the understanding of competitive emotions such as envy and gloating. Are there structural differences in Williams Syndrome social brains? Dalila Teixeira Master student Dalila Teixeira presented her master thesis focused on structural aterations in social brain regions in Williams Syndrome (WS). Theory of Mind (ToM) is a crucial process of social cognition, that refers to the ability to make predictions about other people s actions based on their mental states, representing the basis of human social communication and interaction. The most relevant feature of WS patients is their high sociability, which has been implicated with specific neural signatures involving the posterior Superior Temporal Sulcus (psts), Temporo- Parietal Junction (TPJ) and subregions of Cingulate Cortex (CC). The main goal of this study was to investigate the presence of morphological aterations in the psts, TPJ and volumes of subregions of CC in WS. The authors found a reduced intracranial total volume and a reduced volumes in the left psts, left TPJ, Anterorostral and Anterodorsal in WS patients, compared with controls, which may be implicated in the reduced ability in processing the salient stimulus in social interactions

3 Lab Presentations Neuromodulating the interference process of concurrent learning of word lists: a transcranial direct current stimulation study. Sofia Faria presented her master thesis which aimed to evaluate the impact of bilateral temporal stimulation in memory consolidation, when applied during an interfering memory task, in comparison with a placebo condition. Sofia made a brief introduction on memory consolidation and tdcs, described the experimental protocol and presented the main results and conclusions of her project. Sofia Faria Master student Classification of WS patients using structural MRI (smri). Liliana presented a methodological approach to classify MRI data based on pattern recognition. To illustrate that, structural scans of Williams Syndrome patients and matched healthy controls were used. The methodology was applied using PRONTO software that allows the modulation of a function responsible for discriminating groups based on the brain scans. The method, resulting from an interaction between machine learning and neuroimaging analysis, has the main advantage of which being applied as an important complement to structural and functional MRI or DTI analysis. Liliana Maia Research assistant Principal Component Analysis: how does it work and what does it mean. João presented an overview of his Master thesis, aimed at developing an algorithm for the detection of heart murmurs through the analysis of heart sounds. Following a segmentation of the heart sounds, time, time-frequency, perceptual and chaos-based tools were used in a k-means classifier to detect the presence of murmurs. His present role at NERP group was also exposed as well as a theoretical approach to the use of PCA and its implications. PCA has been used by researchers to separate different components of a signal for some time but how does it work and what do the results really mean in an empirical sense? João Pedrosa Research assistant

4 4 Lab Presentations Time-frequency analysis of EEG/MEG data: an exemplified overview Diego Fernández Universidade de Santiago de Compostela Diego Fernández made a lecture on time frequency analysis of EEG signal. The lecture started by a brief overview on time frequency analysis of EEG data. Different measures and analyses with their potential uses were reviewed. In addition, some points to think about when designing a suitable experiment for EEG time-frequency analysis and other general advices were discussed. Finally, a brief exemplified tutorial was presented. This tutorial included a complete pipeline to carry out basic time-frequency analyses in Brain Vision Analyzer (2.0) and sloreta. The example is based on an experiment ran in Diego s laboratory, in which oscillatory activity from healthy young and old adults is compared during the maintenance of information in working memory, i.e. during the delay period in a delayed match to sample task. Diffusion Tensor Imaging Sónia Sousa Ph.D. student Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) is a quite recent imaging technique that allows the research on the field of cell s microstructure because of its sensitivity to the diffusion properties of water molecules. In this presentation, Sónia explored some aspects of the history and definition of the methodology, the applications and the underlying concept of water diffusion within biological tissues. A brief explanation about diffusion parameters (FA, MD, AD, RD) and the DTI pipeline, from Image acquisition to diffusion tensor calculation, ROI segmentation, tractography methods and extraction of DTI values was also presented. Finally, a reflection on the substrate we may extrapolate from DTI parameters to real brains and real life and its importance to clinical practice.

