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PubMed1982

In utero chemosensory experience alters taste preferences and corticosterone responsiveness.

Litters of rat pups were exposed in utero (on Day 20 of gestation) to taste/odor stimulation by injection of an apple juice solution into the amniotic fluid. One group of control litters was exposed to a saline solution while a second control group received a sham-injection treatment. All litters were delivered by cesarean section and fostered to females that had given birth to a litter normally. Offspring were tested as adults in one of two two-bottle preference tests (apple solution vs tap water or maple solution vs tap water). Measures of total fluid consumption were converted to preference scores and plasma levels of corticosterone were determined. Analyses of these data indicated that offspring exposed to the apple solution in utero showed an increased preference for apple postnatally. No increased preference for maple solution was shown. In both preference tests the offspring exposed to apple or saline solutions via amniotic injection had reduced pituitary-adrenal activity compared to sham-injected controls. The results are compared to findings of other studies of pre- and postnatal stimulation on offspring behavior and pituitary-adrenal activity.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Vitamin A deficiency and relational memory deficit in adult mice: relationships with changes in brain retinoid signalling.

Vitamin A and its derivatives, the retinoids, have recently been reported to be implicated in the synaptic plasticity of the hippocampus and in cognitive functions. Acting via transcription factors, retinoids can regulate gene expression via their nuclear receptors [retinoic acid receptors (RARs) and retinoid X receptors (RXRs)]. We recently showed that a moderate (about 30%) hypoexpression of brain (and hippocampal) retinoid signalling, like that naturally occurring in the aged brain of mice, might be related to a selective relational memory deficit. To further assess this hypothesis, the present study investigated the effects of Vitamin A deprivation of varying duration both on the brain expression of retinoid receptors (RARbeta and RXRbeta/gamma) and two associated target genes [tissue-type transglutaminase (tTG) and neurogranin, (RC3)], and on radial maze discrimination learning using young adult mice as subjects. We observed that irrespective of its duration (i.e. 31 or 39 weeks), Vitamin A deprivation resulted in a significant reduction (25-30%) in the expression of brain RARbeta, RXRbeta/gamma and tTG mRNAs. Conversely, only the 39-week condition was found to induce a significant decrease in brain RC3 mRNAs contents and a selective relational memory impairment. Finally, daily administration of retinoic acid (RA) failed to reverse the 39-week Vitamin A deficiency (VAD)-related cognitive deficit and to fully normalise the associated brain retinoid hyposignalling. In particular, there was no evidence for an up-regulating effect of RA on whole brain (and hippocampal) RC3 mRNAs of the 39-week-depleted mice. The results show that post-natal VAD may induce a selective memory impairment and give further support to the hypothesis that the fine regulation of retinoid-mediated gene expression is important for optimal brain functioning and higher cognition.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

How the built environment affects physical activity: views from urban planning.

The link between the built environment and human behavior has long been of interest to the field of urban planning, but direct assessments of the links between the built environment and physical activity as it influences personal health are still rare in the field. Yet the concepts, theories, and methods used by urban planners provide a foundation for an emerging body of research on the relationship between the built environment and physical activity. Recent research efforts in urban planning have focused on the idea that land use and design policies can be used to increase transit use as well as walking and bicycling. The development of appropriate measures for the built environment and for travel behavior is an essential element of this research. The link between the built environment and travel behavior is then made using theoretical frameworks borrowed from economics, and in particular, the concept of travel as a derived demand. The available evidence lends itself to the argument that a combination of urban design, land use patterns, and transportation systems that promotes walking and bicycling will help create active, healthier, and more livable communities. To provide more conclusive evidence, however, researchers must address the following issues: An alternative to the derived-demand framework must be developed for walking, measures of the built environment must be refined, and more-complete data on walking must be developed. In addition, detailed data on the built environment must be spatially matched to detailed data on travel behavior.

Choice Behavior↗
PubMed2002

Neural economics and the biological substrates of valuation.

