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7e Congrès de l'Encéphale à Paris (22-24 janvier 2009), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

7e Congrès de l'Encéphale à Paris (22-24 Janvier 2009), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

7e Congrès de l'Encéphale à Paris (22-24 Janvier 2009), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Our 24 h society promotes wakefulness to the detriment of sleep. Many people reduce their sleep time voluntary or by obligation. The effects of sleep restriction on performances and on vigilance are becoming to be recognized. However, the effects of chronic sleep loss on health and disease, particularly cardiovascular disease, are less documented. Several studies have evidenced a relation between a reduction of sleep duration and cardiovascular pathology. The mechanisms involved in these associations are not elucidated at the present time. We are using the sleep restriction model in order to evaluate the relationships between sleep reduction and the inflammatory processes involved in cardiovascular diseases. Our data show that a sleep restriction, even moderated, is able to influence cardiovascular risk factors in otherwise healthy subjects. © 2009 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved., SCOPUS: sh.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

The main aim of this study was to examine the temporal aspects of neuronal changes during the observation and execution of simple and complex tasks to gain a greater understanding of the mirror neuron system's involvement in complex motor tasks. Eleven right-handed subjects observed simple and complex finger movement sequences. Electroencephalograms were recorded from 19 electrodes. Activity was considered in four frequency bands (8-10Hz, 10-13Hz, 13-20Hz, and 20-30Hz) using a new measure, synchronization likelihood. The results show that motor tasks of different levels of complexity did not have a significant influence on cortical synchronization. The results also provide additional indirect evidence for mirror neuron activity associated with intransitive tasks. Data are discussed in the light of recent findings from the cognitive and behavioral neuroscience literature.

Die vorliegende Studie untersuchte emotionale Reaktionen im Experimentaldesign einer aversiven, differentiellen klassischen Konditionierung (CS = zwei männliche, neutral valente Gesichter; olfaktorischer UCS = vergorene Hefe) bei je vierzehn männlichen generalisierten Sozialphobikern (DSM-VI) und gesunden Kontrollpersonen. In Erwartung einer erhöhten Konditionierbarkeit, einer Extinktionsresistenz sowie einer Generalisierung auf störungsrelevante Fazialreize bei den Sozialphobikern wurden die konditionierten Reaktionen über subjektiv-verbale Urteile (Valenz, Erregung, Kontingenz), den Schreckreflex (M. orbicularis oculi links, Indikator subcorticaler Reizverarbeitung der Angst), die bilateral erhobene Aktivität des M. corrugator supercilii (Indikator für den negativ emotionalen Fazialausdruck) sowie die Herzrate (Indikator der allgemeinen psychophysiologischen Aktivierung) gemessen. Die Konditionierung verlief in beiden Experimentalgruppen erfolgreich (Valenz, Erregung, Kontingenz) und hypothesenkonform. Im Gegensatz zu den Gesunden resultierten für die Sozialphobiker eine erhöhte Konditionierbarkeit (Schreckreflexlatenz und -amplitude, Herzratendezeleration), eine Extinktionsresistenz (Erregung, Schreckreflexnullreaktionen, Corrugator) sowie eine Reizgeneralisierung (Erregung, Kontingenz, Schreckreflexlatenz, Corrugator, Herzratendezeleration). Die Befunde sprechen außerdem für eine unterschiedliche emotionale Reizverarbeitung über den Experimentalverlauf. Die Sozialphobiker reagierten in der Akquisition vorrangig in den Parametern Erregung, Kontingenz, Schreckreflex und Herzrate (Gesunde: Corrugator) sowie in der Extinktion hinsichtlich Erregung, Schreckreflex und Corrugator (Gesunde: Kontingenz). Das Valenzurteil ergab hingegen keine Gruppenspezifik., The present study investigated the emotional responses of aversive differential Pavlovian conditioning with two male neutral faces as conditioned stimuli (CS) and a foul odor (fermented yeast) as unconditioned stimulus (UCS) in fourteen male generalized social phobics (DSM-VI) and healthy controls. The aim of this investigation was to examine the hypotheses of enhanced acquisition, delayed extinction and generalization of faces, as they represented socially relevant stimuli, concerning social phobics. Subjective indicators of conditioned response were valence, arousal and awareness. The startle reflex (recorded from left m. orbicularis oculi) was used as a measure of subcortical emotional processing. Bilaterally corrugator muscle activity (as an indicator of negative emotional facial response) and heart rate (as an indicator of general physiological activation) served as psychophysiological assessment of conditioning. Both groups were successfully conditioned as reflected by differential responses of all three subjective parameters. The results were consistent with the hypotheses. Compared to controls, social phobics showed an increased acquisition (startle latency and magnitude, heart rate deceleration), an extinction resistance (arousal, startle zero reactions, corrugator) as well as a generalization of CS types (arousal, awareness, startle latency, corrugator, heart rate deceleration). In addition the findings suggested that the emotional stimuli processing in participants are distinct. The social phobics in particular reacted to arousal, contingency awareness, startle and heart rate in acquisition (controls: corrugator) and to arousal, startle and corrugator in extinction (controls: awareness). There was no difference between groups regarding valence judgement.

