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Background: Several widely studied therapies have proven to be effective in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, there is still room for improvement because not all patients benefit from trauma-focused treatments. Improvements in the treatment of PTSD can be achieved by investigating ways to enhance existing therapies, such as eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy, as well as exploring novel treatments. The purpose of the current study is to determine the differential effectiveness, efficiency, and acceptability of EMDR therapy, an adaptation of EMDR therapy, referred to as EMDR 2.0, and a novel intervention for PTSD, the so-called Flash technique. The second aim is to identify the moderators of effectiveness for these interventions. This study will be conducted among individuals diagnosed with PTSD using a randomized controlled trial design. Methods: A total of 130 patients diagnosed with (complex) PTSD will be randomly allocated to either six sessions of EMDR therapy, EMDR 2.0, or the Flash technique. The primary outcomes used to determine treatment effectiveness include the presence of a PTSD diagnosis and the severity of PTSD symptoms. The secondary outcomes of effectiveness include symptoms of depression, symptoms of dissociation, general psychiatric symptoms, and experiential avoidance. All patients will be assessed at baseline, at 4-week post-treatment, and at 12-week follow-up. Questionnaires indexing symptoms of PTSD, depression, general psychopathology, and experiential avoidance will also be assessed weekly during treatment and bi-weekly after treatment, until the 12-week follow-up. Efficiency will be assessed by investigating the time it takes both to lose the diagnostic status of PTSD, and to achieve reliable change in PTSD symptoms. Treatment acceptability will be assessed after the first treatment session and after treatment termination. Discussion: This study is the first to investigate EMDR 2.0 t

It is useful to investigate factors that could predict treatment outcomes for PTSD. The current study aims to investigate the relationship between daily measured PTSD symptoms during an intensive six-day treatment program and overall post-treatment outcomes. The treatment program combines eye movement desensitization with reprocessing and prolonged exposure, as well as physical activity and psychoeducation. It was expected that for the entire duration of treatment, as well as the first half of the treatment, a greater decline in daily PTSD symptoms would be a predictor for a greater decline in PTSD symptoms at a four-week follow-up. Data from 109 PTSD-patients (87.2% female, mean age = 36.9, SD = 11.5) were used. PTSD symptoms were measured with the CAPS-5 and the self-reported PTSD checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5). Daily PTSD symptoms were measured with an abbreviated version of the PCL-5 (8-item PCL). Latent growth curve models were used to describe changes in daily PTSD symptoms and predict treatment outcome. Results show that a greater decline in daily PTSD symptoms measured by the 8-item PCL predicts better treatment outcome (CAPS-5 and PCL-5), but that a patient’s PTSD symptoms on the first day of treatment has no predictive effect. A decline in PTSD symptoms only during the first half of treatment was also found to predict treatment outcomes. Future research should be focused on replicating the results of the current study.

In 1904 the Herero revolted against the German colonists in the German colony of South West Africa. This resulted in a genocidal war, known today as the ‘Herero genocide’. The historiography of the war is mainly focused on the classification of the Herero war as a genocide, as well as the contingencies between the Herero genocide and the Holocaust. Hence, this research distances itself from the major debates and focuses on the representation and framing of the Herero war in Dutch newspapers. Three Dutch newspapers; the ‘Algemeen Handelsblad’, ‘Telegraaf’ and ‘Het Volk: Dagblad voor de arbeiderspartij’, will be examined through the social framework analyzation of Erving Goffman. The social framework, constructed by the Dutch newspaper, displays how the political background of a newspaper, the neutrality policy of the Netherlands, and geopolitical interest influenced the process of framing Dutch news. The research will demonstrate how the German colonial practices were legitimised or rejected and how the atrocities and Herero population were framed in the three newspapers. This will allow us to understand how the representation of genocidal conflict shaped Dutch perceptions and public opinion in regards to early cases of ‘genocide’ and the perception of the Herero.