A recent flurry of neuroimaging and decision-making experiments in humans, when combined with single-unit data from orbitofrontal cortex, suggests major additions to current models of reward processing. We review these data and models and use them to develop a specific computational relationship between the value of a predictor and the future rewards or punishments that it promises. The resulting computational model, the predictor-valuation model (PVM), is shown to anticipate a class of single-unit neural responses in orbitofrontal and striatal neurons. The model also suggests how neural responses in the orbitofrontal-striatal circuit may support the conversion of disparate types of future rewards into a kind of internal currency, that is, a common scale used to compare the valuation of future behavioral acts or stimuli.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Fitting in matters: markers of in-group belonging and academic outcomes.

Minority boys are at risk of academic disengagement. Prior research documents that an aspect of racial-ethnic identity, in-group connection, can buffer against this risk, but that in-group connection is undermined in high-risk neighborhoods. We examined another way that boys may feel connected to the in-group, by looking like in-group members. We hypothesize that physical markers of in-group membership can serve to improve boys' sense of belongingness, thereby facilitating their engagement in school. We tested our model with low-income, high-risk African American (Study 1, n= 102) and Latino (Study 2, n= 66) teens. Hierarchical regression supported our model; dark skin tone was a protective factor (and light skin tone a risk factor) for African American boys, and feeling that one looks Latino was a protective factor (and feeling that one does not look Latino a risk factor) for Latino boys' grades, in-class behavior, and school engagement. Mediational analyses suggest that markers of belongingness have their impact via peer-group choice.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Aging and health: effects of the sense of control.

The relation between health and a sense of control may grow stronger in old age. This could occur through three types of processes: experiences particularly relevant to control may increase markedly in old age; the association between control and some aspect of health may be altered by age; and age may influence the association between control and health-related behaviors or the seeking of medical care. Studies show that there are detrimental effects on the health of older people when their control of their activities is restricted; in contrast, interventions that enhance options for control by nursing home patients promote health. With increasing age, however, variability in preferred amounts of control also increases, and sometimes greater control over activities, circumstances, or health has negative consequences including stress, worry, and self-blame. Mechanisms mediating the control-health relation include feelings of stress, symptom labeling, changes in the neuroendocrine and immune systems, and behavior relevant to health maintenance.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1997

Young people, alcohol, and designer drinks: quantitative and qualitative study.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the appeal of "designer drinks" to young people. DESIGN: Qualitative and quantitative research comprising group discussions and questionnaire led interviews with young people accompanied by a self completion questionnaire. SETTINGS: Argyll and Clyde Health Board area, west Scotland. SUBJECTS: Eight groups aged 12-17 years; 824 aged 12-17 recruited by multistage cluster probability sample from the community health index. RESULTS: Young people were familiar with designer drinks, especially MD 20/20 and leading brands of strong white cider. Attitudes towards these drinks varied quite distinctly with age, clearly reflecting their attitudes towards and motivations for drinking in general. The brand imagery of designer drinks-in contrast with that of more mainstream drinks-matched many 14 and 15 year olds' perceptions and expectations of drinking. Popularity of designer drinks peaked between the ages of 13 and 16 while more conventional drinks showed a consistent increase in popularity with age. Consumption of designer drinks tended to be in less controlled circumstances and was associated with heavier alcohol intake and greater drunkenness. CONCLUSIONS: Designer drinks are a cause for concern. They appeal to young people, often more so than conventional drinks, and are particularly attractive to 14-16 year olds. Consumption of designer drinks is also associated with drinking in less controlled environments, heavier drinking, and greater drunkenness. There is a need for policy debate to assess the desirability of these drinks and the extent to which further controls on their marketing are required.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

