Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2015-12-04T12:42:50Z No. of bitstreams: 1 hermenegildoferreiragiovannoni.pdf: 947447 bytes, checksum: b231d996965f2ee2a2559ae8a430c560 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2015-12-07T03:19:31Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 hermenegildoferreiragiovannoni.pdf: 947447 bytes, checksum: b231d996965f2ee2a2559ae8a430c560 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-12-07T03:19:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 hermenegildoferreiragiovannoni.pdf: 947447 bytes, checksum: b231d996965f2ee2a2559ae8a430c560 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-02-26 / CAPES - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Esta tese apresenta uma pesquisa das relações conceituais entre a psicologia analítica, como formulada originalmente por Jung, e o modelo neurocognitivo do Self proposto por McNamara, com foco nas bases funcionais da experiência religiosa. A partir da psicologia analítica, os principais conceitos analisados envolvem a teoria dos complexos, desde a sua origem nos testes de associação de palavras até a sua formulação mais acabada nos últimos textos de Jung, bem como o papel do símbolo e dos arquétipos e o modo como a libido possibilita os conteúdos psíquicos religiosos. A partir da teoria de McNamara, são investigados os desdobramentos da questão do Self dividido, com uma revisão das suas origens teóricas e uma exposição da relação que o autor constrói entre essa questão e os conhecimentos recentes em genética e evolução, bem como os conceitos de Self executivo e Selves possíveis. Dedica-se especial consideração à maneira como os dois autores interpretam a capacidade transformadora das práticas religiosas para a consciência do indivíduo. Propõem-se, ao final, pontos de convergência entre as duas teorias. / This thesis presents a research of conceptual relations between analytical psychology, as originally formulated by Jung, and the neurocognitive model of Self proposed by McNamara, with focus on the functional basis of religious experience. From analytical psychology, the main concepts analysed involve the theory of complexes, which is traced from its beginnings in word association tests to the well-formed presentation in the last texts of Jung, as well as the role of symbols and archetypes, and the manner through which libido enables religious psychic contents. From the theory of McNamara, it is examined the unfolding of the problem of the divided Self, presenting a review of its theoretical roots and an exposition of the relations that McNamara draws between this problem and recent developments in genetics and evolution, as well as the concepts of executive Self and possible Selves. Particular consideration is devoted to the way both thinkers explain the transformative capacity of religious practices to one’s conscience. At the end, points of converging between both theories are proposed.