Tegenwoordig geldt Den Haag door het Panorama Mesdag als dé panoramastad van Nederland, maar historisch gezien verdient Amsterdam deze titel. Al vroeg in de negentiende eeuw werden hier panoramaschilderingen getoond en in 1880 opende in Amsterdam het eerste Panoramagebouw van Nederland. Dit Panoramagebouw, speciaal bedoeld voor de presentatie van panorama’s, was beeldbepalend voor de Plantagebuurt. Toen de panorama-hype over was, raakte het in verval en werd het uiteindelijk, in 1936, gesloopt. De bouw- en sloopgeschiedenis van het gebouw worden in dit boek voor het eerst zorgvuldig beschreven. Verreweg de meeste van de honderden panorama’s die door heel Europa op tournee gingen, zijn verloren gegaan. Kunstzinnig vermaak in Amsterdam brengt deze weer tot leven, in tekst en ruim 130 illustraties. Een overzicht van alle in Amsterdam getoonde panorama’s is als bijlage opgenomen. Het Panoramagebouw beschikte ook over een Kunstzaal. Dit was een belangrijk podium voor tentoonstellingen van eigentijdse kunst voordat het Stedelijk Museum die functie ging vervullen. Het complete tentoonstellingsprogramma van de Kunstzaal is door de auteurs gereconstrueerd, wat een prachtige dwarsdoorsnede oplevert van de Amsterdamse en Nederlandse kunstwereld rond 1900. Als kunstuiting had het panorama een twijfelachtig imago. Sommige kunstenaars keken erop neer, ze vonden het geen ware kunst en weigerden eraan mee te werken. Vincent van Gogh vond dat maar arrogant, want ‘wat is gemakkelijker, aan een panorama te schilderen of te weigeren aan een panorama te schilderen. Wat is artistieker, iets te doen of iets niet te doen?’ Antwoorden op zijn vragen vindt u in Kunstzinnig vermaak in Amsterdam. Het Panoramagebouw in de Plantage, 1880-1935.

IMPORTANCE: There is a paucity of evidence to guide physicians regarding prevention strategies for cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC) in solid organ transplant recipients (SOTRs). OBJECTIVE: To examine the development and results of a Delphi process initiated to identify consensus-based medical management recommendations for prevention of CSCC in SOTRs. EVIDENCE REVIEW: Dermatologists with more than 5 years' experience treating SOTRs were invited to participate. A novel actinic damage and skin cancer index (AD-SCI), consisting of 6 ordinal stages corresponding to an increasing burden of actinic damage and CSCC, was used to guide survey design. Three sequential web-based surveys were administered from January 1, 2019, to December 31, 2020. Pursuant to Delphi principles, respondents thoroughly reviewed all peer responses between rounds. Supplemental questions were also asked to better understand panelists' rationale for their responses. FINDINGS: The Delphi panel comprised 48 dermatologists. Respondents represented 13 countries, with 27 (56%) from the US. Twenty-nine respondents (60%) were Mohs surgeons. Consensus was reached with 80% or higher concordance among respondents when presented with a statement, question, or management strategy pertaining to prevention of CSCC in SOTRs. A near-consensus category of 70% to less than 80% concordance was also defined. The AD-SCI stage-based recommendations were established if consensus or near-consensus was achieved. The panel was able to make recommendations for 5 of 6 AD-SCI stages. Key recommendations include the following: cryotherapy for scattered actinic keratosis (AK); field therapy for AK when grouped in 1 anatomical area, unless AKs are thick in which case field therapy and cryotherapy were recommended; combination lesion directed and field therapy with fluorouracil for field cancerized skin; and initiation of acitretin therapy and discussion of immunosuppression reduction or modification for patients who develo

Understanding questions expressed in natural language is a fundamental challenge studied under different applications such as question answering (QA). We explore whether recent state-of-the-art models are capable of recognizing two paraphrased questions using unsupervised learning. Firstly, we test QA models’ performance on an existing paraphrased dataset (Dev-Para). Secondly, we create a new paraphrased evaluation set (Para-SQuAD) containing multiple paraphrased question pairs from the SQuAD dataset. We describe qualitative investigations on these models and how they present paraphrased questions in continuous space. The results demonstrate that the paraphrased dataset confuses the QA models and decreases their performance. Visualizing the sentence embeddings of Para-SQuAD by the QA models suggests that all models, except BERT, struggle to recognize paraphrased questions effectively.