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

8th International Forum on Mood and Anxiety Disorders (IFMAD) Vienna,Austria.12-14 November 2008, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

21st Congress of the european College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

21st Congress of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) Barcelona, Spain (Aug.30-Sept 3 2008), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

6e Congrès de l'Encéphale à Paris (24-26 Janvier 2008), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

22nd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (APSS), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

21st Congress of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP), Barcelona ,Spain (30 Aout-3 Septembre 2008), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

6e Congrès de l'Encéphale, Paris, 24-26 Janvier 2008, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

6e Congrès de l'Encéphale, Paris, 24-26 Janvier 2008, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

22nd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (APSS) Congress SLEEP, Baltimore,USA (7 au 12 Juin 2008), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

22nd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (APSS), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

6e Congrès de l'Encéphale, Paris, 24-26 Janvier 2008, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

6e Congrès de l'Encéphale, Paris, 24-26 Janvier 2008, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Objective: The chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a debated clinical entity, not presently associated with specific sleep abnormalities. However, higher levels of deep sleep and/or lower levels of light sleep have been reported in several all-night polysomnography studies in CFS patients. This distribution of Non-Rapid Eye Movement Sleep (NREMS) contrasts with what would be expected if sleep was interrupted by microawakenings, such as in sleep apneas or periodic limb movements, where more light sleep and less deep sleep are commonly observed. This "paradoxical" distribution of NREMS could represent a characteristic feature of chronic fatigue and deserved to be investigated. Methods: A retrospective comparison of the NREMS distribution was performed between 28 "pure" Chronic Fatigue Syndrome patients (without primary sleep or psychiatric disorders), 27 Apneic-Hypopneic patients and 27 Healthy Controls. Results: Data showed CFS patients to have a higher stage 4/stage 2 or stage 4/light sleep ratios than the other two conditions. Conclusion: This sleep pattern is closer to what is observed in cases of infections than to what is seen after sleep fragmentation by primary sleep or in psychiatric disorders. Such a particular sleep pattern could provide insights into the pathophysiology of fatigue. Copyright © by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved., SCOPUS: ar.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Age-related sleep and endocrine alterations frequently interact with each other. For a number of hormones, the effects of sleep curtailment in young subjects mimic those observed in healthy older adults with normal sleep schedule. Thus, voluntary sleep loss, which is experienced by a substantial proportion of people in more-developed countries, and has become a hallmark of modern society, could contribute to accelerate the senescence of endocrine and metabolic function. © 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved., SCOPUS: re.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

World Sleep Congress, Cairns, Australia (2-6 september 2007), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

