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Neuromolecular Imaging (NMI) for white matter detection, distinct from that of gray matter is an inventive art. (1) This imaging technique demonstrates, for the first time, a LIVE and continuous videotracking nanotechnology for distinguishing white matter from gray matter in the brain of epilepsy patients, online, in real time and for long periods of time. NMI is known to perform with unrivaled temporal and spatial operational reliability and reproducibility Thus, a nanotechnology for white matter disorders, for example, leukodystrophies, is published for the first time. The purpose of this paper is to present a critical distinction for white versus gray matter in hippocampal and neocortical resected tissue derived from mesial and neocortical temporal lobe epilepsy patients en bloc during intraoperative surgery; the patients present as medically refractory to classical pharmacotherapeutics. The tiny carbon-based lipid polymeric sensor, the BRODERICK PROBE® readily sees white matter in contrast to gray matter in brain neuroanatomic substrates as it continually senses the glia or the neuron, white or gray matter, respectively, with distinct clarity via electroactive signal processing. The difference between white and gray matter is striking as the videotrace slides smoothly from the white to the gray milieu. Thus, a primary in vivo white matter nanotechnology is presented to advance diagnosis and therapy for white and gray matter abnormalities in the brain and spinal cord.

A small but growing body of research on school-based mindfulness programs (SBMPs) has demonstrated benefits for students’ cognitive and affective functioning and overall wellbeing. Yet, lack of fidelity in SBMP implementation may diminish these programs’ purported benefits. This commentary presents 4 current challenges that need to be addressed so that questions of whether and how mindfulness improves student functioning can be clarified and implementation of programs can be strengthened and sustained. These challenges include coming to consensus on the definition and intention of mindfulness training, balancing adherence with flexibility in SBMP delivery, determining the role SBMP teachers’ mindfulness experience plays in program fidelity, and delineating distinctive features of mindful pedagogy. Some suggestions for addressing each of these challenges are provided.

Vulcanodon karibaensis is one of the earliest-branching members of Sauropoda and a forerunner of the largest terrestrial animals ever to have lived. Its stratigraphic position has most recently been given as Toarcian (latest Early Jurassic), making it a contemporary of the northern African taxon Tazoudasaurus, but some literature suggests that it may be considerably older. This uncertainty obscures our understanding of the timing of major sauropod evolutionary events, such as the onset of the major body size increases that characterize the clade. To improve constraints on the geological age of Vulcanodon , we revisited the type locality and collected new, higher precision stratigraphic and sedimentological data. Our results show that Vulcanodon is from lower in the stratigraphy than previously documented, lying within the uppermost Forest Sandstone rather than the interbedded sandstones of the Batoka Basalt Formation. Sedimentological data suggest that the upper part of the Forest Sandstone correlates with the Clarens Formation of the main Karoo Basin, implying that Vulcanodon is likely Sinemurian–Pliensbachian in age, and potentially ∼10–15 million years (Ma) older than previously thought.

Mindfulness training has shown promise in improving psychological health and cognitive function. Mindfulness skills may be particularly beneficial in helping first-year students’ transition to college, as this can be a time period of considerable lifestyle changes and increased stress. Previous research has demonstrated positive effects of mindfulness training in college populations, but primarily by providing standardized mindfulness programs that are distinct from the college curriculum. Such programs may pose greater challenges for student participation, as they require a strong extracurricular time commitment. The present study examined the effects of mindfulness training incorporated into a semester-long college seminar dedicated to both practical learning of mindfulness skills and scientific understanding of mindfulness theory, based on the evidence-based Learning to BREATHE (L2B) curriculum. In a quasi-experimental design, first-year undergraduate students in the mindfulness seminar were compared with a control group enrolled in a positive psychology and study skills seminar. Students in the mindfulness seminar exhibited more improvement in satisfaction with life and trait mindfulness, as well as less anxiety; in contrast, no differences were observed in cognitive function. These results demonstrate the feasibility and potential psychological benefits of integrating mindfulness training into standard college curriculum.