Tegenwoordig geldt Den Haag door het Panorama Mesdag als dé panoramastad van Nederland, maar historisch gezien verdient Amsterdam deze titel. Al vroeg in de negentiende eeuw werden hier panoramaschilderingen getoond en in 1880 opende in Amsterdam het eerste Panoramagebouw van Nederland. Dit Panoramagebouw, speciaal bedoeld voor de presentatie van panorama’s, was beeldbepalend voor de Plantagebuurt. Toen de panorama-hype over was, raakte het in verval en werd het uiteindelijk, in 1936, gesloopt. De bouw- en sloopgeschiedenis van het gebouw worden in dit boek voor het eerst zorgvuldig beschreven. Verreweg de meeste van de honderden panorama’s die door heel Europa op tournee gingen, zijn verloren gegaan. Kunstzinnig vermaak in Amsterdam brengt deze weer tot leven, in tekst en ruim 130 illustraties. Een overzicht van alle in Amsterdam getoonde panorama’s is als bijlage opgenomen. Het Panoramagebouw beschikte ook over een Kunstzaal. Dit was een belangrijk podium voor tentoonstellingen van eigentijdse kunst voordat het Stedelijk Museum die functie ging vervullen. Het complete tentoonstellingsprogramma van de Kunstzaal is door de auteurs gereconstrueerd, wat een prachtige dwarsdoorsnede oplevert van de Amsterdamse en Nederlandse kunstwereld rond 1900. Als kunstuiting had het panorama een twijfelachtig imago. Sommige kunstenaars keken erop neer, ze vonden het geen ware kunst en weigerden eraan mee te werken. Vincent van Gogh vond dat maar arrogant, want ‘wat is gemakkelijker, aan een panorama te schilderen of te weigeren aan een panorama te schilderen. Wat is artistieker, iets te doen of iets niet te doen?’ Antwoorden op zijn vragen vindt u in Kunstzinnig vermaak in Amsterdam. Het Panoramagebouw in de Plantage, 1880-1935.

In 1904 the Herero revolted against the German colonists in the German colony of South West Africa. This resulted in a genocidal war, known today as the ‘Herero genocide’. The historiography of the war is mainly focused on the classification of the Herero war as a genocide, as well as the contingencies between the Herero genocide and the Holocaust. Hence, this research distances itself from the major debates and focuses on the representation and framing of the Herero war in Dutch newspapers. Three Dutch newspapers; the ‘Algemeen Handelsblad’, ‘Telegraaf’ and ‘Het Volk: Dagblad voor de arbeiderspartij’, will be examined through the social framework analyzation of Erving Goffman. The social framework, constructed by the Dutch newspaper, displays how the political background of a newspaper, the neutrality policy of the Netherlands, and geopolitical interest influenced the process of framing Dutch news. The research will demonstrate how the German colonial practices were legitimised or rejected and how the atrocities and Herero population were framed in the three newspapers. This will allow us to understand how the representation of genocidal conflict shaped Dutch perceptions and public opinion in regards to early cases of ‘genocide’ and the perception of the Herero.

