Biology subjects

Herold, F.

Publications and source records attributed to Herold, F..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Gray matter Volume Modulates the Effect of Acute Physical Activity on Reading Comprehension and Cognitive Load in Adolescents. The Cogni-Action Project

BackgroundPhysical activity has been associated with better reading comprehension and reduces cognitive load (CL), but the role of brain volume in modulating this relationship remains unclear. Therefore, this study aims to determine whether the gray matter volume in key regions modulates the effects of different physical activity modalities on reading comprehension and associated CL. MethodsThirteen male adolescents (12-13 years). Adolescents with MRI data participated in a randomized cross-over trial comparing three conditions: 1) sedentary behavior (SC, emulating a school class), 2) moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT), and 3) cooperative high-intensity interval training (C-HIIT), with physical activity conditions duration adjusted to match SC energy expenditure. Gray matter volumes were measured in the bilateral hippocampus, left pars opercularis, and the brainstem. CL was assessed via pupil dilation during reading using eye-tracking. Reading comprehension was measured through seven-question multiple-choice tests with expert-validated items. ResultsC-HIIT demonstrated superior effects on both CL and reading comprehension compared to MICT and SC, with significant brain volume modulation effects across all examined regions. Brain volume interactions with physical activity modalities systematically modified the pattern of cognitive responses, with C-HIIT consistently benefiting from these modulations, whereas the effects of MICT were generally attenuated. ConclusionThis study suggests that selecting the appropriate physical activity modality may be relevant for cognitive outcomes during reading in adolescents. C-HIIT yielded lower CL and better reading comprehension, and these effects were not explained by brain volume alone but by its interaction with exercise modality.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2020

Regular Tai Chi Practice Is Associated with Improved Memory as well as Structural and Functional Integrity of the Hippocampal Formation in the Elderly

ObjectiveThe current study aimed at determining effects of Tai Chi as an example of a combined motor-cognitive exercise relative to regular walking as an example of an exercise without cognitive demands on cognitive functioning and the functional and structural integrity of the brain in the elderly. MethodsHealthy elderly women with at least 6 years of regular Tai Chi or brisk walking exercise were recruited and underwent cognitive assessment via the Montreal Cognitive Assessment and brain structural and resting state functional MRI assessments. ResultsEpisodic memory in Tai Chi group was superior to that of the walking group; (2) higher gray matter density in inferior and medial temporal regions, including the hippocampal formation; (3) higher ReHo in temporal regions, specifically the fusiform gyrus and hippocampal formation (4) significant partial correlations were found between the gray matter density of the left hippocampus and episodic memory in the whole sample (5) significant partial correlations were observed between the ReHo in left hippocampus, left parahippocampal, left fusiform and delayed memory task was observed among all subjects. ConclusionThe present study suggest that long-term Tai Chi practice may improve memory performance via remodeling structure and the function of the hippocampal formation.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2020

Cognitive Benefits of Exercise Interventions: An fMRI Activation Likelihood Estimation Meta-Analysis

Despite a growing number of functional MRI studies reporting exercise-induced changes during cognitive processing, a systematic determination of the underlying neurobiological pathways is currently lacking. To this end, our neuroimaging meta-analysis included 20 studies and investigated the influence of exercise on cognition-related functional brain activation. The overall meta-analysis encompassing all experiments revealed exercise-induced changes in the left parietal lobe during cognitive processing. Subgroup analysis further revealed that in the younger-age group (<35 years old) exercise induced more widespread changes in the right hemisphere whereas in the older-age group ([≥]35 years old) exercise-induced changes were restricted to the left parietal lobe. Furthermore, subgroup analysis for exercise intervention duration, showed that shorter exercise interventions induced changes in regions connected with frontoparietal and default mode networks whereas regions exhibiting effects of longer interventions connected with frontoparietal and dorsal attention networks. Our findings suggest that physical exercise training leads to changes in functional activation patterns primarily located in precuneus and associated with frontoparietal, dorsal attention and default mode networks. Furthermore, exercise-induced changes in functional brain activation varied as a function of age and exercise intervention duration.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2018

Thought experiment: Decoding cognitive processes from the fMRI data of one individual

Cognitive processes, such as the generation of language, can be mapped onto the brain using fMRI. These maps can in turn be used for decoding the respective processes from the brain activation patterns. Given individual variations in brain anatomy and organization, analyzes on the level of the single person are important to improve our understanding of how cognitive processes correspond to patterns of brain activity. They also allow to advance clinical applications of fMRI, because in the clinical setting making diagnoses for single cases is imperative. In the present study, we used mental imagery tasks to investigate language production, motor functions, visuo-spatial memory, face processing, and resting-state activity in a single person. Analysis methods were based on similarity metrics, including correlations between training and test data, as well as correlations with maps from the NeuroSynth meta-analysis. The goal was to make accurate predictions regarding the cognitive domain (e.g. language) and the specific content (e.g. animal names) of single 30-second blocks. Four teams used the dataset, each blinded regarding the true labels of the test data. Results showed that the similarity metrics allowed to reach the highest degrees of accuracy when predicting the cognitive domain of a block. Overall, 23 of the 25 test blocks could be correctly predicted by three of the four teams. Excluding the unspecific rest condition, up to 10 out of 20 blocks could be successfully decoded regarding their specific content. The study shows how the information contained in a single fMRI session and in each of its single blocks can allow to draw inferences about the cognitive processes an individual engaged in. Simple methods like correlations between blocks of fMRI data can serve as highly reliable approaches for cognitive decoding. We discuss the implications of our results in the context of clinical fMRI applications, with a focus on how decoding can support functional localization.

neuroscience↗