World Sleep Congress Cairns, Australia (2-6 September 2007), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Teaching in medical psychology aims at establishing an understanding of the relationships between psychological functions and bodily reactions and of the relevance of these interactions for the development and maintenance of diseases. To illustrate these relationships, a psychophysiology practical was introduced in the first semester. Students performed practical 30-minute exercises in groups of four on the basis of comprehensive written instructions. The following topics were covered: (1) stress (dependent variable: heart rate), (2) "lie detection" (dependent variable: skin conductance response), (3) biofeedback (dependent variable: skin temperature), and (4) electroencephalogram (dependent variable: amplitude in the four classical frequency bands). The practical exercises were complemented by theoretical group work and a summary of the results of the exercises. Students evaluated the practical positively. It was considered a benefit to the course, and the self-rated knowledge in the area of psychophysiology increased significantly. These results, as well as our experiences during the practical, have reinforced our decision to establish a psychophysiology practical as part of the medical psychology/medical sociology course., Die Vermittlung der Zusammenhänge zwischen psychologischen Funktionen und körperlichen Veränderungen sowie deren Relevanz für die Entstehung und Aufrechterhaltung von Krankheiten stellt ein zentrales Ziel der Ausbildung in Medizinischer Psychologie dar. Zur Veranschaulichung dieser Zusammenhänge führten wir ein Psychophysiologie-Praktikum im ersten vorklinischen Semester ein. Die Studierenden führten in Vierergruppen mit Hilfe ausführlicher schriftlicher Instruktionen jeweils ca. 30 Minuten andauernde praktische Übungen durch, die die folgenden Themen behandelten: (1) Stress (abhängige Variable: Herzrate), (2) "Lügendetektor" (abhängige Variable: Hautleitwertsreaktionen), (3) Biofeedback (abhängige Variable: Hauttemperatur) und (4) Elektroenzephalogramm (abhängige Variable: Amplituden der vier klassischen Frequenzbänder). Die praktischen Übungen wurden durch theoretische Gruppenarbeiten und einen Termin zur Zusammenfassung der Ergebnisse der Übungen ergänzt. Die studentische Evaluation des Praktikums war durchweg positiv. So wurde das Praktikum als Bereicherung des Kurses angesehen, und der selbstbeurteilte Kenntnisstand auf dem Gebiet der Psychophysiologie zeigte eine signifikante Verbesserung. Diese Ergebnisse sowie unsere Eindrücke während des Praktikums bekräftigten unseren Entschluss, ein Psychophysiologie-Praktikum als Teil des Kurses der Medizinischen Psychologie und Medizinischen Soziologie fest zu etablieren.

5e Congrès de l'Encéphale à Paris (25,26 et 27 Janvier 2007), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