A oferta de cursos de Licenciatura em Computação vem sendo ampliada no Brasil. Esse curso pertencente a uma área de conhecimento recente: a Computação, agregando outras áreas como a Educação. Ele encerra dificuldades que exigem discussão acadêmica e social. Uma das dificuldades é a produção de material didático para ensino de Computação; esse material é desenvolvido pelos estudantes, mas, geralmente, sem base teórica adequada. Para contribuir com a superação dessa lacuna a pesquisa objetiva analisar a influência do estudo de Epistemologia Genética e Neurociência Cognitiva na produção didática de estudantes de Licenciatura em Computação, através da elaboração de problemas ou desafios de Linguagem de Programação, para o ensino de Computação no Ensino Fundamental. As atividades foram realizadas na disciplina Práticas Articuladoras em Computação IV do curso de Licenciatura em Computação, da Universidade de Santa Cruz do Sul – UNISC, com a participação de onze estudantes. As linguagens de programação exploradas para a produção do material didático foram FMSLogo, Scratch e Robokit. O levantamento dos dados contou com quatro etapas que compreenderam a produção didática dos estudantes através do desenvolvimento de problemas ou desafios de programação, o estudo das referidas teorias, em especial as categorias “Aprendizagem”, “Emoções e Sentimentos”, “Estímulo Emocional Competente”, “Abstração Reflexionante” e “Self”, a reelaboração da produção didática com base no estudo realizado e a análise dessa produção Os dados junto aos estudantes matriculados na disciplina foram coletados através de entrevista oral e de questionário online. A análise do material didático, desenvolvido pelos estudantes, verifica a presença textual dos três primeiros elementos de referência da prática computacional estabelecidos pelo Instituto de Tecnologia de Massachusetts – MIT: 1. Ação interativa-incremental, 2. Teste-depuração, 3.Reutilização-reformulação e 4.Abstração-modulação. A análise dos processos de abstração pseudoempírica e reflexionante permitiram entender que os resultados apontam a influência do estudo de Epistemologia Genética e Neurociência Cognitiva na produção didática dos estudantes de Licenciatura em Computação. Os problemas de programação reelaborados por nove estudantes apresentam modificações intermediárias ou muitas modificações. Conclui-se que a produção de material didático para o ensino de Computação no Ensino Fundamental pode assumir um caráter desafiador, através de descrição textual que privilegia a ação de quem resolve problemas de programação. / The offer of graduation programs in Computer Science for Teaching has been expended in Brazil. This graduation program belongs to a recent area of knowledge: Computing, adding other areas such as Education. It entails difficulties that require academic and social discussion. One of the difficulties is the production of didactic material for Computing Teaching; this material is developed by the students, but generally without adequate theoretical basis. In order to contribute to overcoming this gap, the objective research decided to analyze the influence of the study Genetic Epistemology and Cognitive Neuroscience in the didactic production of undergraduate students in Computer Science for Teaching, through the elaboration of problems or challenges of Programming Language, for the Computing Teaching in Elementary School. The Method relied on activities carried out in the subject Articulating Practices in Computing IV of the in Computer Science for Teaching course of the University of Santa Cruz do Sul – UNISC, with the participation of eleven students. The programming languages explored for the production of didactic material were FMSLogo, Scratch and ROBOKIT. The data collection had four stages that comprised the didactic production of the students through the development of problems or programming challenges, the study of these theories, in particular the categories “learning”, “emotions and feelings”, “competent emotional stimulus”, “reflective abstraction” and “self” the re-elaboration of didactic production based on the realized study and the analysis of this production The collected data from the enrolled students in the subject were collected through an interview based on the Jean Piaget Clinical Method and an online questionnaire. The analysis of the didactic material, developed by the students, verifies the textual presence of the first three elements of computational practice established by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology - MIT: 1. Interactive-incremental action, 2. Test-Depuration, 3. Reuse-reformulation and 4. Abstraction-modulation. The analysis of the processes of pseudoempirical and reflective abstraction processes allowed to understand that the results point to the influence of Genetic Epistemology and Cognitive Neuroscience study in the didactic production of Computer Science for Teaching students. Programming problems reworked by nine students present intermediate modifications or many modifications. It is concluded that the production of didactic material for the Computing teaching in the elementary school can assume a challenging character, through a textual description that privileges the action of those who solve programming problems.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is symptomized by amyloid-beta plaques in the brain and accounts for more than 65 percent of dementia cases. Vitamin B12 (cobalamin) deficiency can result in similar cognitive impairment and roughly 15% of the elderly are vitamin B12 deficient. Vitamin B12 deficiency results in the accumulation of toxic methylmalonic acid and homocysteine. Hyperhomocysteinemia is a strong risk factor for AD. To test if vitamin B12 deficiency stimulates amyloid-beta toxicity, Caenorhabditis elegans expressing amyloid-beta in muscle were fed either vitamin B12-deficient OP50-1 or vitamin B12-rich HT115(DE3) E. coli bacteria. Increased amyloid-beta toxicity was found in worms fed the 0P50-1 diet. Supplementation of the OP50-1 diet with vitamin B12 did not rescue the increased C. elegans toxicity. Knockdown of either of the only two C. elegans vitamin B12-dependent enzymes metr-1 or mmmc-1 protected against toxicity. Therefore, vitamin B12 deficiency does not stimulate Alzheimer’s amyloid-beta-mediated toxicity in C. elegans.