Item does not contain fulltext, BACKGROUND: Organ transplant recipients (OTRs) have a highly increased risk of cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs). Sensation of pain in cutaneous tumours is a powerful patient-reported warning signal for invasive SCCs in OTRs. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the impact of painful vs. painless skin lesions and SCC vs. other skin lesions on the overall mortality risk in OTRs. METHODS: We followed 410 OTRs from 10 different centres across Europe and North America between 2008 and 2015. These patients had been enrolled in an earlier study to define clinically meaningful patient-reported warning signals predicting the presence of SCC, and had been included if they had a lesion requiring histological diagnosis. Cumulative incidences of overall mortality were calculated using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, and risk factors were analysed with Cox proportional hazard analysis. RESULTS: There was an increased overall mortality risk in OTRs who reported painful vs. painless skin lesions, with a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.6 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.97-2.7], adjusted for age, sex and other relevant factors. There was also an increased overall mortality risk in OTRs diagnosed with SCC compared with other skin lesions, with an adjusted HR of 1.7 (95% CI 1.0-2.8). Mortality due to internal malignancies and systemic infections appeared to prevail in OTRs with SCC. CONCLUSIONS: We suggest that OTRs have an increased overall mortality risk if they develop painful skin lesions or are diagnosed with cutaneous SCC.

Item does not contain fulltext, BACKGROUND: Organ transplant recipients (OTRs) have a highly increased risk of cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs). Sensation of pain in cutaneous tumours is a powerful patient-reported warning signal for invasive SCCs in OTRs. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the impact of painful vs. painless skin lesions and SCC vs. other skin lesions on the overall mortality risk in OTRs. METHODS: We followed 410 OTRs from 10 different centres across Europe and North America between 2008 and 2015. These patients had been enrolled in an earlier study to define clinically meaningful patient-reported warning signals predicting the presence of SCC, and had been included if they had a lesion requiring histological diagnosis. Cumulative incidences of overall mortality were calculated using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, and risk factors were analysed with Cox proportional hazard analysis. RESULTS: There was an increased overall mortality risk in OTRs who reported painful vs. painless skin lesions, with a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.6 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.97-2.7], adjusted for age, sex and other relevant factors. There was also an increased overall mortality risk in OTRs diagnosed with SCC compared with other skin lesions, with an adjusted HR of 1.7 (95% CI 1.0-2.8). Mortality due to internal malignancies and systemic infections appeared to prevail in OTRs with SCC. CONCLUSIONS: We suggest that OTRs have an increased overall mortality risk if they develop painful skin lesions or are diagnosed with cutaneous SCC.

Item does not contain fulltext, Organ transplant recipients (OTR) are at high risk for cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas (SCC). We aimed to define clinically meaningful patient-reported warning signals predicting the presence of invasive SCC.Patient-reported signs and symptoms of 812 consecutively biopsied skin lesions from 410 OTR were determined by questionnaire and physical examination and related to the subsequent biopsy-proven diagnoses. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were used as a measure of distinction between the predictive values of patient-reported warning signals and the occurrence of SCC. Pain was an independent predictive patient-reported warning signal for a biopsy-proven invasive SCC. The odds ratio from the fully adjusted model predicting SCC was 4.4(95% confidence interval: 2.4-8.2). Higher scores on the visual analog scale (VAS) for pain were associated witha greater likelihood for the presence of SCC compared to none or mild pain. The for scores on the VAS from 1to 3, 4 to 6 and 7 to 10 were 4.9 (2.2-10.5), 2.3 (0.96-5.5)and 16.5 (3.6-75.8), respectively. Pain is the most powerful patient-reported warning signal for invasive cutaneous SCC in OTR. Empowerment of patients by education could accelerate diagnosis and treatment of cutaneous SCC.

