The role of attention in multisensory integration processes

Report for the scientific sojourn at the University of Queensland, Australia, between June to October 2007. The integration of sensory information coming from different modalities is a subjectively effortless and automatic process. However, recent findings converge on the idea that there might be some limitations on how much multisensory information can our brains integrate at a given moment. The overall objective of this research visit was to expand and reinforce our current line of research addressing the role that attention plays on the mechanisms responsible for multisensory integration. There is also a critical review of the literature as well as a list of research questions of potential interest in the area of the neuropsychology of multisensory attention.

Genetic diversity and differentiation processes in the ploidy series of Olea europaea L.: a multiscale approach from subspecies to insular populations.

Geographical isolation and polyploidization are central concepts in plant evolution. The hierarchical organization of archipelagos in this study provides a framework for testing the evolutionary consequences for polyploid taxa and populations occurring in isolation. Using amplified fragment length polymorphism and simple sequence repeat markers, we determined the genetic diversity and differentiation patterns at three levels of geographical isolation in Olea europaea: mainland-archipelagos, islands within an archipelago, and populations within an island. At the subspecies scale, the hexaploid ssp. maroccana (southwest Morocco) exhibited higher genetic diversity than the insular counterparts. In contrast, the tetraploid ssp. cerasiformis (Madeira) displayed values similar to those obtained for the diploid ssp. guanchica (Canary Islands). Geographical isolation was associated with a high genetic differentiation at this scale. In the Canarian archipelago, the stepping-stone model of differentiation suggested in a previous study was partially supported. Within the western lineage, an east-to-west differentiation pattern was confirmed. Conversely, the easternmost populations were more related to the mainland ssp. europaea than to the western guanchica lineage. Genetic diversity across the Canarian archipelago was significantly correlated with the date of the last volcanic activity in the area/island where each population occurs. At the island scale, this pattern was not confirmed in older islands (Tenerife and Madeira), where populations were genetically homogeneous. In contrast, founder effects resulted in low genetic diversity and marked genetic differentiation among populations of the youngest island, La Palma.

Does Semantic Context Benefit Speech Understanding through "Top-Down" Processes? Evidence from Time-resolved Sparse fMRI.

When speech is degraded, word report is higher for semantically coherent sentences (e.g., her new skirt was made of denim) than for anomalous sentences (e.g., her good slope was done in carrot). Such increased intelligibility is often described as resulting from "top-down" processes, reflecting an assumption that higher-level (semantic) neural processes support lower-level (perceptual) mechanisms. We used time-resolved sparse fMRI to test for top-down neural mechanisms, measuring activity while participants heard coherent and anomalous sentences presented in speech envelope/spectrum noise at varying signal-to-noise ratios (SNR). The timing of BOLD responses to more intelligible speech provides evidence of hierarchical organization, with earlier responses in peri-auditory regions of the posterior superior temporal gyrus than in more distant temporal and frontal regions. Despite Sentence content × SNR interactions in the superior temporal gyrus, prefrontal regions respond after auditory/perceptual regions. Although we cannot rule out top-down effects, this pattern is more compatible with a purely feedforward or bottom-up account, in which the results of lower-level perceptual processing are passed to inferior frontal regions. Behavioral and neural evidence that sentence content influences perception of degraded speech does not necessarily imply "top-down" neural processes.

Fact And Fiction In FX Arbitrage Processes

The efficient markets hypothesis implies that arbitrage opportunities in markets such as those for foreign exchange (FX) would be, at most, short-lived. The present paper surveys the fragmented nature of FX markets, revealing that information in these markets is also likely to be fragmented. The “quant” workforce in the hedge fund featured in The Fear Index novel by Robert Harris would have little or no reason for their existence in an EMH world. The four currency combinatorial analysis of arbitrage sequences contained in Cross, Kozyakin, O’Callaghan, Pokrovskii and Pokrovskiy (2012) is then considered. Their results suggest that arbitrage processes, rather than being self-extinguishing, tend to be periodic in nature. This helps explain the fact that arbitrage dealing tends to be endemic in FX markets.

