Epineural stimulation on distal brachial plexus for functional restoration of the upper limb in a primate study.

Restoring upper limb function is critical in individuals with central paralysis, and hand control is a priority in patients with neurological impairments. Functional electrical stimulation with implantable electrodes targeting the peripheral nervous system has the potential to selectively recruit hand muscles and generate multiple functional hand movements. However, the implantation of electrodes in the forearm or elbow areas requires multiple incisions for surgery, and elbow joint movements cannot be performed.

Is my "red" your "red"?: Evaluating structural correspondences between color similarity judgments using unsupervised alignment.

Whether one person's subjective experience of the "redness" of red is equivalent to another's is a fundamental question in consciousness studies. Intersubjective comparison of the relational structures of sensory experiences, termed "qualia structures", can constrain the question. We propose an unsupervised alignment method, based on optimal transport, to find the optimal mapping between the similarity structures of sensory experiences without presupposing correspondences (such as "red-to-red").

Wireless recording and autoencoder denoising of intestinal activity in freely moving rats.

Conventional wired systems for recording intestinal motility using strain-gauge transducers physically limit animal movement and are not ideal for long-term studies. Here, we developed a wireless recording system that allows continuous monitoring of intestinal activity in freely moving rats. We also developed a denoising autoencoder that isolates intestinal motility signals from locomotor noise while maintaining a 10-s temporal resolution.

Abnormal Synchronization Between Cortical Delta Power and Ripples in Hippocampal Sclerosis.

Objective: Discriminating between epileptogenic and physiological ripples in the hippocampus is important for identifying epileptogenic (EP) zones; however, distinguishing these ripples on the basis of their waveforms is difficult. We hypothesized that the nocturnal synchronization of hippocampal ripples and cortical delta power could be used to classify epileptogenic and physiological ripples in the hippocampus.

Methods: We enrolled 38 patients with electrodes implanted in the hippocampus or parahippocampal gyrus between April 2014 and March 2023 at our institution.

Enhancing Image Reconstruction Method in High-Frequency Electric Field Visualization Systems Using a Polarized Light Image Sensor.

This paper introduces an image processing method, used to achieve uniform sensitivity across the imaging plane in a high-frequency electric field imaging system, that employs an electro-optical crystal and a polarization image sensor. The polarization pixels have two polarization directions, 0° and 90°, in pairs, and, conventionally, their difference is computed first. In contrast, this study proposes a method to separate each polarization image, perform pixel completion, and subsequently perform intensity correction.

Compact and low-power wireless headstage for electrocorticography recording of freely moving primates in a home cage.

Objective: Wireless electrocorticography (ECoG) recording from unrestrained nonhuman primates during behavioral tasks is a potent method for investigating higher-order brain functions over extended periods. However, conventional wireless neural recording devices have not been optimized for ECoG recording, and few devices have been tested on freely moving primates engaged in behavioral tasks within their home cages.

Methods: We developed a compact, low-power, 32-channel wireless ECoG headstage specifically designed for neuroscience research.

Comparing color qualia structures through a similarity task in young children versus adults.

Examination of the subjective qualitative aspects of an experience, or "qualia" in short, is a fundamental and core aspect of consciousness research. How can we characterize the particular quality of redness, i.e.

A unified neural representation model for spatial and conceptual computations.

The hippocampus and entorhinal cortex encode spaces by spatially local and hexagonal grid activity patterns (place cells and grid cells), respectively. In addition, the same brain regions also implicate neural representations for nonspatial, semantic concepts (concept cells). These observations suggest that neurocomputational mechanisms for spatial knowledge and semantic concepts are related in the brain.

Diffusion Tensor Imaging Analysis of Fine Motor Dysfunction and Recovery Following Cranioplasty.

We report a case of a 42-year-old woman who developed fine motor dysfunction after decompressive craniectomy for traumatic brain injury (TBI), despite the absence of obvious lesions on conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to explain the motor deficits. Following cranioplasty, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) revealed an increase in fractional anisotropy (FA) in the primary motor cortex, which correlated with significant improvement in motor function. These findings highlight DTI's potential as a valuable tool for capturing subtle brain changes not apparent on conventional imaging techniques.

Latent preference representation in the human brain for scented products: Effects of novelty and familiarity.

Decoding latent preferences for novel products is crucial for understanding decision-making processes, especially when subjective evaluations are unclear. Brain activity in regions like the medial orbitofrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens (NAcc) correlates with subjective preferences. However, whether these regions represent preferences toward novel products and whether coding persists after familiarity remain unclear.

A neuroimaging dataset during sequential color qualia similarity judgments with and without reports.

Recent neuroscientific research has advanced our understanding of consciousness, yet the connection between specific qualitative aspects of consciousness, known as "qualia," and particular brain regions or networks remains elusive. Traditional methods that rely on verbal descriptions from participants pose challenges in neuroimaging studies. To address this, our group has introduced a novel "qualia structure" paradigm that leverages exhaustive, structural, and relational comparisons among qualia instead of verbal reports.

Recent Advances and Future Perspective in Computational Bioelectromagnetics for Exposure Assessments.

In the last few decades, extensive efforts have been dedicated to developing computational methods for modeling the interaction of the human body with electromagnetic fields (EMFs). These studies are crucial for the establishment of exposure limits in international standards and guidelines for human protection from EMF, as well as for advancing personalized dosimetry assessment for medical applications using EMF. To summarize the state-of-the-art knowledge in this field, the IEEE International Committee on Electromagnetic Safety (ICES) held an International Workshop on Computational Bioelectromagnetics in February 2024.

Mass Supply from Io to Jupiter's Magnetosphere.