5 Recent publications 5 Coutinho, J. F., Gonçalves, O. F., Maia, L., Vasconcelos, C. F., Perrone-McGovern, K., Simon- Dack, S.,...& Sampaio, A. (2014) Differential activation of the default mode network in jet lagged individuals. Chronobiology International. doi: / Long-term exposure to transmeridian flights has been shown to impact cognitive functioning. Nevertheless, the immediate effects of jet lag in the activation of specific brain networks have not been investigated. We analyzed the impact of short-term jet lag on the activation of the default mode network (DMN). A group of individuals who were on a transmeridian flight and a control group went through a functional magnetic resonance imaging acquisition. Statistical analysis was performed to test for differences in the DMN activation between groups. Participants from the jet lag group presented decreased activation in the anterior nodes of the DMN, specifically in bilateral medial prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortex. No areas of increased activation were observed for the jet lag group. These results may be suggestive of a negative impact of jet lag on important cognitive functions such as introspection, emotional regulation and decision making in a few days after individuals arrive at their destination. Link: Pinheiro, A. P., Del Re, E., Nestor, P. G., Mezin, J., Rezaii, N., McCarley, R. W.,... & Niznikiewicz, M. (2014). Abnormal interactions between context, memory structure, and mood in schizophrenia: An ERP investigation. Psychophysiology. doi: /psyp This study used event-related potentials to examine interactions between mood, sentence context, and semantic memory structure in schizophrenia. Seventeen male chronic schizophrenia and 15 healthy control subjects read sentence pairs after positive, negative, or neutral mood induction. Sentences ended with expected words (EW), within-category violations (WCV), or between-category violations (BCV). Across all moods, patients showed sensitivity to context indexed by reduced N400 to EW relative to both WCV and BCV. However, they did not show sensitivity to the semantic memory structure. N400 abnormalities were particularly enhanced under a negative mood in schizophrenia. These findings suggest abnormal interactions between mood, context processing, and connections within semantic memory in schizophrenia, and a specific role of negative mood in modulating semantic processes in this disease. Link:

6 6 Conference Presentations 3rd Conference of the International Multiple Sclerosis Cognition Society Dr. Rosana Magalhães and Luciana Gomes, Ph.D. student, were present in the 3rd Conference of the International Multiple Sclerosis Cognition Society during the days 13th and 14th of June, 2014 in Barcelona, Spain. Experts from around the world gather to present new and interesting data regarding several topics in this area. Dr. Rosana Magalhães presented two posters. The poster about the Efficacy of a speed of processing cognitive intervention in Multiple Sclerosis: a single-blind RCT displayed results regarding the positive effects of a processing speed training in a small group of people with MS when compared to the group that received a psychoeducation program. The results of this study highlight the importance of developing cognitive interventions tailored for specific cognitive deficits for people with MS. The second poster presented preliminary data on the Altered Default- Mode Network (DMN) in Multiple Sclerosis. The goal was to compare a group of MS participants with healthy controls and inspect differences between cognitively impaired (CI) and preserved (CP) MS participants in a resting state acquisition. The clinical group displayed reduced connectivity in a frontal node of the DMN when compared with the healthy group. No significant differences were found between CP and CI groups. Luciana Gomes made an oral presentation entitled Default Mode Network (DMN): connectivity increase in patients with early stages of multiple sclerosis. This study investigated changes in functional connectivity in the default mode network (DMN) of patients in early stages of MS and found that those patients exhibited a significant increase of connectivity. These results might suggest a reorganization of compensatory mechanisms and also highlight the clinical relevance of assessing brain connectivity at rest in early stages of multiple sclerosis. Also, Luciana presented a poster entitled Multidisciplinary fatigue management program for people with multiple sclerosis. In this study the effect of a multidisciplinary face-to-face group based fatigue management program for patients with MS was evaluated. Results suggest a beneficial effect of the multidisciplinary fatigue management program, reducing the impact of fatigue on the participant s life.

7 Travelling Around 7 Ana Ganho at Presbiterian Mackenzie University, Brazil During August and September, Ana Ganho was in São Paulo, Brazil joining the VI International Neuromodulation Symposium and its interesting pre-symposium courses that took place at Presbiterian Mackenzie University. Also, along with Paulo Boggio, Director of the Social and Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory and Manish Asthana (Pos-Doc at the same lab), Ana Ganho, Professor Jorge Almeida from Coimbra University and Professor Óscar Gonçalves from our Lab, submitted the application for BIAL Bursaries for Scientific Research with the project Fear memory: a study using neuromodulation. The third goal for this period in Brazil was also succeeded and a second site of data collection for Ana s PhD studies at the Social and Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory was settled and the study is finally ready to start in both countries! Alberto Crego at Hospital das Clínicas, Brazil During the month of July, Alberto was in the laboratory of magnetic resonance in neuroradiology of the Institute of Radiology (Inrad) of the Hospital das Clínicas, associated with the Faculty of Medicine of the University of São Paulo (USP). The laboratory of magnetic resonance, led by the Professor Edson Amaro Jr, has a medical clinical staff and a multidisciplinary team of researchers, who carry out basic and clinical studies through the structural and functional MRI. The purpose of his stay was to collaborate in a research project coordinated by Prof. Adriana Sampaio ( Neural correlates of social cognition and language development in Williams Syndrome ), wherein he made some training in simultaneous EEG and fmri, particularly, data acquisition and multimodal analysis.

