Search

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) may be related to serious cognitive impairment in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD), but the specific mechanism is still unclear. This study attempts to identify the neurobiological process alterations of cognitive impairment in MDD patients with NSSI by examining the functional connectivity of the frontotemporal cortex in MDD patients with or without NSSI. Thirty MDD patients with NSSI, 36 MDD patients without NSSI, and 35 healthy controls (HC) were included in the study. The MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB) was used to comprehensively assess the cognitive function of the subjects and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) was used to detect the functional connectivity of the frontotemporal cortex and its brain regions of interest. MDD patients with or without NSSI had multi-domain cognitive impairments. MDD patients with NSSI showed the lowest score in performance of attention/alertness and the weakest functional connectivity of frontotemporal when compared with the MDD patients without NSSI and the HC. In addition, the functional connectivity of the bilateral frontotemporal cortex was positively correlated with verbal learning and working memory in MDD patients with NSSI. In MDD patients, the appearance of NSSI is often accompanied by further impairment of attention/alertness and a decline in functional connectivity of the frontotemporal cortex. The impairment of verbal learning and working memory was associated with decreased functional connectivity of the frontotemporal cortex in MDD patients with NSSI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Recent evidences have shown sex-differential cognitive deficits in bipolar disorder (BD) and differences in cognitions across BD subtypes. However, the sex-specific effect on cognitive impairment in BD subtype II (BD-II) remains obscure. The aim of the current study was to examine whether cognitive deficits differ by gender in youth with BD-II depression. Method: This cross-sectional study recruited 125 unmedicated youths with BD-II depression and 140 age-, sex-, and education-matched healthy controls (HCs). The Chinese version of the Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia (MATRICS) Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB) was used to assess cognitive functions. Mood state was assessed using the 24-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (24-HDRS) and the Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS). Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) was conducted. Result: ​Compared with HCs, patients with BD-II depression had lower scores on MCCB composite and its seven cognitive domains (all p < 0.001). After controlling for age and education, MANCOVA revealed significant gender-by-group interaction on attention/vigilance (F = 6.224, df = 1, p = 0.013), verbal learning (F = 9.847, df = 1, p = 0.002), visual learning (F = 4.242, df = 1, p = 0.040), and composite (F = 8.819, df = 1, p = 0.003). Post hoc analyses suggested that males performed worse in the above-mentioned MCCB tests than females in BD-II depression. Conclusion: Our study demonstrated generalized cognitive deficits in unmedicated youths with BD-II depression. Male patients performed more serious cognitive impairment on attention/vigilance, verbal learning, and visual learning compared to female patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epibionts and hosts as well as their interactions comprise a special ecosystem in the marine hard-substrate communities which could provide paleoecological implications for the critical events of Earth history. Abundant brachiopod hosts were sampled from the Givetian–Famennian of the Longmenshan region in South China. We describe the encrustation patterns on the brachiopods in terms of epibiont abundance, diversity, relationships between hosts and epibionts, and interaction between epibiont taxa. A total of 3067 brachiopod specimens are examined and identified into seven species, among which 683 specimens are encrusted by epibionts represented by eight taxa. The percentage of encrusted shells and the mean number of epibionts per shell of host brachiopods, are mainly related to the shell morphology of the host and ecological environments. The abundance of epibionts and the number of associations are quite variable among the Middle–Late Devonian stages. Most of epibionts have selective preferences on certain host taxa. The individual size of epibionts is an important factor in choosing the host. During the Givetian and Frasnian time, encrusters were much more abundant on the dorsal valves than on the ventral valves of host brachiopods. However, until the Famennian time, the biconvex spiriferoids have more encrusters on the ventral valves. Such an encrusting change from dorsal valves to ventral valves across the F/F boundary might not be related to ecological environments, yet only the change of host taxa. The epibionts encrusted on host brachiopods did not display a sudden collapse around the F-F boundary interval. The epibiont abundance, diversity, relationships between hosts and epibionts, as well as interaction between epibiont taxa do not show a significant change around the F/F boundary. It may indicate there was no dramatic environmental change in the Frasnian and Famennian boundary interval but long-term ecological damage during the Frasnian in the studied region. • There is a significant variation in abundance, composition, and association of epibionts encrusted on brachiopod taxa. • The epibionts show a selective preference for the hosts, which is related to the shape of host and the size of epibionts. • The dramatic decreases of abundance and association number of epibionts happened in early Frasnian. • The epibionts encrusted on brachiopods did not display a sudden collapse around the Frasnian/Famennian boundary interval. • There is long-term ecological damage during Late Devonian rather than a dramatic one in the Frasnian/Famennian boundary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]