Less structured movement patterns predict severity of positive syndrome, excitement, and disorganization

Disorganized behavior is a key symptom of schizophrenia. The objective assessment of disorganized behavior is particularly challenging. Actigraphy has enabled the objective assessment of motor behavior in various settings. Reduced motor activity was associated with negative syndrome scores, but simple motor activity analyses were not informative on other symptom dimensions. The analysis of movement patterns, however, could be more informative for assessing schizophrenia symptom dimensions. Here, we use time series analyses on actigraphic data of 100 schizophrenia spectrum disorder patients. Actigraphy recording intervals were set at 2 s. Data from 2 defined 60-min periods were analyzed, and partial autocorrelations of the actigraphy time series indicated predictability of movements in each individual. Increased positive syndrome scores were associated with reduced predictability of movements but not with the overall amount of movement. Negative syndrome scores were associated with low activity levels but unrelated with predictability of movement. The factors disorganization and excitement were related to movement predictability but emotional distress was not. Thus, the predictability of objectively assessed motor behavior may be a marker of positive symptoms and disorganized behavior. This behavior could become relevant for translational research.

Disorganization and timing of motor behavior : insight from gesture impairments and movement patterns in schizophrenia

Background: Motor symptoms are frequent phenomena across the entire course of schizophrenia1. Some have argued that disorganized behavior was associated with aberrant motor behavior. We have studied the association of motor disturbances and disorganization in two projects focusing on the timing of movements. Method: In two studies, we assessed motor behavior and psychopathology. The first study applied a validated test of upper limb apraxia in 30 schizophrenia patients2,3. We used standardized video assessments of hand gestures by a blinded rater. The second study tested the stability of movement patterns using time series analysis in actigraphy data of 100 schizophrenia patients4. Both stability of movement patterns and the overall amount of movement were calculated from data of two hours with high degrees of social interaction comparable across the 100 subjects. Results: In total, 67% of the patients had gesture performance deficits3. Most frequently, they made spatial, temporal and body-part-as-object errors. Gesture performance relied on frontal lobe function2. Poor gesture performance was associated with increased disorganization scores. In the second study, we found disorganization to be predicted only by more irregular movement patterns irrespective of the overall amount of movement4. Conclusion : Both studies provide evidence for a link between aberrant timing of motor behavior and disorganization. Disturbed movement control seems critical for disorganized behavior in schizophrenia.

Post-Depositional Movement of Methanesulphonic Acid at Law Dome, Antarctica, and the Influence of Accumulation Rate

A series of ice cores from sites with different snow-accumulation rates across Law Dome, East Antarctica, was investigated for methanesulphonic acid (MSA) movement. The precipitation at these sites (up to 35 km apart) is influenced by the same air masses, the principal difference being the accumulation rate. At the low-accumulation-rate W20k site (0.17 in ice equivalent), MSA was completely relocated from the summer to winter layer. Moderate movement was observed at the intermediate-accumulation-rate site (0.7 in ice equivalent), Dome Summit South (DSS), while there was no evidence of movement at the high-accumulation-rate DE08 site (1.4 in ice equivalent). The main DSS record of MSA covered the epoch AD 1727-2000 and was used to investigate temporal post-depositional changes. Co-deposition of MSA and sea-salt ions was observed of the surface layers, outside of the main summer MSA peak, which complicates interpretation of these peaks as evidence of movement in deeper layers. A seasonal study of the 273 year DSS record revealed MSA migration predominantly from summer into autumn (in the up-core direction), but this migration was suppressed during the Tambora (1815) and unknown (1809) volcanic eruption period, and enhanced during an epoch (1770-1800) with high summer nitrate levels. A complex interaction between the gradients in nss-sulphate, nitrate and sea salts (which are influenced by accumulation rate) is believed to control the rate and extent of movement of MSA.