Item does not contain fulltext, Organ transplant recipients (OTR) are at high risk for cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas (SCC). We aimed to define clinically meaningful patient-reported warning signals predicting the presence of invasive SCC.Patient-reported signs and symptoms of 812 consecutively biopsied skin lesions from 410 OTR were determined by questionnaire and physical examination and related to the subsequent biopsy-proven diagnoses. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were used as a measure of distinction between the predictive values of patient-reported warning signals and the occurrence of SCC. Pain was an independent predictive patient-reported warning signal for a biopsy-proven invasive SCC. The odds ratio from the fully adjusted model predicting SCC was 4.4(95% confidence interval: 2.4-8.2). Higher scores on the visual analog scale (VAS) for pain were associated witha greater likelihood for the presence of SCC compared to none or mild pain. The for scores on the VAS from 1to 3, 4 to 6 and 7 to 10 were 4.9 (2.2-10.5), 2.3 (0.96-5.5)and 16.5 (3.6-75.8), respectively. Pain is the most powerful patient-reported warning signal for invasive cutaneous SCC in OTR. Empowerment of patients by education could accelerate diagnosis and treatment of cutaneous SCC.

Item does not contain fulltext, Organ transplant recipients (OTR) are at high risk for cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas (SCC). We aimed to define clinically meaningful patient-reported warning signals predicting the presence of invasive SCC.Patient-reported signs and symptoms of 812 consecutively biopsied skin lesions from 410 OTR were determined by questionnaire and physical examination and related to the subsequent biopsy-proven diagnoses. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were used as a measure of distinction between the predictive values of patient-reported warning signals and the occurrence of SCC. Pain was an independent predictive patient-reported warning signal for a biopsy-proven invasive SCC. The odds ratio from the fully adjusted model predicting SCC was 4.4(95% confidence interval: 2.4-8.2). Higher scores on the visual analog scale (VAS) for pain were associated witha greater likelihood for the presence of SCC compared to none or mild pain. The for scores on the VAS from 1to 3, 4 to 6 and 7 to 10 were 4.9 (2.2-10.5), 2.3 (0.96-5.5)and 16.5 (3.6-75.8), respectively. Pain is the most powerful patient-reported warning signal for invasive cutaneous SCC in OTR. Empowerment of patients by education could accelerate diagnosis and treatment of cutaneous SCC.

The transcription factor Nrf2 is a key regulator of the cellular stress response, and pharmacological Nrf2 activation is a promising strategy for skin protection and cancer prevention. We show here that prolonged Nrf2 activation in keratinocytes causes sebaceous gland enlargement and seborrhea in mice due to upregulation of the growth factor epigen, which we identified as a novel Nrf2 target. This was accompanied by thickening and hyperkeratosis of hair follicle infundibula. These abnormalities caused dilatation of infundibula, hair loss, and cyst development upon aging. Upregulation of epigen, secretory leukocyte peptidase inhibitor (Slpi), and small proline-rich protein 2d (Sprr2d) in hair follicles was identified as the likely cause of infundibular acanthosis, hyperkeratosis, and cyst formation. These alterations were highly reminiscent to the phenotype of chloracne/"metabolizing acquired dioxin-induced skin hamartomas" (MADISH) patients. Indeed, SLPI, SPRR2, and epigen were strongly expressed in cysts of MADISH patients and upregulated by dioxin in human keratinocytes in an NRF2-dependent manner. These results identify novel Nrf2 activities in the pilosebaceous unit and point to a role of NRF2 in MADISH pathogenesis.

