Neuroscience Research Notes

Investigating the relationship between infertility and depression in women

2022-08-11T11:23:41+08:00

Depression plays a clear and undeniable role in infertility. In this study, we investigated the status of depression and the levels of fertility hormones in infertile women. One hundred infertile women and 50 fertile controls participated in this study. The serum levels of cortisol, anti-mullerian hormone (AMH), luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and inhibin B markers were measured using electro-quantitative luminescence and ELISA techniques. The results showed a significant difference between the case and control groups in terms of the serum levels of LH, FSH, and AMH (P-value˂ 0.05). Depression was significantly associated with AMH in infertile women (P-value = 0.049). AMH and FSH showed a significant difference between the two groups of depressed fertile and depressed infertile women (P-value = 0.005, P-value = 0.042, respectively). In addition, there was a significant difference between the two groups regarding depression status (P-value = 0.003). We concluded that depression might affect AMH, FSH levels, and infertility. As a result, examining all the important and relevant markers of infertility and paying attention to the psychological conditions of women are highly important. Thus, it is possible to prioritize these cases to improve couples' fertility.

Using Event-Related Potentials (ERP) to identify the purchase intention of a consumer for familiar brands

2022-08-23T12:20:05+08:00

Several neurological processes are undergoing on a conscious and subconscious level every time a consumer likes or dislikes a product. There is presently significant research in Consumer Neuroscience based on consumer behaviour and understanding of these processes. In this study, we have used Electroencephalography (EEG) and Event-Related Potentials (ERP) to capture consumer responses to highly familiar product images. EEG analysed from the 27 participants was used to extract P1, N1, P300, N400 and Late Posterior components. The analysis showed that the early ERP components viz., P1, N1 and P300 can differentiate between consumer liking and disliking of products. In contrast, the late ERP components N400 and Late Posterior components could not differentiate in the highly familiar product category. The results indicate that after continuous exposure, consumer preference towards highly-familiar products occurs as a part of automatic, unconscious mental processes irrespective of the product properties. Further research in this direction can test for the transference of consumer preference: from a conscious mental process to a subconscious mental process due to excessive and continuous product exposure and marketing repetition. Our study demonstrates that consumer behaviour in response to highly-familiar products can be classified using early ERP components only.

Brain regions involved in speech production, mechanism and development

2022-08-31T11:52:25+08:00

Speech might be one of the best inventions of human beings due to its critical communicative role in individuals' daily lives. Hence any study about it is valuable. To our knowledge, merely three studies focused on brain regions' associations with speech production were published more than eighteen years ago; furthermore, research on the brain areas associated with speech production is currently insufficient. The present review aims to provide information about all brain areas contributing to speech production to update the knowledge of brain areas related to speech production. The current study confirms earlier claims about activating some brain areas in the process; however, the previous studies were not comprehensive, and not all brain areas were mentioned. Three cerebral lobes are involved in the process, namely, the frontal, parietal and temporal lobes. The regions involved include the left superior parietal lobe, Wernicke's area, Heschl's gyri, primary auditory cortex, left posterior superior temporal gyrus (pSTG), Broca's area, and premotor cortex. In addition, regions of the lateral sulcus (anterior insula and posterior superior temporal sulcus), basal ganglia (putamen), and forebrain (thalamus) showed participation in the process. However, there was a different brain activation of overt and covert or silent speech (Broca's and Wernicke's areas). Moreover, mouth position and breathing style showed a difference in speech mechanism. In terms of speech development, the early postnatal years are important for speech development, as well as identifying three crucial stages of speech development: the pre-verbal stage, transition to active speech, and refinement of speech. In addition, during the early years of speech development, auditory and motor brain regions showed involvement in the process.

Effectiveness of dynamic neuromuscular stabilisation for improving trunk control in hemiplegic stroke: A scoping mini review

2022-07-12T13:23:50+08:00

Stroke is one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity in the adult population, resulting in significant cognitive and sensorimotor impairments affecting one-half of the body in most patients. The limitations that are attributed to trunk impairment affect the postural and respiratory functions due to either spasticity or weakness of trunk muscles, including the diaphragm. Physiotherapy is effective in interdisciplinary stroke management, with approaches utilising the principles of plasticity. This review focused on briefing the pathomechanical aspects of trunk impairment in hemiplegic stroke. The proposed mechanisms of Dynamic Neuromuscular Stabilization (DNS) as a treatment for hemiplegic stroke were analysed, and the existing research evidence for the efficacy of DNS in improving trunk control among stroke participants was critically reviewed. The findings substantiate the need for high-quality trials, emphasising study design, subset size, reflective outcomes, and regulated follow-ups.

Current status of post-traumatic brain injury rehabilitation care in LMI Southeast Asian Countries: A mini systematic review

2022-09-15T02:03:42+08:00

Low-to-middle income countries (LMICs) in Southeast Asia (SEA) had the highest global traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, post-TBI rehabilitation care may be limited in these countries, thereby contributing to the poorer quality of life (QoL) of patients with TBI. The present systematic review aimed to elucidate the current status of post-TBI rehabilitation care in the LMICs in the SEA region and to discuss the limitations that may hinder the advancement of TBI rehabilitation within this region. A literature search was carried out using five databases (PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and Scopus), and the final number of articles were selected according to the PRISMA guidelines. This review selected four relevant research articles from Malaysia and Thailand for critical appraisal. These articles showed that the status of post-TBI rehabilitation care in these regions remains unclear based on the scarcity of available literature. Only early rehabilitation care strategies have been discussed in the literature, such as individualised structured cognitive rehabilitation, utilisation of humanoid robots and the implementation of sensory stimulation programs. This review also suggested that TBI rehabilitation improvements may be hindered by a lack of government funding, unequal distribution of care services and reliance on traditional care. Thus, more research into TBI rehabilitation care is significantly needed within the SEA region to overcome these barriers, leading to the preservation of patients’ QoL.

Misophonia: Prevalence, impact and co-morbidity among Mysore University students in India - A survey

2022-07-05T09:46:44+08:00

Misophonia is a sound tolerance disorder in which certain sounds trigger an intensely emotional or physiological response caused by an increased autonomic nervous system reaction to the triggers. Misophonia is a relatively new condition, and the assessment and management of this condition are not known yet. The epidemiological data of misophonia in the Indian scenario is unknown, without which better planning evaluation and management is not possible. Hence, our study aims to determine the prevalence of misophonia and its impact and co-morbidity among Mysore university students in India. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 172 students of Mysore University between the age ranges of 18 to 30 years through an online survey mode. The Amsterdam Misophonia Questionnaire (A-MISO-S) and Misophonia Assessment Questionnaire (MAQ) have been used to find the prevalence and severity of misophonia. Statistical analyses were carried out using SPSS 25.0 software. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and a chi-square test to determine the variables' association. The prevalence of misophonia among Mysore university students has been documented. Almost 48.27% of participants reported misophonia symptoms, and 23.28% reported clinically significant misophonia. The result showed that misophonia could occur in isolation or with a co-morbid condition such as tinnitus and hyperacusis. Statistical analysis showed no association between gender and the occurrence of misophonia. Misophonia is a prevalent neurophysiological condition with a significant impact on the quality of life of the sufferers. This is the first study of this kind in an Indian scenario and can be a guiding tool for researchers to know about the prevalence of misophonia, its impact, and co-morbidity among the sufferers.