Head movement synchrony in social interactions of patients with schizophrenia indicates symptoms, cognition and social functioning

Background: Disturbed interpersonal communication is a core problem in schizophrenia. Patients with schizophrenia often appear disconnected and "out of sync" when interacting with others. This may involve perception, cognition, motor behavior, and nonverbal expressiveness. Although well-known from clinical observation, mainstream research has neglected this area. Corresponding theoretical concepts, statistical methods, and assessment were missing. In recent research, however, it has been shown that objective, video-based measures of nonverbal behavior can be used to reliably quantify nonverbal behavior in schizophrenia. Newly developed algorithms allow for a calculation of movement synchrony. We found that the objective amount of movement of patients with schizophrenia during social interactions was closely related to the symptom profiles of these patients (Kupper et al., 2010). In addition and above the mere amount of movement, the degree of synchrony between patients and healthy interactants may be indicative of various problems in the domain of interpersonal communication and social cognition. Methods: Based on our earlier study, head movement synchrony was assessed objectively (using Motion Energy Analysis, MEA) in 378 brief, videotaped role-play scenes involving 27 stabilized outpatients diagnosed with paranoid-type schizophrenia. Results: Lower head movement synchrony was indicative of symptoms (negative symptoms, but also of conceptual disorganization and lack of insight), verbal memory, patients’ self-evaluation of competence, and social functioning. Many of these relationships remained significant even when corrected for the amount of movement of the patients. Conclusion: The results suggest that nonverbal synchrony may be an objective and sensitive indicator of the severity of symptoms, cognition and social functioning.

Climate-mediated movement of an avian hybrid zone

The interaction between sibling species that share a zone of contact is a multifaceted relationship affected by climate change [ 1, 2 ]. Between sibling species, interactions may occur at whole-organism (direct or indirect competition) or genomic (hybridization and introgression) levels [ 3–5 ]. Tracking hybrid zone movements can provide insights about influences of environmental change on species interactions [ 1 ]. Here, we explore the extent and mechanism of movement of the contact zone between black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) and Carolina chickadees (Poecile carolinensis) at whole-organism and genomic levels. We find strong evidence that winter temperatures limit the northern extent of P. carolinensis by demonstrating a current-day association between the range limit of this species and minimum winter temperatures. We further show that this temperature limitation has been consistent over time because we are able to accurately hindcast the previous northern range limit under earlier climate conditions. Using genomic data, we confirm northward movement of this contact zone over the past decade and highlight temporally consistent differential—but limited—geographic introgression of alleles. Our results provide an informative example of the influence of climate change on a contact zone between sibling species.

Video-based quantification of body movement indicates negative symptoms: a replication

Objective: In schizophrenia, abnormalities in nonverbal behaviors have always been considered as highly relevant. However, due to methodological limitations, nonverbal behavior was rarely quantified objectively. Recent methodological advances now allow a quantification of body movement from ordinary video recordings. We showed that patients’ objectively measured amount of movement in social role-play interactions was closely associated with their symptom profiles (Kupper, Ramseyer, Hoffmann, & Tschacher, Schizophrenia Research 2010). In the present study, a replication of these results in the context of semi-standardized PANSS (Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale) interviews was intended. Methods: 17 patients with schizophrenia were analyzed during the initial 15-min sequence of a videotaped PANSS interview using Motion Energy Analysis (MEA). The amount of patients’ movement was then correlated with their PANSS symptom scores. Results: Sizeable and significant correlations between negative symptoms and reduced movements (r = -.68, p<0.01) and reduced movement speed (r = -.80, p<0.001) were found. Moreover, cognitive symptoms were related to reduced movement speed (r = -.70, p<.01). Conclusion: Negative symptoms were reliably indicated by patients’ nonverbal behavior in psychopathology interviews. Hence, the main result of our earlier study, examining patients’ nonverbal behavior in role play tests, was replicated for the less structured interactions in psychopathological interviews. Results could encourage the use of MEA in a wide range of videotaped social interactions of patients with schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders.

Extracting more out of relocation data: building movement models as mixtures of random walks

We present a framework for fitting multiple random walks to animal movement paths consisting of ordered sets of step lengths and turning angles. Each step and turn is assigned to one of a number of random walks, each characteristic of a different behavioral state. Behavioral state assignments may be inferred purely from movement data or may include the habitat type in which the animals are located. Switching between different behavioral states may be modeled explicitly using a state transition matrix estimated directly from data, or switching probabilities may take into account the proximity of animals to landscape features. Model fitting is undertaken within a Bayesian framework using the WinBUGS software. These methods allow for identification of different movement states using several properties of observed paths and lead naturally to the formulation of movement models. Analysis of relocation data from elk released in east-central Ontario, Canada, suggests a biphasic movement behavior: elk are either in an "encamped" state in which step lengths are small and turning angles are high, or in an "exploratory" state, in which daily step lengths are several kilometers and turning angles are small. Animals encamp in open habitat (agricultural fields and opened forest), but the exploratory state is not associated with any particular habitat type.