Primary cutaneous posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorders (PTLD) are rare. This retrospective, multicenter study of 35 cases aimed to better describe this entity. Cases were (re)-classified according to the WHO-EORTC or the WHO 2008 classifications of lymphomas. Median interval between first transplantation and diagnosis was 85 months. Fifty-seven percent of patients had a kidney transplant. Twenty-four cases (68.6%) were classified as primary cutaneous T cell lymphoma (CTCL) and 11 (31.4%) as primary cutaneous B cell PTLD. Mycosis fungoides (MF) was the most common (50%) CTCL subtype. Ten (90.9%) cutaneous B cell PTLD cases were classified as EBV-associated B cell lymphoproliferations (including one plasmablastic lymphoma and one lymphomatoid granulomatosis) and one as diffuse large B cell lymphoma, other, that was EBV-negative. Sixteen (45.7%) patients died after a median follow-up of 19.5 months (11 [68.8%] with CTCL [6 of whom had CD30+ lymphoproliferative disorders (LPD)] and 5 [31.2%] with cutaneous B cell PTLD. Median survival times for all patients, CTCL and cutaneous B cell PTLD subgroups were 93, 93, and 112 months, respectively. Survival rates for MF were higher than those for CD30+ LPD. The spectrum of primary CTCL in organ transplant recipients (OTR) is similar to that in the general population. The prognosis of posttransplant primary cutaneous CD30+ LPD is worse than posttransplant MF and than its counterpart in the immunocompetent population. EBV-associated cutaneous B cell LPD predominates in OTR. This case series suggests that primary cutaneous posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorders of T cell origin are more common than those of B cell origin, the spectrum of primary cutaneous T cell lymphoma in organ transplant recipients is similar to that in the general population, the prognosis of posttransplant primary cutaneous CD30+ lymphoproliferative disorders is worse than its counterpart in the immunocompetent population, and EBV-associated cut, SCOPUS: ar.j, FLWIN, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Primary cutaneous posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorders (PTLD) are rare. This retrospective, multicenter study of 35 cases aimed to better describe this entity. Cases were (re)-classified according to the WHO-EORTC or the WHO 2008 classifications of lymphomas. Median interval between first transplantation and diagnosis was 85 months. Fifty-seven percent of patients had a kidney transplant. Twenty-four cases (68.6%) were classified as primary cutaneous T cell lymphoma (CTCL) and 11 (31.4%) as primary cutaneous B cell PTLD. Mycosis fungoides (MF) was the most common (50%) CTCL subtype. Ten (90.9%) cutaneous B cell PTLD cases were classified as EBV-associated B cell lymphoproliferations (including one plasmablastic lymphoma and one lymphomatoid granulomatosis) and one as diffuse large B cell lymphoma, other, that was EBV-negative. Sixteen (45.7%) patients died after a median follow-up of 19.5 months (11 [68.8%] with CTCL [6 of whom had CD30+ lymphoproliferative disorders (LPD)] and 5 [31.2%] with cutaneous B cell PTLD. Median survival times for all patients, CTCL and cutaneous B cell PTLD subgroups were 93, 93, and 112 months, respectively. Survival rates for MF were higher than those for CD30+ LPD. The spectrum of primary CTCL in organ transplant recipients (OTR) is similar to that in the general population. The prognosis of posttransplant primary cutaneous CD30+ LPD is worse than posttransplant MF and than its counterpart in the immunocompetent population. EBV-associated cutaneous B cell LPD predominates in OTR. This case series suggests that primary cutaneous posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorders of T cell origin are more common than those of B cell origin, the spectrum of primary cutaneous T cell lymphoma in organ transplant recipients is similar to that in the general population, the prognosis of posttransplant primary cutaneous CD30+ lymphoproliferative disorders is worse than its counterpart in the immunocompetent population, and EBV-associated cut, SCOPUS: ar.j, FLWIN, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

SCOPUS: ar.j, FLWIN, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

SCOPUS: ar.j, FLWIN, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Contains fulltext : 55984.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Closed access), Functional neuroimaging research in humans has identified a number of brain areas that are activated by the delivery of primary and secondary reinforcers. The present study investigated how activity in these reward-sensitive regions is modulated by the context in which rewards and punishments are experienced. Fourteen healthy volunteers were scanned during the performance of a simple monetary gambling task that involved a "win" condition (in which the possible outcomes were a large monetary gain, a small gain, or no gain of money) and a "lose" condition (in which the possible outcomes were a large monetary loss, a small loss, or no loss of money). We observed reward-sensitive activity in a number of brain areas previously implicated in reward processing, including the striatum, prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate, and inferior parietal lobule. Critically, activity in these reward-sensitive areas was highly sensitive to the range of possible outcomes from which an outcome was selected. In particular, these regions were activated to a comparable degree by the best outcomes in each condition-a large gain in the win condition and no loss of money in the lose condition-despite the large difference in the objective value of these outcomes. In addition, some reward-sensitive brain areas showed a binary instead of graded sensitivity to the magnitude of the outcomes from each distribution. These results provide important evidence regarding the way in which the brain scales the motivational value of events by the context in which these events occur.

