Search

Episodic memory and future thinking are generally considered as two parts of the same mental time travelling system in vertebrates. Modern cephalopods, with their independent evolutionary lineage and their complex cognitive abilities, appear as promising species to determine whether these abilities have separate evolutionary histories or not. In our study, we tested future-planning abilities in a cephalopod species which has been shown to possess episodic-like memory abilities: the common cuttlefish. They were tested on their ability to plan for a future need for food instead of following their current need to hide. To explore the flexibility in such future-planning behaviour, we varied the protective value of the shelter. No future-planning behaviour was observed in cuttlefish during our experiment regardless of the value of the shelter provided. From one perspective, as cuttlefish were facing a trade-off decision, the attractiveness of the shelter (to satisfy their current need) might have been of higher value than their future need to eat (low drive for food). By contrast, our results might reflect an inability of cuttlefish to act in the present to secure future needs, suggesting that episodic memory and future planning might be distinct cognitive traits with their own evolutionary histories. Identifying both similarities and differences in complex cognition between vertebrate species and cephalopods is important to pinpoint which evolutionary pressures have led to the emergence of complex cognitive abilities., Competing Interests: Ethics approval: All experiments were conducted following the directive 2010/63/EU of the European Parliament and the French regulation for the protection and use of animals in research. Procedures were approved (#22429 2019101417389263 v2) by the regional ethical committee of Normandy region (Comité d’Ethique de Normandie en Matière d’EXpérimentation Animale, CENOMEXA; agreement number 54). Consent to participate: Not applicable. Consent for publication: All co-authors consent to publication. Conflicts of interest/Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2025. The Psychonomic Society, Inc.)

In European forests, most tree species form symbioses with ectomycorrhizal (EM) and arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. The EM fungi are classified into different morphological types based on the development and structure of their extraradical mycelium. These structures could be root extensions that help trees to acquire nutrients. However, the relationship between these morphological traits and functions involved in soil nutrient foraging is still under debate.We described the composition of mycorrhizal fungal communities under 23 tree species in a wide range of climates and humus forms in Europe and investigated the exploratory types of EM fungi. We assessed the response of this tree extended phenotype to humus forms, as an indicator of the functioning and quality of forest soils. We found a significant relationship between the relative proportion of the two broad categories of EM exploration types (short- or long-distance) and the humus form, showing a greater proportion of long-distance types in the least dynamic soils. As past land-use and host tree species are significant factors structuring fungal communities, we showed this relationship was modulated by host trait (gymnosperms versus angiosperms), soil depth and past land use (farmland or forest).We propose that this potential functional trait of EM fungi be used in future studies to improve predictive models of forest soil functioning and tree adaptation to environmental nutrient conditions., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

The acoustic environment an animal experiences early in life shapes the structure and function of its auditory system. This process of experience-dependent development is thought to be primarily orchestrated by potentiation and depression of synapses, but plasticity of intrinsic voltage dynamics may also contribute. Here, we show that in juvenile male and female zebra finches, neurons in a cortical-level auditory area, the caudal mesopallium (CM), can rapidly change their firing dynamics. This plasticity was only observed in birds that were reared in a complex acoustic and social environment, which also caused increased expression of the low-threshold potassium channel K v 1.1 in the plasma membrane and endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Intrinsic plasticity depended on activity, was reversed by blocking low-threshold potassium currents, and was prevented by blocking intracellular calcium signaling. Taken together, these results suggest that K v 1.1 is rapidly mobilized to the plasma membrane by activity-dependent elevation of intracellular calcium. This produces a shift in the excitability and temporal integration of CM neurons that may be permissive for auditory learning in complex acoustic environments during a crucial period for the development of vocal perception and production. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Neurons can change not only the strength of their connections to other neurons, but also how they integrate synaptic currents to produce patterns of action potentials. In contrast to synaptic plasticity, the mechanisms and functional roles of intrinisic plasticity remain poorly understood. We found that neurons in the zebra finch auditory cortex can rapidly shift their spiking dynamics within a few minutes in response to intracellular stimulation. This plasticity involves increased conductance of a low-threshold potassium current associated with the K v 1.1 channel, but it only occurs in birds reared in a rich acoustic environment. Thus, auditory experience regulates a mechanism of neural plasticity that allows neurons to rapidly adapt their firing dynamics to stimulation., (Copyright © 2023 the authors.)