NXY-059, a free radical--trapping agent, substantially lessens the functional disability resulting from cerebral ischemia in a primate species.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: NXY-059 is a novel nitrone with free radical-trapping properties that has a considerable neuroprotective effect in rats. We have now examined the efficacy of this drug at reducing long-term functional disability in a primate model of stroke. METHODS: Twelve monkeys were trained and tested on a variety of behavioral tasks used to dissociate and quantify motor and spatial deficits. Five minutes after permanent occlusion of the right middle cerebral artery, monkeys received a 1-mL intravenous infusion of either saline or NXY-059 (28 mg x kg(-1)), and osmotic minipumps, model 2001D, were implanted subcutaneously to provide continuous drug or saline infusion for 48 hours. Drug-filled pumps released NXY-059 at 16 mg x kg(-1) x h(-1). The monkeys were retested 3 and 10 weeks after surgery to assess functional disability. Surgery, behavioral testing, and histology were all done blinded to treatment condition. RESULTS: NXY-059-treated monkeys were significantly better at reaching with their hemiparetic arm than were saline-treated monkeys when retested 3 weeks (P:<0.01) and 10 weeks (P:<0.01) after surgery. Drug treatment also significantly lessened the degree of spatial perceptual neglect (P:<0.01), a debilitating though ameliorating consequence of this infarct. NXY-059 treatment reduced the overall amount of brain damage by >50% of saline-treatment values, with similar levels of protection afforded to both white and gray matter. CONCLUSIONS: This novel drug has a substantial protective effect, lessening the disability caused by an experimentally induced stroke in a primate species. These findings provide considerable encouragement for the clinical development of NXY-059.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2003

Building teen power for sexual health.

Alarming numbers of teens engage in behaviors that place them at risk for pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including AIDS. Intervention studies targeted toward reducing risky sexual behavior and improving school retention and literature about variables that affect risky sexual behavior and school performance were reviewed to develop the Social-Cognitive Model for Sexual Behavior During Adolescence. Interventions that target change in the family and school environments in addition to building the personal capacities of each teen have the potential to be effective. Many environmental factors cannot be altered, but the intervention can help reframe the situation and provide the knowledge, specific skills, role models, and rehearsal that promote change. The 13-week school-based intervention assists students identify how personal strengths and family, school, and neighborhood environmental factors can reinforce health behaviors and choices.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Behavioral economics without anomalies.

Behavioral economics is often conceived as the study of anomalies superimposed on a rational system. As research has progressed, anomalies have multiplied until little is left of rationality. Another conception of behavioral economics is based on the axiom that value is always maximized. It incorporates so-called anomalies either as conflicts between temporal patterns of behavior and the individual acts comprising those patterns or as outcomes of nonexponential time discounting. This second conception of behavioral economics is both empirically based and internally consistent.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Preference, compliance and initial outcome of therapeutic options chosen by female patients with urinary incontinence.

PURPOSE: We determined the patient preference for, compliance with and initial outcome of either behavioral modification, pharmacotherapy or surgery for urinary incontinence. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 150 incontinent women underwent basic evaluation based on Agency for Health Care Policy and Research urinary incontinence guidelines. Options were presented and the chosen modality was evaluated at 4 to 6-week intervals. RESULTS: Of the patients 61% chose behavioral modification, 25% chose pharmacotherapy and 14% chose surgery. The dropout rate was 33% (50 of 150 women), including mostly those on behavioral modification. Of the remaining patients 74% on pharmacotherapy and 73% on behavioral modification reported marked improvement. CONCLUSIONS: When given options, patients chose nonoperative measures first. Compliance was poor among patients who chose behavioral modification.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Responses of monkey dopamine neurons to reward and conditioned stimuli during successive steps of learning a delayed response task.