Previous research has identified a component of the event-related brain potential (ERP), the feedback-related negativity, that is elicited by feedback stimuli associated with unfavourable outcomes. In the present research we used event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings to test the common hypothesis that this component is generated in the caudal anterior cingulate cortex. The EEG results indicated that our paradigm, a time estimation task with trial-to-trial performance feedback, elicited a large feedback-related negativity (FRN). Nevertheless, the fMRI results did not reveal any area in the caudal anterior cingulate cortex that was differentially activated by positive and negative performance feedback, casting doubt on the notion that the FRN is generated in this brain region. In contrast, we found a number of brain areas outside the posterior medial frontal cortex that were activated more strongly by positive feedback than by negative feedback. These included areas in the rostral anterior cingulate cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, right superior frontal gyrus, and striatum. An anatomically constrained source model assuming equivalent dipole generators in the rostral anterior cingulate, posterior cingulate, and right superior frontal gyrus produced a simulated scalp distribution that corresponded closely to the observed scalp distribution of the FRN. These results support a new hypothesis regarding the neural generators of the FRN, and have important implications for the use of this component as an electrophysiological index of performance monitoring and reward processing.

Contains fulltext : 55984.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Closed access), Functional neuroimaging research in humans has identified a number of brain areas that are activated by the delivery of primary and secondary reinforcers. The present study investigated how activity in these reward-sensitive regions is modulated by the context in which rewards and punishments are experienced. Fourteen healthy volunteers were scanned during the performance of a simple monetary gambling task that involved a "win" condition (in which the possible outcomes were a large monetary gain, a small gain, or no gain of money) and a "lose" condition (in which the possible outcomes were a large monetary loss, a small loss, or no loss of money). We observed reward-sensitive activity in a number of brain areas previously implicated in reward processing, including the striatum, prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate, and inferior parietal lobule. Critically, activity in these reward-sensitive areas was highly sensitive to the range of possible outcomes from which an outcome was selected. In particular, these regions were activated to a comparable degree by the best outcomes in each condition-a large gain in the win condition and no loss of money in the lose condition-despite the large difference in the objective value of these outcomes. In addition, some reward-sensitive brain areas showed a binary instead of graded sensitivity to the magnitude of the outcomes from each distribution. These results provide important evidence regarding the way in which the brain scales the motivational value of events by the context in which these events occur.

Contains fulltext : 55984.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Closed access), Functional neuroimaging research in humans has identified a number of brain areas that are activated by the delivery of primary and secondary reinforcers. The present study investigated how activity in these reward-sensitive regions is modulated by the context in which rewards and punishments are experienced. Fourteen healthy volunteers were scanned during the performance of a simple monetary gambling task that involved a "win" condition (in which the possible outcomes were a large monetary gain, a small gain, or no gain of money) and a "lose" condition (in which the possible outcomes were a large monetary loss, a small loss, or no loss of money). We observed reward-sensitive activity in a number of brain areas previously implicated in reward processing, including the striatum, prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate, and inferior parietal lobule. Critically, activity in these reward-sensitive areas was highly sensitive to the range of possible outcomes from which an outcome was selected. In particular, these regions were activated to a comparable degree by the best outcomes in each condition-a large gain in the win condition and no loss of money in the lose condition-despite the large difference in the objective value of these outcomes. In addition, some reward-sensitive brain areas showed a binary instead of graded sensitivity to the magnitude of the outcomes from each distribution. These results provide important evidence regarding the way in which the brain scales the motivational value of events by the context in which these events occur.