Oxytocin (OT) orchestrates social and emotional behaviors through modulation of neural circuits. In the central amygdala, the release of OT modulates inhibitory circuits and, thereby, suppresses fear responses and decreases anxiety levels. Using astrocyte-specific gain and loss of function and pharmacological approaches, we demonstrate that a morphologically distinct subpopulation of astrocytes expresses OT receptors and mediates anxiolytic and positive reinforcement effects of OT in the central amygdala of mice and rats. The involvement of astrocytes in OT signaling challenges the long-held dogma that OT acts exclusively on neurons and highlights astrocytes as essential components for modulation of emotional states under normal and chronic pain conditions.

For many years, the binomial Hygrophorus hypothejus was widely applied to collections from various geographical regions in different continents, assuming a circum-boreal and circum-mediterranean distribution for this species. This hypothesis, however, had never been put to the test. To assess the diversity and species-limits within this complex of yellow-coloured waxcaps, a phylogenetic, morphological and taxonomical investigation into Hygrophorus sect. Aurei and similar species in sect. Olivaceoumbrini was carried out, including material of pan-European origin, as well as the east and west coasts of North America. Following sequencing of the ITS rDNA locus, nine lineages are confirmed in sect. Aurei, most of them highly continentalised. Of these, two are new to science, introduced here as Hygrophorus boyeri sp. nov., from Pinus banksiana and P. rigida forests in eastern North America and from P. muricata and P. contorta forests in western North America, and Hygrophorus meridionalis sp. nov., from Pinus brutia and Pinus halepensis forests in the island of Cyprus and mainland Greece. H. hypothejus is lectotypified and epitypified, and here resolved as a strictly European species, with the old forgotten taxon Hygrophorus siccipes revived as its North American vicariant. The placement of Hygrophorus fuligineus in sect. Aurei is phylogenetically confirmed and detailed comparisons between morphologically similar and phylogenetically affiliated taxa in sect. Aurei and sect. Olivaceoumbrini are provided. The chronic confusion associated with Hygrophorus fuscoalbus, a highly controversial taxon described from Germany nearly two centuries ago and variously interpreted since, is discussed, concluding that this name is too ambiguous to be applied to any currently recognized species., (Copyright © 2018 British Mycological Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Herein, the successful synthesis of Ti-doped vanadium pentoxide from a polyol process is reported. A high Ti concentration (up to 8.5 mol % of the total metallic content) can be inserted in vanadium oxide thanks to the synthesis route leading to nanometric crystallites. X-ray diffraction patterns were refined showing the insertion of the titanium ions inside the free pentacoordinated sites in opposition to the vanadium square pyramidal sites. This crystal organization was shown in good agreement with the ab initio positioning performed from valence calculation. The nanoparticles, NPs, of Ti-doped V 2 O 5 compounds were characterized as electrochromic materials. Films elaborated from a dip-coating process from oxide particle suspensions exhibited three distinct colorations during the redox cycling in lithium-based electrolyte. These colors were associated with three distinct oxidation states for the vanadium ions: +III (blue), +IV (green), and +V (orange). The morphology of the films was shown to drastically impact the electrochromic performances in terms of electrochemical capacity and stability.

Antibacterial activity of lomefloxacin was studied in the urine after single dose of 400 mg in ten healthy female volunteers. Urine was collected in 7 periods: 0-3 h, 3-6 h, 6-12 h, 12-24 h, 24-48 h, 48-72 h, 72-96 h. Lomefloxacin concentration were assayed in all samples by microbiological method. Urine antibacterial activity was determined towards five strains isolated in urine: 2 E. Coli strains one sensitive and the other resistant to nalidixic acid (Nal-A), 1 Klebsiella pneumoniae resistant to nalidixic acid (Nal-B), 1 Staphylococcus saprophyticus and 1 Streptococcus faecalis. MIC's of lomefloxacin against these strains were respectively 0.06, 0.50, 0.50, 0.25 and 4 micrograms/ml. Lomefloxacin mean concentrations were 208.5 +/- 44.2, 104.3 +/- 15.2, 100.5 +/- 17.9, 36.8 +/- 8.2, 9.6 +/- 2.2 micrograms/ml in the five first urine samples. Low levels were present in urine the 4th day. Mean urine elimination percentage was 62.2 +/- 4.2% for the four days, with extreme values from 91.2 to 41.8%. Urine bacteriostatic activity against enterobacteriacae was greater than or equal to 32 the first day reaching 8,192 for the Nal-S E. Coli, it was greater than or equal to 4 the second day. Against staphylococcus it was greater than or equal to 64 the first day, greater than or equal to 16 the second day. Against enterococcus it was greater than or equal to 4 the first day. Against the strains implicated in UTI a bacteriostatic activity was present during 2 days in all subjects.