5e Congrès de l'Encéphale à Paris (25,26 et 27 Janvier 2007), info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Prevention campaigns to avoid risk factors for the occurrence of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) during sieep have ied to a significant decrease in the number of infants dying suddeniy and unexpectedly during sieep. Despite a growing amount of evidence, the understanding of the mechanisms responsible for SIDS is stilt iargeiy incomplete. We will review the most recent epidemiotogicai, electrophysiologicai, genetic and pathological research on this topic. From these data, a comprehensive model for SIDS has been proposed: the death wouid resuit from the combination of three factors (a prenatal vulnerability, a critical developmental period and an exogenous postnatal stress) and three potential mecbanisms (deficiencies in breathing, autonomie and sleep-wake controis). As arousal represents the last chance of survival when an infant is exposed to a life-threatening challenge during sleep, failure to arouse could be involved in the final pathway of SIDS. An infant could be vulnerable to SIDS because of a deficiency in cardio-respiratory or in sleep/wake behaviour controis during sleep. Genetic, metaboiic, nutritbnal or toxic prenatal brainstem injury could be responsible for these deficits. The infant's vulnerability lies latent until he/she enfers the critical developmental period from 2 to 6 months when significant changes in sleep-wake, breathing and autonomie controls occur. The accident has a greater probability of occurring when the infant is exposed to an infection, or an unfavourable environmental factor which enhances the immature cardio respiratory and sleep/wake behaviours of the infant. © 2005 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved., SCOPUS: ar.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Ergänzend zu bestehenden Verfahren Bewältigungsverhalten zu erfassen, versucht die vorliegende Studie mittels eines mehrdimensionalen Ansatzes neue Wege der psychosomatischen Grundlagenforschung zu eröffnen. Anhand des Biopsychologischen Belastungstests werden erlebens- (Annäherungsmotivation, Meidungsmotivation, Traitangst), verhaltens- und peripherpsychologische (Herzfrequenz, Hautleitwertreaktion) Parameter einer heterogenen Stichprobe aus gesunden Kontrollprobandinnen und psychosomatischen Patientinnen erhoben. Diese Parameter sollen eine Einteilung der Testpersonen in Untergruppen ermöglichen, um die Identifizierung von repressiv, optimistisch und konflikthaft bewältigenden Personen vornehmen zu können. In den Analysen lässt sich die Aufteilung der Untergruppen im hypothetisierten Rahmen allerdings nicht wiederfinden. Es zeigen sich signifikante Unterschiede zwischen den Motivationsebenen der Testpersonen (Annäherungsmotivation/Meidungsmotivation jeweils hoch/niedrig), sowie kontinuierlich signifikante Unterschiede zwischen den gesunden Kontrollprobandinnen und den psychosomatischen Patientinnen. Zusätzlich finden sich enge Parallelen zwischen Traitangst und Meidungsmotivation., The following study proposes additionally to present methods a new multidimensional approach in psychosomatic research. Experience (approach motivation, avoidance motivation, trait-anxiety), behavioural, and peripher-psychological (heart frequency, skin conductance response) parameters are collected utilizing the Biopsychologischer Belastungstest (BBT). Using these parameters it is intended to separate test persons into clusters allowing the discrimination of coping patterns repression, optimism, and intra-personal approach avoidance conflict. The hypothesized subgroups can not be approved by the results of cluster analysis. However, significant differences between high and low approach respectively avoidance motivated test persons are found. Furthermore, throughout the analysis significant differences between "healthy" control persons and the psychosomatic patients are visible. In addition it can be emphasized that trait-anxiety is closely related to avoidance motivation.

A priming technique was employed to study the relations between melody and lyrics in song memory. The procedure involved the auditory presentation of a prime and a target taken from the same song, or from unrelated but equally familiar songs. To promote access to memory representations of songs, we varied the format of primes and targets, which were either spoken or sung, using the syllable/la/. In each of the four experiments, a prime taken from the same song as the target facilitated target recognition, independently of the format in which it occurred. The facilitation effects were also found in conditions close to masked priming because prime recognizability was very low, as assessed in Experiment 1 by d' measures. Above all, backward priming effects were observed in Experiments 2, 3, and 4, where song order was reversed in the prime-target sequence, suggesting that words and tones of songs are not connected by strict temporal contingencies. Rather, the results indicate that, in song memory, text and tune are related by tight connections that are bidirectional and automatically activated by relatively abstract information. Rhythmic similarity between linguistic stress pattern and musical meter might account for these priming effects., SCOPUS: ar.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

This study was aimed at monitoring of a previously suggested channelopathy in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and at searching for possible explanations by means of immune system characteristics. Twenty-seven CFS patients and 20 age and sex matched healthy volunteers were recruited. RNase L-ratio, percent of the norm of whole body potassium content, serum electrolytes (sodium, calcium and potassium), immune cells, blood cell count and erythrocyte sedimentation rate were determined. More than fifty percent of our patients presented with abnormal whole body potassium content. Eight patients had increased, while six had depleted potassium content. Discriminant function analysis revealed that the CFS patients and control subjects could be differentiated on immunophenotyping with the predominant cell differences being the increase in CD19+ CD5+ (mature B-) cells and the decrease in CD3-CD16+ CD56+ (NK) cells in both the percentage and count distributions. The fall in NK-cells was very strongly associated with increases in the RNase L-ratio and falls in serum calcium levels. In addition, four patients with low serum calcium levels showed lower whole body potassium levels. In conclusion, these observations suggest a channelopathy in a subset of CFS patients, probably induced by the deregulated 2-5A RNase L antiviral pathway. Ζ 2003 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved., SCOPUS: ar.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Studies of multimodal integration have relied to a large extent on conflict situations, in which two sensory modalities receive incongruent data concerning one aspect of the source. Exposure to such situations produces immediate crossmodal biases as well as longer lasting aftereffects, revealing recalibrations of data-to-percept matches. In the natural environment, such phenomena might be adaptive, by reducing the perturbing effects of factors like noise or growth-induced changes in receptor organs, and by enriching the percept. However, experimental results generalize to real life only when they reflect automatic perceptual processes, and not response strategies adopted to satisfy the particular demands of laboratory tasks. Here, we focus on this issue and review ways of addressing it that have been developed recently., SCOPUS: re.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

