NEUROPSYCHOLOGY

Metabolic syndrome and mobility dysfunction in older adults with and without histories of traumatic brain injury: The mediating role of cognition
Fellin T, Paxton J, Thomas A and Torres-Harding S
Older adults are more susceptible than the general population to developing metabolic syndrome (i.e., three or more cardiovascular risk factors [MetS]), physical limitations, and traumatic brain injury (TBI). Recent research has demonstrated that cognition may moderate the negative association between MetS and mobility dysfunction in older adults. This study sought to determine if cognition mediates the relationship between MetS and mobility dysfunction and if this relationship differs in older adults with a history of TBI.
Affliction class moderates the dementing impact of adipokines
Royall DR and Palmer RF
Biomarker-specific interventions (e.g., for dementia) will necessitate an individualized approach to treatment. We have constructed a psychometric classifier to identify persons adversely impacted by plasma adipokines.
Rapid instructed task learning is impaired after stroke and associated with impairments in prepotent inhibition and processing speed
Binyamin-Netser R, Shkedy-Rabani A and Shmuelof L
Motor rehabilitation is a central contributor to motor recovery after stroke. Rehabilitation could be hampered by stroke-associated cognitive impairments such as the decreased ability to follow instructions. Rapid instructed task learning (RITL) was never directly studied in older adults and subjects with stroke. The aim of this study was to assess RITL following stroke and its underlying cognitive determinants.
Capturing cognitive capacity in the everyday environment across a continuum of cognitive decline using a smartwatch n-back task and ecological momentary assessment
Schmitter-Edgecombe M, Luna C, Beech B, Dai S and Cook DJ
Cognitive testing using mobile technologies can assist with early detection of cognitive decline. We use ecological momentary assessment to investigate the feasibility, reliability, and validity of a smartwatch n-back task (1-back) delivered to adults across the cognitive continuum.
Electrophysiological evidence of nonspatial inhibition of return affecting audiovisual integration
Wang X, Tang X, Wang A and Zhang M
The present study endeavored to investigate the potential neural underpinnings of disparities in audiovisual integration (AVI) between valid and invalid targets, modulated by nonspatial inhibition of return (IOR). Concurrently, we sought to delineate the distinct roles subserved by Chinese character primes and color block primes throughout this process.
Pediatric cognitive reserve moderates the effect of brain structure in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: Evidence for an optimized residual approach
Irani ZA, Sheridan AMC, Anderson V, Silk TJ, Weinborn M and Gavett BE
To validate a residual-based cognitive reserve (CR) index optimized for a pediatric sample with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Dimensional attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms and executive functioning in adolescence: A multi-informant, population-based twin study
Ketvel L, Vuoksimaa E, Pulkkinen L, Rose RJ, Vedenkannas U, Rapeli P, Raevuori A and Latvala A
To investigate associations of executive function (EF) performance in adolescence with dimensional symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity assessed by multiple informants as well as ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder) symptoms based on the criteria, and whether familial factors and co-occurring symptoms of depressive disorder and conduct disorder explain these associations in a population-based sample.
Corpus callosum structure and auditory interhemispheric transfer in spina bifida myelomeningocele
Bradley KA, Juranek JJ, Hannay HJ, Cirino PT, Kramer LA and Fletcher JM
Maldevelopment of the posterior corpus callosum is common in spina bifida myelomeningocele (SBM) due to hydrocephalus-related hypoplasia and congenital partial hypogenesis. This study examined the relations of macro- and microstructural integrity of the interhemispheric temporal tract in SBM and auditory interhemispheric transfer using consonant-vowel dichotic listening.
Is hyperactivity in children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) a functional response to demands on specific executive functions or cognitive demands in general?
Soto EF, Black K and Kofler MJ
Hyperactivity is a core and impairing deficit in the clinical model of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, the extent to which hyperactivity in ADHD is evoked by cognitively challenging tasks in general or by demands on specific executive functions remains unclear.
Executive function is associated with the development of math performance in children born at <30 weeks' gestation or <1250 g birthweight
Collins SE, Burnett AC, Pyman P, Mainzer RM, Pascoe L, Haebich KM, Cheong JLY, Doyle LW, Thompson DK and Anderson PJ
To describe associations between executive function (EF) domains (attentional control, information processing, cognitive flexibility, and goal setting) and concurrent math computation performance at age 7 and 13 years in children born <30 weeks' gestation or weighing <1,250 g, and second, to examine the impact of 7-year EF on math performance at 13 years.
Sociodemographic predictors and cross-cultural comparisons in tests performance from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Testing Automated Battery (CANTAB) among children aged 6-8 years from Montevideo, Uruguay
Rodriguez D, Queirolo EI, Kordas K, Costa-Ball D and Barg G
Cross-culturally comparative data on measures of executive function (EF) are essential, but the 6-8-year group remains insufficiently described. This study examined the sociodemographic predictors of EF test performance employing the Cambridge Neuropsychological Testing Automated Battery (CANTAB). It also compared developmental trends in EF among children from Uruguay, the United States, and Mexico.