Movement analysis in infancy may be useful for early diagnosis of autism

All of the 17 autistic children studied in the present paper showed disturbances of movement that with our methods could be detected clearly at the age of 4–6 months, and sometimes even at birth. We used the Eshkol–Wachman Movement Analysis System in combination with still-frame videodisc analysis to study videos obtained from parents of children who had been diagnosed as autistic by conventional methods, usually around 3 years old. The videos showed their behaviors when they were infants, long before they had been diagnosed as autistic. The movement disorders varied from child to child. Disturbances were revealed in the shape of the mouth and in some or all of the milestones of development, including, lying, righting, sitting, crawling, and walking. Our findings support the view that movement disturbances play an intrinsic part in the phenomenon of autism, that they are present at birth, and that they can be used to diagnose the presence of autism in the first few months of life. They indicate the need for the development of methods of therapy to be applied from the first few months of life in autism.

Information about movement direction obtained from synchronous activity of motor cortical neurons

Although neuronal synchronization has been shown to exist in primary motor cortex (MI), very little is known about its possible contribution to coding of movement. By using cross-correlation techniques from multi-neuron recordings in MI, we observed that activity of neurons commonly synchronized around the time of movement initiation. For some cell pairs, synchrony varied with direction in a manner not readily predicted by the firing of either neuron. Information theoretic analysis demonstrated quantitatively that synchrony provides information about movement direction beyond that expected by simple rate changes. Thus, MI neurons are not simply independent encoders of movement parameters but rather engage in mutual interactions that could potentially provide an additional coding dimension in cortex.

Systemic spread of an RNA insect virus in plants expressing plant viral movement protein genes

Flock house virus (FHV), a single-stranded RNA insect virus, has previously been reported to cross the kingdom barrier and replicate in barley protoplasts and in inoculated leaves of several plant species [Selling, B. H., Allison, R. F. & Kaesberg, P. (1990) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 87, 434–438]. There was no systemic movement of FHV in plants. We tested the ability of movement proteins (MPs) of plant viruses to provide movement functions and cause systemic spread of FHV in plants. We compared the growth of FHV in leaves of nontransgenic and transgenic plants expressing the MP of tobacco mosaic virus or red clover necrotic mosaic virus (RCNMV). Both MPs mobilized cell-to-cell and systemic movement of FHV in Nicotiana benthamiana plants. The yield of FHV was more than 100-fold higher in the inoculated leaves of transgenic plants than in the inoculated leaves of nontransgenic plants. In addition, FHV accumulated in the noninoculated upper leaves of both MP-transgenic plants. RCNMV MP was more efficient in mobilizing FHV to noninoculated upper leaves. We also report here that FHV replicates in inoculated leaves of six additional plant species: alfalfa, Arabidopsis, Brassica, cucumber, maize, and rice. Our results demonstrate that plant viral MPs cause cell-to-cell and long-distance movement of an animal virus in plants and offer approaches to the study of the evolution of viruses and mechanisms governing mRNA trafficking in plants as well as to the development of promising vectors for transient expression of foreign genes in plants.

Invasion of minor veins of tobacco leaves inoculated with tobacco mosaic virus mutants defective in phloem-dependent movement.