Fact And Fiction In FX Arbitrage Processes

The efficient markets hypothesis implies that arbitrage opportunities in markets such as those for foreign exchange (FX) would be, at most, short-lived. The present paper surveys the fragmented nature of FX markets, revealing that information in these markets is also likely to be fragmented. The “quant” workforce in the hedge fund featured in The Fear Index novel by Robert Harris would have little or no reason for their existence in an EMH world. The four currency combinatorial analysis of arbitrage sequences contained in Cross, Kozyakin, O’Callaghan, Pokrovskii and Pokrovskiy (2012) is then considered. Their results suggest that arbitrage processes, rather than being self-extinguishing, tend to be periodic in nature. This helps explain the fact that arbitrage dealing tends to be endemic in FX markets.

Nano-electro-mechanical in dynamical cellular processes

Report for the scientific sojourn carried out at the Department of Structure and Constituents of Matter during 2007.The main focus of the work was on phenomena related to nano-electromechanical processes that take place on a cellular level. Additionally, it has also been performed independent work related to charge and energy transfer in bio molecules, energy transfer in coupled spin systems as well as electrodynamics of nonlinear metamaterials.

Efficacy of vitamin D3 as add-on therapy in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis receiving subcutaneous interferon β-1a: a Phase II, multicenter, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

Recent studies have demonstrated the immunomodulatory properties of vitamin D, and vitamin D deficiency may be a risk factor for the development of MS. The risk of developing MS has, in fact, been associated with rising latitudes, past exposure to sun and serum vitamin D status. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] levels have also been associated with relapses and disability progression. The identification of risk factors, such as vitamin D deficiency, in MS may provide an opportunity to improve current treatment strategies, through combination therapy with established MS treatments. Accordingly, vitamin D may play a role in MS therapy. Small clinical studies of vitamin D supplementation in patients with MS have reported positive immunomodulatory effects, reduced relapse rates and a reduction in the number of gadolinium-enhancing lesions. However, large randomized clinical trials of vitamin D supplementation in patients with MS are lacking. SOLAR (Supplementation of VigantOL(®) oil versus placebo as Add-on in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis receiving Rebif(®) treatment) is a 96-week, three-arm, multicenter, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, Phase II trial (NCT01285401). SOLAR will evaluate the efficacy of vitamin D(3) as add-on therapy to subcutaneous interferon beta-1a in patients with RRMS. Recruitment began in February 2011 and is aimed to take place over 1 calendar year due to the potential influence of seasonal differences in 25(OH)D levels.

Fact And Fictions In FX Arbitrage Processes

The efficient markets hypothesis implies that arbitrage opportunities in markets such as those for foreign exchange (FX) would be, at most, short-lived. The present paper surveys the fragmented nature of FX markets, revealing that information in these markets is also likely to be fragmented. The “quant” workforce in the hedge fund featured in The Fear Index novel by Robert Harris would have little or no reason for their existence in an EMH world. The four currency combinatorial analysis of arbitrage sequences contained in Cross, Kozyakin, O’Callaghan, Pokrovskii and Pokrovskiy (2012) is then considered. Their results suggest that arbitrage processes, rather than being self-extinguishing, tend to be periodic in nature. This helps explain the fact that arbitrage dealing tends to be endemic in FX markets.

Can Early Intervention Policies Improve Well-being? Evidence from a randomized controlled trial

Many authors have proposed incorporating measures of well-being into evaluations of public policy. Yet few evaluations use experimental design or examine multiple aspects of well-being, thus the causal impact of public policies on well-being is largely unknown. In this paper we examine the effect of an intensive early intervention program on maternal well-being in a targeted disadvantaged community. Using a randomized controlled trial design we estimate and compare treatment effects on global well-being using measures of life satisfaction, experienced well-being using both the Day Reconstruction Method (DRM) and a measure of mood yesterday, and also a standardized measure of parenting stress. The intervention has no significant impact on negative measures of well-being, such as experienced negative affect as measured by the DRM and global measures of well-being such as life satisfaction or a global measure of parenting stress. Significant treatment effects are observed on experienced measures of positive affect using the DRM, and a measure of mood yesterday. The DRM treatment effects are primarily concentrated during times spent without the target child which may reflect the increased effort and burden associated with additional parental investment. Our findings suggest that a maternal-focused intervention may produce meaningful improvements in experienced well-being. Incorporating measures of experienced affect may thus alter cost-benefit calculations for public policies.