Getting oriented: Redefining attention deficits in Parkinson's disease
Peleg O, Soret R, Charras P, Peysakhovich V, Mirelman A, Maidan I and Levy DA
Parkinson's disease (PD) may affect not only motor functions, but also cognitive processes such as attention. While past research has examined PD impact on spatial attention, it has not addressed how the key functions of attentional orienting and alerting in PD are mediated by cueing format, an ecologically relevant parameter. We assessed how exogenous and endogenous orienting cue modes affect PD patients' visuospatial attention expressed as dorsal attention network orienting benefits, ventral attention network reorienting costs, and alerting abilities.
Association between social networks and cognition among middle-aged and older adults in rural India
Rai P and Sundarakumar JS
Prior studies using global cognitive measures have shown that social connectedness is linked with cognitive performance. We investigate the role of different social network dimensions on performance across distinct cognitive domains among dementia-free middle-aged and older rural Indians.
Negative global metacognitive biases are associated with depressive and posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and improve with targeted or game-based cognitive training
Agnoli S, Mahncke H, Grant SJ, Goodman ZT, Milberg WP, Esterman M and DeGutis J
Metacognition is disrupted in several clinical populations. One aspect of metacognition, global metacognitive bias (difference between objective and self-reported abilities), has shown to be particularly relevant to clinical functioning. However, previous studies of global metacognitive biases in populations with elevated depressive/posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms have not measured objective and self-reported abilities relative to normative samples, limiting the quantification of biases. Additionally, few studies have examined whether cognitive interventions can improve metacognitive biases or how this relates to depressive/PTSD symptom severity.
Cognitive dispersion and its functional relevance in behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia and prodromal behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia
Webber TA, Woods SP, Lorkiewicz SA, Yazbeck HW, Schultz ER and Kiselica AM
Executive dysfunction is characteristic of behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) but can be challenging to detect. Dispersion-based intraindividual variability (IIV-d) is hypothesized to reflect a sensitive index of executive dysfunction and has demonstrated relevance to functional decline but has not been evaluated in bvFTD.
The association of sociodemographic factors with total and item-level semantic fluency metrics
Beran M, Twait EL, Smit AP, Posthuma MF, van Dijk D, Rabanal KM, Rosado D, Flores RJ, Qian CL, Samuel SS, Ying G, Mayeux R, van Sloten TT, Schram MT, Manly JJ, Geerlings MI and Vonk JMJ
We aimed to estimate the association of age, education, and sex/gender with semantic fluency performance as measured by the standard total number of words as well as novel item-level metrics and to descriptively compare associations across cohorts with different recruitment strategies and sample compositions.
Nonpharmacological treatment for older adults with mild cognitive impairment: Considerations for culturally informed clinical practice and research
Azar M, Stelmokas J, Stringer A and Arias F
Numerous nonpharmacological treatments (NPTs) have been developed for older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Two forms of cognition-focused NPTs, cognitive rehabilitation (CR) and cognitive training (CT), demonstrate cognitive benefit, but limitations remain regarding the contribution of cultural and demographic factors to study outcome heterogeneity, generalizability to diverse populations, and feasibility. This article aimed to review demographic and culturally informed NPTs and provides recommendations for culturally informed clinical practice and research.
The effect of aging on the dual-route model of emotion processing applied to memory recognition
Prete G, Palumbo R, Ceccato I, Di Crosta A, La Malva P, Sforza V, Laeng B, Tommasi L, Di Domenico A and Mammarella N
Emotional faces are automatically processed in the human brain through a cortical route (conscious processing based on high spatial frequencies, HSF) and a subcortical route (subliminal processing based on low spatial frequencies, LSF). How each route contributes to emotional face recognition is still debated, and little is known about this process in aging.
The role of working memory and organizational skills in academic functioning for children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
Cole AM, Chan ESM, Gaye F, Harmon SL and Kofler MJ
Children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) exhibit difficulties with organizational skills such as task planning, managing materials, and organizing activities that have downstream consequences on academic functioning. At the same time, deficits in working memory have been linked with both the organizational skills difficulties and academic underachievement and underperformance observed in children with ADHD and have been hypothesized to account for the link between organizational and academic functioning. However, the extent to which working memory and organizational skills independently versus jointly contribute to ADHD-related academic difficulties remains unclear.
Disparate trajectories of cognitive aging among American Indian and Alaskan Native people with and without HIV
Savin MJ, Byrd D, Cysique L, Rourke S, Verney SP, Radford K, Judd T, Aghvinian M, Crook C, Oleas D, Slaughter A, Armenta R, Franklin D, Marcotte T, Cham H and Rivera Mindt M
This study describes trajectories of cognitive aging among American Indian/Alaskan Native (AI/AN) adults with and without HIV and the role of immunosenescence longitudinally.
Executive functioning in posttraumatic stress disorder: Understanding how inhibition, switching, and test modality affect reaction times
Swick D, Lwi SJ, Larsen J and Ashley V
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been linked to deficits in executive functioning, but the literature suggests these associations are inconsistent. Results vary depending on the task used, test modality, and the specific subdomain being measured, such as inhibitory control (interference resolution, response inhibition) or set shifting (task switching, rule switching). Notably, deficits are more consistently observed in computerized tasks that measure precise reaction times (RTs) than in classic paper-and-pencil measures, but few studies have parsed specific executive functioning deficits in PTSD using detailed analyses of RT data.