Since the Voyager mission flybys in 1979, we have known the moon Io to be both volcanically active and the main source of plasma in the vast magnetosphere of Jupiter. Material lost from Io forms neutral clouds, the Io plasma torus and ultimately the extended plasma sheet. This material is supplied from Io's upper atmosphere and atmospheric loss is likely driven by plasma-interaction effects with possible contributions from thermal escape and photochemistry-driven escape.

Nonapoptotic caspase-3 guides C1q-dependent synaptic phagocytosis by microglia.

Caspases are known to mediate neuronal apoptosis during brain development. However, here we show that nonapoptotic activation of caspase-3 at presynapses drives microglial synaptic phagocytosis. Real-time observation and spatiotemporal manipulation of synaptic caspase-3 in the newly established, mouse-derived culture system demonstrate that increased neuronal activity triggers localized presynaptic caspase-3 activation, facilitating synaptic tagging by complements.

Neuronal Electrical Activity in Neuronal Networks Induced by a Focused Femtosecond Laser.

The spatial propagation of neuronal activity within neuronal circuits, which is associated with brain functions, such as memory and learning, is regulated by external stimuli. Conventional external stimuli, such as electrical inputs, pharmacological treatments, and optogenetic modifications, have been used to modify neuronal activity. However, these methods are tissue invasive, have insufficient spatial resolution, and cause irreversible gene modifications.

Detection of ultrafast electron energization by whistler-mode chorus waves in the magnetosphere of Earth.

Electromagnetic whistler-mode chorus waves are a key driver of variations in energetic electron fluxes in the Earth's magnetosphere through the wave-particle interaction. Traditionally understood as a diffusive process, these interactions account for long-term electron flux variations (> several minutes). However, theories suggest that chorus waves can also cause rapid (< 1 s) electron acceleration and significant flux variations within less than a second through a nonlinear wave-particle interaction.

Rapid High-Sensitivity Analysis of Methane Clumped Isotopes (ΔCHD and ΔCHD) Using Mid-Infrared Laser Spectroscopy.

Mid-infrared laser absorption spectroscopy enables rapid and nondestructive analysis of methane clumped isotopes. However, current analytical methods require a sample size of 20 mL STP (0.82 mmol) of pure CH gas, which significantly limits its application to natural samples.

Impact of physiological ionic strength and crowding on kinesin-1 motility.

The motility of biological molecular motors has typically been analyzed by in vitro reconstitution systems using motors isolated and purified from organs or expressed in cultured cells. The behavior of biomolecular motors within cells has frequently been reported to be inconsistent with that observed in reconstituted systems in vitro. Although this discrepancy has been attributed to differences in ionic strength and intracellular crowding, understanding how such parameters affect the motility of motors remains challenging.

Wavefront-aberration-tolerant diffractive deep neural networks using volume holographic optical elements.

As the demand for computational performance in artificial intelligence (AI) continues to increase, diffractive deep neural networks (DNNs), which can perform AI computing at the speed of light by repeated optical modulation with diffractive optical elements (DOEs), are attracting attention. DOEs are varied in terms of fabrication methods and materials, and among them, volume holographic optical elements (vHOEs) have unique features such as high selectivity and multiplex recordability for wavelength and angle. However, when those are used for DNNs, they suffer from unknown wavefront aberrations compounded by multiple fabrication errors.

Hierarchical representations of relative numerical magnitudes in the human frontoparietal cortex.

The ability to estimate numerical magnitude is essential for decision-making and is thought to underlie arithmetic skills. In humans, neural populations in the frontoparietal regions are tuned to represent numerosity. However, it remains unclear whether their response properties are fixed to a specific numerosity (i.

Animacy processing by distributed and interconnected networks in the temporal cortex of monkeys.

Animacy perception, the ability to discern living from non-living entities, is crucial for survival and social interaction, as it includes recognizing abstract concepts such as movement, purpose, and intentions. This process involves interpreting cues that may suggest the intentions or actions of others. It engages the temporal cortex (TC), particularly the superior temporal sulcus (STS) and the adjacent region of the inferior temporal cortex (ITC), as well as the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC).

A neurocognitive mechanism for increased cooperation during group formation.

How do group size changes influence cooperation within groups? To examine this question, we performed a dynamic, network-based prisoner's dilemma experiment with fMRI. Across 83 human participants, we observed increased cooperation as group size increased. However, our computational modeling analysis of behavior and fMRI revealed that groups size itself did not increase cooperation.

Engineering Dynein Motors to Move on DNA Nanotube Tracks.

The recent development of the DNA-binding domain (DBD)-dynein chimera motors with a dynein motor core and a DNA-binding domain has made it possible to move on DNA nanostructure tracks. In contrast to naturally occurring cytoskeletal filaments such as microtubules and actin filaments, DNA tracks can be programmed with structural properties such as length, stiffness, and circumference. There might be many advantages to using DNA as a track, for example, for applications in nanotechnology.

Right middle occipital gyrus is associated with egocentric spatial orientation during body tilt: Evidence from a repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation study.

Accurate perception of the orientation of external objects relative to the body, known as egocentric spatial orientation, is fundamental to performing action. Previously, we found via behavioural and magnetic resonance imaging voxel-based morphometry studies that egocentric spatial orientation is strongly distorted when the whole body is tilted with respect to gravity, and that the magnitude of this perceptual distortion is correlated with the grey matter volume of the right middle occipital gyrus (rMOG). In the present study, we further validated the association between the neural processing in the rMOG and the perceptual distortion by transiently suppressing neural activity in this region using low-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and evaluating the consequent effect on perceptual distortion.

Managing linguistic obstacles in multidisciplinary, multinational, and multilingual research projects.

Environmental challenges are rarely confined to national, disciplinary, or linguistic domains. Convergent solutions require international collaboration and equitable access to new technologies and practices. The ability of international, multidisciplinary and multilingual research teams to work effectively can be challenging.