To fully understand vascular transport of plant viruses, the viral and host proteins, their structures and functions, and the specific vascular cells in which these factors function must be determined. We report here on the ability of various cDNA-derived coat protein (CP) mutants of tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) to invade vascular cells in minor veins of Nicotiana tabacum L. cv. Xanthi nn. The mutant viruses we studied, TMV CP-O, U1mCP15-17, and SNC015, respectively, encode a CP from a different tobamovirus (i.e., from odontoglossum ringspot virus) resulting in the formation of non-native capsids, a mutant CP that accumulates in aggregates but does not encapsidate the viral RNA, or no CP. TMV CP-O is impaired in phloem-dependent movement, whereas U1mCP15-17 and SNC015 do not accumulate by phloem-dependent movement. In developmentally-defined studies using immunocytochemical analyses we determined that all of these mutants invaded vascular parenchyma cells within minor veins in inoculated leaves. In addition, we determined that the CPs of TMV CP-O and U1mCP15-17 were present in companion (C) cells of minor veins in inoculated leaves, although more rarely than CP of wild-type virus. These results indicate that the movement of TMV into minor veins does not require the CP, and an encapsidation-competent CP is not required for, but may increase the efficiency of, movement into the conducting complex of the phloem (i.e., the C cell/sieve element complex). Also, a host factor(s) functions at or beyond the C cell/sieve element interface with other cells to allow efficient phloem-dependent accumulation of TMV CP-O.

The neck region of the myosin motor domain acts as a lever arm to generate movement.

The myosin head consists of a globular catalytic domain that binds actin and hydrolyzes ATP and a neck domain that consists of essential and regulatory light chains bound to a long alpha-helical portion of the heavy chain. The swinging neck-level model assumes that a swinging motion of the neck relative to the catalytic domain is the origin of movement. This model predicts that the step size, and consequently the sliding velocity, are linearly related to the length of the neck. We have tested this point by characterizing a series of mutant Dictyostelium myosins that have different neck lengths. The 2xELCBS mutant has an extra binding site for essential light chain. The delta RLCBS mutant myosin has an internal deletion that removes the regulatory light chain binding site. The delta BLCBS mutant lacks both light chain binding sites. Wild-type myosin and these mutant myosins were subjected to the sliding filament in vitro motility assay. As expected, mutants with shorter necks move slower than wild-type myosin in vitro. Most significantly, a mutant with a longer neck moves faster than the wild type, and the sliding velocities of these myosins are linearly related to the neck length, as predicted by the swinging neck-lever model. A simple extrapolation to zero speed predicts that the fulcrum point is in the vicinity of the SH1-SH2 region in the catalytic domain.

No Move without Free Movement: The EU-Swiss controversy over quotas for free movement of persons. CEPS Policy Brief No. 331, 23 April 2015

The focus of this Policy Brief is the Swiss referendum of 2014 against ‘mass immigration’ in Switzerland. It identifies the challenges that a quota on EU citizens’ free movement rights to Switzerland would pose to EU-Swiss relations, considering: i) the value of freedom of movement in the EU and its indivisibility from the internal market and other economic freedoms; ii) the specificity of the EU legal system following the Lisbon Treaty that established democratic and judicial accountability mechanisms; iii) the lack of supranational judicial oversight of the EU-Switzerland agreements framework; and iv) the existence of the so-called guillotine mechanism, according to which the termination of the Free Movement Agreement would entail the automatic termination of the other agreements with the EU. The authors set out a number of options and consider their implications for EU-Swiss relations.

Guidelines for filming digital camera video clips for the assessment of gait and movement disorders by teleneurology

Digital still cameras capable of filming short video clips are readily available, but the quality of these recordings for telemedicine has not been reported. We performed a blinded study using four commonly available digital cameras. A simulated patient with a hemiplegic gait pattern was filmed by the same videographer in an identical, brightly lit indoor setting. Six neurologists viewed the blinded video clips on their PC and comparisons were made between cameras, between video clips recorded with and without a tripod, and between video clips filmed on high- or low-quality settings. Use of a tripod had a smaller effect than expected, while images taken on a high-quality setting were strongly preferred to those taken on a low-quality setting. Although there was some variability in video quality between selected cameras, all were of sufficient quality to identify physical signs such as gait and tremor. Adequate-quality video clips of movement disorders can be produced with low-cost cameras and transmitted by email for teleneurology purposes.

Self-organization of Functioning Process of Expert System with the Use of Subject Domain Ontology

Optimization of design, creation, functioning and accompaniment processes of expert system is the important problem of artificial intelligence theory and decisions making methods techniques. In this paper the approach to its solving with the use of technology, being based on methodology of systems analysis, ontology of subject domain, principles and methods of self-organisation, is offered. The aspects of such approach realization, being based on construction of accordance between the ontology hierarchical structure and sequence of questions in automated systems for examination, are expounded.