Psychiatry is in a crisis. Mental health disorders are on the rise worldwide and there are currently not enough efficient treatment methods that would meet the patients’ needs. Hence, the societal and economic costs of mental health problems are enormous, as well as the suffering of individuals afflicted by mental health problems. Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and psilocybin are substances that create an altered state of consciousness characterized by altered sensory perception and on some occasions, ego-dissolution, and mystical experiences. In recent studies, LSD and psilocybin have been shown to carry significant therapeutic potential in the treatment of depression and anxiety disorders in conjunction with psychotherapy. The therapeutic effects of LSD and psilocybin have also been shown to persist for between 3-12 months post-treatment. LSD and psilocybin, like other classical hallucinogens, increase serotonin availability, which has been suggested to attenuate symptoms of anxiety and depression. In addition, LSD and psilocybin alter the activity of the default mode network, which has been suggested to be overly active in depressed and anxious patients. This essay is a literature review of the neural mechanisms of LSD and psilocybin, their potential therapeutic effects in the treatment of depressive and anxiety disorders, and how insights about said neural mechanisms may be useful in understanding the possible application of psychedelics in the treatment of depressive and anxiety disorders. In sum, recent studies have provided converging and convincing evidence on therapeutic potential of LSD and psilocybin. Yet, few conclusions on the exact neural mechanisms of how LSD and psilocybin alleviate depressive and anxiety symptoms can be made. Although the future of this research field looks promising, archaic national- and international regulations continue to be a hindrance to research into psychedelic drugs. Yet, due to the psychiatric crisis and the promising results so far, more studies in this field are warranted.

In the late 90’s, emerging evidence revealed that the brain is insulin-sensitive, highlighted by broad expression of brain-specific insulin receptors and reports of circulating brain insulin. Contemporary literature robustly supports the role of insulin signaling in normal brain function and suggests that insulin-related processes diminish with aging, evidenced by decreased signaling markers, reduced insulin receptor density, and lower levels of insulin transport across the blood-brain barrier. In the context of pathological cognitive decline, clinical trials using intranasal insulin delivery have reported positive outcomes on memory and learning in patients with mild cognitive decline or early-stage Alzheimer’s disease. However, while the importance of insulin and its related actions in the brain are robustly supported, the distinct mechanisms and pathways that mediate these effects remain unclear. To address this, I conducted a series of experiments exploring the impact of insulin on memory and learning in two models: primary hippocampal cell cultures and the Fisher 344 animal model of aging. These studies attempted to identify relationships between insulin receptor signaling, neuronal gene expression, glucose metabolism, and calcium homeostasis in the hippocampus using either expression of a constitutively active human insulin receptor or administration of intranasal insulin. The following dissertation summarizes this work and provides valuable insights into the potential pathways mediating these relationships. Of note, intranasal studies reported that insulin is able to significantly alter gene expression patterns in the hippocampus of both young and aged rats following chronic, repeated exposure to the ligand. In cell culture, constitutive insulin signaling correlated with significantly elevated neuronal glucose uptake and utilization, as well as with significant alterations in the overall expression and localization of the neuron-specific glucose transporter 3. Interestingly, continued activity of the insulin receptor did not appear to alter voltage-gated calcium channels in hippocampal neurons despite prior evidence of the ligand’s role in other calcium-related processes. The results reported in this manuscript suggest that in the brain, insulin may be involved in a myriad of complex and dynamic events dependent on numerous variables, such as age, length of the exposure, and/or the insulin formulation used. Nevertheless, this work highlights the validity of using insulin to ameliorate age-related cognitive decline and supports the need for further studies exploring alternative approaches to enhance insulin receptor signaling in the brain.

Humans have a tendency to impute structure spontaneously even in simple learning tasks, however the way they approach structure learning can vary drastically. The present study sought to determine why individuals learn structure differently. One hypothesized explanation for differences in structure learning is individual differences in cognitive control. Cognitive control allows individuals to maintain representations of a task and may interact with reinforcement learning systems. It was expected that individual differences in propensity to apply cognitive control, which shares component processes with hierarchical reinforcement learning, may explain how individuals learn structure differently in a simple structure learning task. Results showed that proactive control and model-based control explained differences in the rate at which individuals applied structure learning.