Previous research has identified a component of the event-related brain potential (ERP), the feedback-related negativity, that is elicited by feedback stimuli associated with unfavourable outcomes. In the present research we used event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings to test the common hypothesis that this component is generated in the caudal anterior cingulate cortex. The EEG results indicated that our paradigm, a time estimation task with trial-to-trial performance feedback, elicited a large feedback-related negativity (FRN). Nevertheless, the fMRI results did not reveal any area in the caudal anterior cingulate cortex that was differentially activated by positive and negative performance feedback, casting doubt on the notion that the FRN is generated in this brain region. In contrast, we found a number of brain areas outside the posterior medial frontal cortex that were activated more strongly by positive feedback than by negative feedback. These included areas in the rostral anterior cingulate cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, right superior frontal gyrus, and striatum. An anatomically constrained source model assuming equivalent dipole generators in the rostral anterior cingulate, posterior cingulate, and right superior frontal gyrus produced a simulated scalp distribution that corresponded closely to the observed scalp distribution of the FRN. These results support a new hypothesis regarding the neural generators of the FRN, and have important implications for the use of this component as an electrophysiological index of performance monitoring and reward processing.

Rationale: Long-term users of ecstasy have shown impaired performance on a multitude of cognitive abilities (most notably memory, attention, executive function). Research into the pattern of MDMA effects on executive functions remains fragmented, however. Objectives: To determine more systematically what aspects of executive function are affected by a history of MDMA use, by using a model that divides executive functions into cognitive flexibility, information updating and monitoring, and inhibition of pre-potent responses. Methods: MDMA users and controls who abstained from ecstasy and other substances for at least 2 weeks were tested with a computerized cognitive test battery to assess their abilities on tasks that measure the three submodalities of executive function, and their combined contribution on two more complex executive tasks. Because of sex-differential effects of MDMA reported in the literature, data from males and females were analyzed separately. Results: Male MDMA users performed significantly worse on the tasks that tap on cognitive flexibility and on the combined executive function tasks; no differences were found on the other cognitive tasks. Female users showed no impairments on any of the tasks. Conclusions: The present data suggest that a history of MDMA use selectively impairs executive function. In male users, cognitive flexibility was impaired and increased perseverative behavior was observed. The inability to adjust behavior rapidly and flexibly may have repercussions for daily life activities.

Rationale: Long-term users of ecstasy have shown impaired performance on a multitude of cognitive abilities (most notably memory, attention, executive function). Research into the pattern of MDMA effects on executive functions remains fragmented, however. Objectives: To determine more systematically what aspects of executive function are affected by a history of MDMA use, by using a model that divides executive functions into cognitive flexibility, information updating and monitoring, and inhibition of pre-potent responses. Methods: MDMA users and controls who abstained from ecstasy and other substances for at least 2 weeks were tested with a computerized cognitive test battery to assess their abilities on tasks that measure the three submodalities of executive function, and their combined contribution on two more complex executive tasks. Because of sex-differential effects of MDMA reported in the literature, data from males and females were analyzed separately. Results: Male MDMA users performed significantly worse on the tasks that tap on cognitive flexibility and on the combined executive function tasks; no differences were found on the other cognitive tasks. Female users showed no impairments on any of the tasks. Conclusions: The present data suggest that a history of MDMA use selectively impairs executive function. In male users, cognitive flexibility was impaired and increased perseverative behavior was observed. The inability to adjust behavior rapidly and flexibly may have repercussions for daily life activities.

Document(en) uit de collectie Chemische Procestechnologie, DelftChemTech, Applied Sciences

Document(en) uit de collectie Chemische Procestechnologie, DelftChemTech, Applied Sciences

Daselbsten gehalten/ von Matthiasen Hoe/ Churf. Sächs. Hofprediger, Schlüsselseiten aus dem Exemplar der ULB Halle: Pon Zb 3355, QK

Daselbsten gehalten/ von Matthiasen Hoe/ Churf. Sächs. Hofprediger, Schlüsselseiten aus dem Exemplar der ULB Halle: Pon Zb 3355, QK