Biology subjects

Pinsk, M.

Publications and source records attributed to Pinsk, M..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2022

Reversible edema following electric drilling of macaque craniotomy

In-vivo electrophysiology requires direct access to brain tissue, necessitating the development and refinement of surgical procedures and techniques that promote the health and well-being of the animal subjects. Here, we report a series of findings noted on structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans in monkeys with MRI-compatible implants following small craniotomies that provide access for intracranial electrophysiology. We found distinct brain regions exhibiting hyperintensities in T2-weighted scans that were prominent underneath the sites at which craniotomies had been performed. We interpreted these hyperintensities as edema of the neural tissue and found that they were predominantly present following electric drilling, but not when manual, hand-operated drills were used. Further, the anomalies subsided within 2-3 weeks following surgery. Our report highlights the utility of MRI-compatible implants that promote clinical examination of the animals brain, sometimes revealing findings that may go unnoticed when incompatible implants are used. We show replicable differences in outcome when using electric vs. mechanical devices, both ubiquitous in the field. If electric drills are used, our report cautions electrophysiological recordings from tissue directly underneath the craniotomy for the first 2-3 weeks following the procedure due to putative edema.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2021

Right Temporoparietal Junction Encodes Mental Experience of Others More Than Evaluating False Versus True Belief

When people make inferences about other peoples minds, called theory of mind (ToM), a network in the cerebral cortex becomes active. ToM experiments sometimes use the false belief task, in which subjects decide whether a story character believes A or B. The "false" belief occurs if the character believes A when B is true. We devised a version in which subjects judged whether a cartoon head "believed" a ball to be in box 1 or box 2. The task was a visual, reaction-time version of a ToM task. We proposed two alternative hypotheses. In hypothesis 1, cortical regions of interest within the ToM network should distinguish between false and true belief trials, reflecting outside information that the subjects have about the cartoon character. In hypothesis 2, the ToM network should distinguish between conditions only if the subjects think that the cartoon character can distinguish between the conditions, thus reflecting a model of the internal contents of the cartoon characters mind. The results supported hypothesis 2. Events that the cartoon could not "see" did not affect activity in the ToM network; the same events, when the cartoon could apparently "see" them, significantly affected activity in the right temporoparietal junction (TPJ). The results support the view that the right TPJ participates in modeling the mental states of others, rather than in evaluating the accuracy of the beliefs of others, and may help explain why previous experiments showed mixed results when directly comparing false belief to true belief conditions. Significance statementHow do we understand the minds of others? A specific network of areas in the human brain is known to emphasize building models of other peoples minds. In one traditional hypothesis, this network helps us distinguish whether someone elses beliefs are true or false. Here we show that the network is relatively insensitive to ones own, outside knowledge about whether someone elses beliefs are true or false. Instead, at least one node in the network appears to limit itself mainly to reconstructing the other persons point of view. This social cognition network may be more about empathy than about critical evaluation. ClassificationSocial Sciences - Psychological and Cognitive Sciences

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2017

An open resource for nonhuman primate imaging

Non-human primate neuroimaging is a rapidly growing area of research that promises to transform and scale translational and cross-species comparative neuroscience.\n\nUnfortunately, the technological and methodological advances of the past two decades have outpaced the accrual of data, which is particularly challenging given the relatively few centers that have the necessary facilities and capabilities. The PRIMate Data Exchange (PRIME-DE) addresses this challenge by aggregating independently acquired non-human primate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) datasets and openly sharing them via the International Neuroimaging Data-sharing Initiative (INDI). Here, we present the rationale, design and procedures for the PRIME-DE consortium, as well as the initial release, consisting of 13 independent data collections aggregated across 11 sites (total = 98 macaque monkeys). We also outline the unique pitfalls and challenges that should be considered in the analysis of the non-human primate MRI datasets, including providing automated quality assessment of the contributed datasets.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2017

Organizing principles of pulvino-cortical connectivity in humans

The pulvinar regulates information transmission to cortex and communication between cortical areas. The way the pulvinar interacts with cortex is governed by its intrinsic organization. Here, we show using fMRI that the human pulvinar is functionally heterogeneous, broadly separated into dorsal and ventral subdivisions based on characterization of response properties and functional connectivity with cortex. These differences mirrored the organization of the dorsal and ventral streams of visual cortex. The ventral subdivision of the pulvinar was functionally coupled with occipital and temporal cortex. The dorsal subdivision of the pulvinar was functionally coupled with frontal and parietal cortex. The dorsal subdivision was also coupled with the human-specific tool network and to the default mode network. The spatial organization of pulvino-cortical coupling reflected both the functional similarities and anatomical distances between cortical areas. Together, the human pulvinar appears to represent the entire visual system and the principles that govern its organization, though in a spatially compressed form.\n\nAuthor ContributionsMA, MP, and JC collected data; MA and JC analyzed the data; MA, MP, JC, and SK wrote the paper.

neuroscience↗