When presented with two identical sounds from different locations separated by a short onset asynchrony, listeners report hearing a single source at the location of the lead sound, a phenomenon called the precedence effect (Wallach et al., 1949; Haas, 1951). When the onset asynchrony is above echo threshold, listeners report hearing the lead and lag sounds as separate sources with distinct locations. Event-related potential (ERP) studies have shown that perception of separate sound sources is accompanied by an object-related negativity (ORN) 100-250 ms after onset and a late posterior positivity (LP) 300-500 ms after onset (Sanders et al., 2008; Sanders et al., 2011). The current study tested whether these ERP effects are modulated by attention. Clicks were presented in lead/lag pairs at and around listeners’ echo thresholds while in separate blocks they 1) attended to the sounds and reported if they heard the lag sound as a separate source, and 2) performed a difficult 2-back visual task. Replicating previous results, when attention was directed to the sounds, an ORN and LP were observed for click pairs 1 ms above compared to 1 ms below echo threshold. In contrast, when attention was directed away from the sounds to the visual task, neither the ORN nor the LP was evident. Instead, click pairs 1 ms above echo threshold elicited an anterior positivity 250-450 ms after onset. In addition, an effect resembling an ORN was found in comparing ERPs elicited by unattended click pairs with SOAs below attended echo threshold. These results indicate that attention modulates early perceptual processes in the precedence effect and may be critical for auditory object formation under these conditions.

Abstract: Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is a complex neurodegenerative disease that requires interprofessional collaboration. Pharmacological options are currently ineffective, increasing the need for preventative strategies to combat the rise of AD. Considerations of gut-targeted interventions have increased as a key component in the prevention of AD, based on the understanding that the state of the gut microbiome can impact cognitive function through the pathway known as the gut-brain axis. Methods: This scoping review explored information on the gut-brain axis in persons with AD. A comprehensive search was conducted in November 2023. Forty reviews and 13 human studies were analyzed. Results: There is an abundance of information supporting the role of the gut-brain axis in the development and prevention of AD. This information is complex and may deter healthcare professionals outside of neuroscience, medicine, and nutrition from engaging in the literature. Further research is needed from within the SLP’s scope of practice.

Goal-directed actions frequently require a balance between antagonistic processes (e.g., executing and inhibiting a response), often showing an interdependency concerning what constitutes goal-directed behavior. While an inter-dependency of antagonistic actions is well described at a behavioral level, a possible inter-dependency of underlying processes at a neuronal level is still enigmatic. However, if there is an interdependency, it should be possible to predict the neurophysiological processes underlying inhibitory control based on the neural processes underlying speeded automatic responses. Based on that rationale, we applied artificial intelligence and source localization methods to human EEG recordings from N = 255 participants undergoing a response inhibition experiment (Go/Nogo task). We show that the amplitude and timing of scalp potentials and their functional neuroanatomical sources during inhibitory control can be inferred by conditional generative adversarial networks (cGANs) using neurophysiological data recorded during response execution. We provide insights into possible limitations in the use of cGANs to delineate the interdependency of antagonistic actions on a neurophysiological level. Nevertheless, artificial intelligence methods can provide information about interdependencies between opposing cognitive processes on a neurophysiological level with relevance for cognitive theory.

It seems natural that motor responses unfold smoothly and that we are able to easily concatenate different components of movements to achieve goal-directed actions. Theoretical frameworks suggest that different motor features have to be bound to each other to achieve a coherent action. Yet, the nature of the “glue” (i.e., bindings) between elements constituting a motor sequence and enabling a smooth unfolding of motor acts is not well understood. We examined in how far motor feature bindings are affected by reward magnitude or the effects of an unsigned surprise signal. We show that the consistency of action file binding strength is modulated by unsigned surprise, but not by reward magnitude. On a conceptual and theoretical level, the results provide links between frameworks, which have until now not been brought into connection. In particular, theoretical accounts stating that only the unexpectedness (surprisingness) is essential for action control are connected to meta-control accounts of human action control.