8 8 PhD Defences Miguel Soares, our collaborator, defended his PhD thesis in Life and Health Sciences Institute. Thesis: A Multimodal neuroimaging approach to interplay between stress and aging. The thesis examines the effects of stress on the afective and resting human brain and its interplay with mood during the healthy aging process. The author concluded that stress biases decision-making strategies accompanied by brain structural and functional reorganizations impacting on selective activation/ deactivation patterns of RSNs with concomitant volumetric atrophies. Along with mood, stress has also a critical influence, in brain structure and function during the lifespan. The study contributed to clarify combined stress and mood effects during aging decline, paving the way for interventional therapies that empower stress coping mechanisms in different phases of life. Verão no campus This year our lab received once again a group of enthusiastic high school students who were interested in getting in touch with lab s methodologies and daily routines. These sessions took place in July 21th and 22th. In the Neuroimaging lab section, students had the opportunity to simulate a resting state analysis in order to identify the Default Mode Network (DMN). They also did manual segmentations of the nucleus accumbens and a 3D reconstruction of the model they created. During the Neurophysioloy section, students were introduced to the Event-Related Potentials technique and and to the investigation being conducted on the Lab using that methodology. They had the opportunity to learn how to prepare a P300 experiment on Presentation software, how to do an ERP montage, how to analyze electrophysiological data and, finally, how to draw conclusions from the data.

9 Visiting our lab Prof Jean Decety visit our lab Sept 16th and 17th. Professor Jean Decety visit our lab Sept 16th and 17th. He worked as a consultant in the BIAL project Neural correlates of empathy in couples leaded by Joana Coutinho. Professor Decety also participated in our weekly lab meeting in which he was introduced to all the members of our team and presented us his lab and its main lines of research he and his team are working on at the moment. He also gave a lecture open to the entire school entitled: The Social Neuroscience of Empathy and Caring. Jean Decety is Irving Harris Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Chicago.

10 Lab Team Adriana Sampaio, PhD (Lab Director) Alberto Crego, PhD (Post-Doc) Agavnie Petrosyan, PhD (Researcher) Ana Ganho, MSc (PhD Student) Ana Mesquita, PhD (Researcher) Ana Pinheiro, PhD (Researcher) Ana Vigário, MSc Student Catarina Fernandes, MSc (PhD Student) Dalila Teixeira, MSc Student Fernando Macedo (Lab Technician) Helga Miguel, MSc (PhD Student) Jason Ridge, MSc (Research Scholar) João Pedrosa, MSc (Research Scholar) Joana Coutinho, PhD (Post-Doc) Jorge Alves, PhD (Collaborator) Jorge Leite, PhD (Post-Doc) Liliana Maia, MSc (Collaborator) Luciana Gomes, MSc (PhD Student) Marcelo Dias, MSc (Research Scholar) Margarida Vasconcelos, MSc (PhD Student) Marisa Faria, MSc Student Miguel Soares, MSc (Collaborator) Óscar Gonçalves, PhD (Co-Director) Patrícia Pereira, MSc Student Patrícia Oliveira-Silva, MSc (PhD Student) Paula Castiajo, MSc (PhD Student) Rosana Magalhães, PhD (Collaborator) Sandra Carvalho, PhD (Post-Doc) Sónia Sousa, MSc (PhD Student) Sara Cruz, MSc (PhD Student) Sofia Faria, MSc Student Soraia Lúcia, MSc Student Tatiana Magro, MSc (PhD Student) Teresa Silva, MSc (Collaborator) Vera Matos, MSc Student NEUROPSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY LAB School of Psychology, University of Minho Campus de Gualtar, Braga Portugal Phone: We already reach 1000 likes! Like us too!