In two experiments, we measured audio-visual crossmodal attraction on the time dimension, using a sensorimotor synchronization task. Synchronization performance made it possible to split up the total crossmodal attraction (demonstrated in earlier studies through inter-modal temporal order judgments) into its modality-specific components, the auditory bias of the visual event's perceived time of occurrence and the visual bias of the auditory event's perceived time of occurrence. Participants were asked to produce tapping movements in synchrony with a sequence of isochronously repeated pacing signals. In Experiment 1, pacing signals were light flashes, each preceded or followed, at one of several stimulus onset asynchronies (SOAs), by an auditory distracter that the participant was instructed to ignore. The timing of the tap was, in spite of that instruction, strongly biased toward the distracter. In Experiment 2, the converse task was used. The pacing signals were auditory and the to be ignored distracters, light flashes. The timing of the taps was biased significantly here also toward the distracter, but to a much lesser extent. Taken together, these results clearly demonstrate that audition plays a bigger role than vision in temporal ventriloquism and is probably generally superior to vision for processing the temporal dimension of events. © 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved., SCOPUS: cp.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

In the well-known visual bias of auditory location (alias the ventriloquist effect), auditory and visual events presented in separate locations appear closer together, provided the presentations are synchronized. Here, we consider the possibility of the converse phenomenon: crossmodal attraction on the time dimension conditional on spatial proximity. Participants judged the order of occurrence of sound bursts and light flashes, respectively, separated in time by varying stimulus onset asynchronies (SOAs) and delivered either in the same or in different locations. Presentation was organized using randomly mixed psychophysical staircases, by which the SOA was reduced progressively until a point of uncertainty was reached. This point was reached at longer SOAs with the sounds in the same frontal location as the flashes than in different places, showing that apparent temporal separation is effectively longer in the first condition. Together with a similar one obtained recently in a case of tactile-visual discrepancy, this result supports a view in which timing and spatial layout of the inputs play to some extent inter-changeable roles in the pairing operation at the base of crossmodal interaction. © 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved., SCOPUS: cp.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

This paper refers to and discusses empirical evidence supporting the general idea that both skilled reading and learning to read capitalize on underlying phonological representations. These representations must be specified in terms of degree of abstractness, units represented and degree of conscious access to these units. In skilled reading, pre-lexical representations, at different levels of phonological structure, are unconsciously, mandatorily and automatically activated, in connection with correspondent orthographic representations. This process is distinct from the intentional and controlled phonological decoding assumed by the classic dual-route model. Learning to read may be described as the progression from conscious phonological decoding, in which phoneme awareness plays a critical role, to the unconscious mapping of orthographic and phonological segments. Phonological dyslexia is related to some anomaly in speech perception capacities, making it difficult both to develop efficient conscious segmentation abilities and graphophonological decoding. It is suggested that this conscious speech segmentation deficit is caused by a lack of appropriate segmentation at the unconscious, perceptual level., SCOPUS: cp.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Our study aims to compare the performances of profoundly deaf and hearing beginning readers in three tasks of written words recognition made in different informational contexts: (target words: 1/oral; 2/ picture; 3/with a semantic inductor). Among the deaf children, 6 are orally educated (« Oral ») and 6 are exposed to Cued Speech (« CS », manual system delivering phonetically augmented speechreading through visual modality). The results show that only Cued Speech users achieved a high level of performance in the three tasks, similar to that of the hearing controls. It seems that Cued Speech allows the use of accurate phonological decoding to recognise written words at an early stage in learning to read., SCOPUS: ar.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published