The present investigation had two aims: (1) to study responses of dopamine neurons to stimuli with attentional and motivational significance during several steps of learning a behavioral task, and (2) to study the activity of dopamine neurons during the performance of cognitive tasks known to be impaired after lesions of these neurons. Monkeys that had previously learned a simple reaction time task were trained to perform a spatial delayed response task via two intermediate tasks. During the learning of each new task, a total of 25% of 76 dopamine neurons showed phasic responses to the delivery of primary liquid reward, whereas only 9% of 163 neurons responded to this event once task performance was established. This produced an average population response during but not after learning of each task. Reward responses during learning were significantly more numerous and pronounced in area A10, as compared to areas A8 and A9. Dopamine neurons also showed phasic responses to the two conditioned stimuli. These were the instruction cue, which was the first stimulus in each trial and indicated the target of the upcoming arm movement (58% of 76 neurons during and 44% of 163 neurons after learning), and the trigger stimulus, which was a conditioned incentive stimulus predicting reward and eliciting a saccadic eye movement and an arm reaching movement (38% of neurons during and 40% after learning). None of the dopamine neurons showed sustained activity in the delay between the instruction and trigger stimuli that would resemble the activity of neurons in dopamine terminal areas, such as the striatum and frontal cortex. Thus, dopamine neurons respond phasically to alerting external stimuli with behavioral significance whose detection is crucial for learning and performing delayed response tasks. The lack of sustained activity suggests that dopamine neurons do not encode representational processes, such as working memory, expectation of external stimuli or reward, or preparation of movement. Rather, dopamine neurons are involved with transient changes of impulse activity in basic attentional and motivational processes underlying learning and cognitive behavior.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Hearing in the FM-bat Phyllostomus discolor: a behavioral audiogram.

Absolute auditory thresholds of six adult lesser spear-nosed bats Phyllostomus discolor (Chiroptera, Phyllostomidae) were determined in a two-alternative forced-choice procedure. Behavioral response to pure tone stimuli could be elicited throughout the tested frequency range of 5-142 kHz. The shape of the average audiogram is characterized by two sensitivity peaks and a pronounced increase of thresholds around 55 kHz, and towards the limits of the tested frequency range. The spectral extent of both sensitivity peaks shows a close relation to the bandwidth of two types of species-specific vocalizations. The first low threshold area (> 10 and < 55 kHz) of the audiogram seems perfectly adapted to the directive call used for intraspecifc communication, whereas the second sensitivity peak, centered around 85 kHz, covers most of the bandwidth of the species' echolocation calls.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Effect of 5,6-dihydroxytryptamine and 6-hydroxydopamine on the maze behavior of the snail Helix lucroum].

One-trial Y-maze test in snails did not reveal any predominance of the right or left alley choice. The choice of the right alley (but not of the left one) was accompanied by a slowing down of forward motion. After the administration of 10 mg/kg of 6-hydroxydopamine 24 hr before the test, right alley choice without slowing down became more frequent. Administration of 5,6-dihydroxytrypamine (10 mg/kg) caused a reduction of motion rate along all parts of the maze and an increase in frequency of the orienting head movements towards the alley to be chosen.

5,6-Dihydroxytryptamine↗
PubMed1997

Studies of violent and nonviolent male parolees: II. Laboratory and psychometric measurements of impulsivity.

Males parolees were recruited into a laboratory study to determine the relationship between their previous criminal history (violent versus nonviolent), and behavioral and psychometric measures of impulsivity. During sessions, subjects were given two response options defined as: 1) an impulsive choice--small monetary reward after a short fixed delay; and 2) a self-control choice--a larger monetary reward after a variable longer delay. Based upon an extensive experimental literature in animals and humans related to delay of gratification, the degree of impulsivity was defined as the proportion of trials on which the subject selected the impulsive option. Our results indicated that the violent subjects selected the impulsive option significantly more often than the nonviolent parolees. The number of impulsive responses parolees emitted was significantly correlated with the number of aggressive responses reported in an earlier paper. This study provides support for the relationship between impulsivity and aggression among male parolees.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Intensity modulation of olfactory acuity.

Acuity is fundamental to sensory systems, establishing the foundation for detectable differences in stimulus quality and consequently shaping animals' sensory capacities. In the olfactory system, which samples intrinsically high-dimensional chemical information, acuity for odor quality is measurable by means of ad hoc dimensions based on behaviorally confirmed sets of sequentially similar odorants. The authors measure olfactory acuity in mice using a rewarded forced-choice odor generalization task and show that mice exhibit greater olfactory acuity in response to higher concentration (1,0 Pa) odorants than to lower concentration (0.01 Pa) odorants. Results suggest that the dynamic modulation of sensory acuity--not necessarily its maximization--is an important component of olfactory processing and reflects the salience of odorant stimuli.

Animals↗