Long-term effect of a school-based physical activity program (KISS) on fitness and adiposity in children: a cluster-randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: School-based intervention studies promoting a healthy lifestyle have shown favorable immediate health effects. However, there is a striking paucity on long-term follow-ups. The aim of this study was therefore to assess the 3 yr-follow-up of a cluster-randomized controlled school-based physical activity program over nine month with beneficial immediate effects on body fat, aerobic fitness and physical activity. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Initially, 28 classes from 15 elementary schools in Switzerland were grouped into an intervention (16 classes from 9 schools, n = 297 children) and a control arm (12 classes from 6 schools, n = 205 children) after stratification for grade (1st and 5th graders). Three years after the end of the multi-component physical activity program of nine months including daily physical education (i.e. two additional lessons per week on top of three regular lessons), short physical activity breaks during academic lessons, and daily physical activity homework, 289 (58%) participated in the follow-up. Primary outcome measures included body fat (sum of four skinfolds), aerobic fitness (shuttle run test), physical activity (accelerometry), and quality of life (questionnaires). After adjustment for grade, gender, baseline value and clustering within classes, children in the intervention arm compared with controls had a significantly higher average level of aerobic fitness at follow-up (0.373 z-score units [95%-CI: 0.157 to 0.59, p = 0.001] corresponding to a shift from the 50th to the 65th percentile between baseline and follow-up), while the immediate beneficial effects on the other primary outcomes were not sustained. CONCLUSIONS: Apart from aerobic fitness, beneficial effects seen after one year were not maintained when the intervention was stopped. A continuous intervention seems necessary to maintain overall beneficial health effects as reached at the end of the intervention. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ControlledTrials.com ISRCTN15360785.

Psychodynamic interventions in cancer care I: psychometric results of a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of psychodynamic interventions in cancer care. METHODS: Between 2006 and 2009, each consecutive outpatient of the Oncology Center of the University Hospital of Lausanne was invited to participate in a trial evaluating the effects of psychological support. Accepting patients were randomly assigned to an immediate intervention or a delayed intervention [4-month waiting list]. Patients who declined support were asked to participate in an observational group [OG]. Socio-demographic and medical data, anxiety, and depression [HADS], psychological distress [SCL-90], alexithymia [TAS] and quality of life [EORTC] were recorded at baseline, and at 1, 4, 8, and 12-months follow-up. RESULTS: Of the 1973 approached patients, 1057 were excluded, 530 refused, and 386 were included with 196 of them participating in the OG. Of the patients in the intervention group [IG] [N = 190], 94 were randomized to the immediate intervention and 96 to the delayed intervention group (dIG). IG patients were younger, predominantly female, and had more psychological symptoms compared with those in the OG. Although patients of the IG and OG showed significant improvement in quality of life from baseline to 12-months follow-up, other outcomes [anxiety, depression, psychological distress, and alexithymia] remained unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: The intervention was not effective with regards to psychometric outcome. The results have to be interpreted in light of the study design [untargeted intervention], the low levels of psychiatric symptoms, dropout of symptomatic patients, and the high prevalence of alexithymia.

Reversal of the silencing of tetracycline-controlled genes requires the coordinate action of distinctly acting transcription factors.

BACKGROUND: Regulation of genes transferred to eukaryotic organisms is often limited by the lack of consistent expression levels in all transduced cells, which may result in part from epigenetic gene silencing effects. This reduces the efficacy of ligand-controlled gene switches designed for somatic gene transfers such as gene therapy. METHODS: A doxycycline-controlled transgene was stably introduced in human cells, and clones were screened for epigenetic silencing of the transgene. Various regulatory proteins were targeted to the silent transgene, to identify those that would mediate regulation by doxycycline. RESULTS: A doxycycline-controlled minimal promoter was found to be prone to gene silencing, which prevents activation by a fusion of the bacterial TetR DNA-binding domain with the VP16 activator. DNA modification studies indicated that the silenced transgene adopts a poorly accessible chromatin structure. Several cellular transcriptional activators were found to restore an accessible DNA structure when targeted to the silent transgene, and they cooperated with Tet-VP16 to mediate regulation by doxycycline. CONCLUSIONS: Reversal of the silencing of a tetracycline-regulated minimal promoter requires a chromatin-remodeling activity for subsequent promoter activation by the Tet-VP16 fusion protein. Thus, distinct regulatory elements may be combined to obtain long-term regulation and persistent expression of exogenous genes in eukaryotic cells.