CONTEXT • Behavioral lifestyle interventions to lower body mass index (BMI; kg/m(2)) are the standard approach for preventing adolescent-onset type 2 diabetes (T2D). Unfortunately, existing programs have had limited long-term success of lessening insulin resistance, the key physiological risk indicator for T2D. Underlying psychosocial factors, particularly depressive symptoms, have been related to insulin resistance, independent of BMI or body fat. Preliminary evidence indicates that mindfulness-based programs show promise for intervening with depression and T2D; yet, this approach is novel and data in adolescents are scarce. OBJECTIVE • The objectives of this study were (1) to evaluate the benefits, and potential underlying mechanisms, of a mindfulness-based intervention in adolescents at-risk for T2D with depressive symptoms and (2) to consider clinical implementation with this specific, psychologically, and medically at-risk adolescent population. DESIGN AND SETTING • The research team conducted a case study report. The setting was an outpatient therapy clinic and research laboratory at a university. PARTICIPANT • The participant was a 16-y-old female with elevated depressive symptoms, obesity, and insulin resistance, and a family history of T2D. INTERVENTION AND OUTCOMES • The intervention was a 6-wk mindfulness-based group program. The key outcomes were patterns of change in trait mindfulness, depression, and insulin resistance in the course of a 1-y follow-up. Secondary outcomes were patterns of change in reported-overeating patterns and cortisol awakening response. RESULTS • Compared with her scores at baseline, the participant displayed a pattern of increased trait mindfulness, decreased depressive symptoms, and lessening of insulin resistance immediately following the group program and at 1 y. BMI and body fat were stable. There was a remission in reported-overeating and a pattern of declining cortisol awakening response 1 y later. Participant feedback on the intervention was generally positive but also provided potential modifications to strengthen acceptability and effectiveness. CONCLUSIONS • The current case results suggest that teaching mindfulness skills to adolescent girls at risk for T2D with depressive symptoms may offer distinctive advantages for treating depression and T2D risk. Clinical implications for increasing the success of implementing mindfulness-based programs in this population include a focus on promotion of social connectedness within the group, implementation of strategies to increase adherence to home practice activities, and the use of facilitation techniques to promote concrete understanding of abstract mindfulness concepts. Future, adequately powered clinical trial data are required to test therapeutic mechanisms and recommended adaptations.

Introduction: Moderate hypoxia has been implicated in the development of delirium. One mechanism may be an increase of Dopamine (DA) and Serotonin (5-HT) levels. Our previous studies indicated that hypoxia increased levels of both neurotransmitters (NT) and that nimodipine (NIMO) administered immediately after hypoxia preserved short term memory. We tested the hypothesis that these observations may be related to a NIMO dependent reduction of hypoxia in- duced NT elevation. Methods: Following IACUC approval, In Vivo microvoltammetry sensors (BRODERICK PROBE ® ) were implanted in the dorsal striatum of Na Pentobarbital anesthetized adult Sprague-Dawley rats. Extracellular NT levels were recorded for 15m during the establishment of baseline values in room air (N=6). Three sequential thirty-minute periods under hypoxia (10% O2) followed. First: under hypoxia alone; second after i.p. injection of NIMO (0.1mg/kg); and third following i.p. injection of NIMO (1.0mg/kg). Measurements were analyzed with ANOVA with post hoc Tukeys test. P-values less than 0.05 were considered significant. Results: NT levels are expressed as percentages of baseline values. Treatment values were averaged over each sequential thirty-minute period following each intervention. Moderate hypoxia resulted in the increase of DA to 172% (SEM=18) and 5-HT to 68% (SEM=4) above baseline. Under continuing hypoxia, NIMO (0.1mg/kg) caused DA levels to fall to 112% (SEM=14) and 5-HT to 13% (SEM=5) above baseline. NIMO (1.0mg/kg) caused DA levels to fall to 34% (SEM=6) above baseline and 5-HT to 20% (SEM=2) below baseline. Conclusion: Moderate hypoxia increased levels of DA and 5-HT in the striatum of rats. NIMO administration during on- going hypoxia caused the levels of both neurotransmitters to fall towards baseline. The results may have implications for understanding and treating cognitive decline due to hypoxia.