1,720,991 research outputs found
Ricerca scientifica - Finanziamento per Avvio alla Ricerca - Anno 2012
No full textE' noto ormai da tempo che il cervelletto ha un ruolo centrale nel processamento delle funzioni motorie (Dow and Moruzzi, 1958;Ito,1984).Tuttavia, nell'ultimo
ventennio, è stato ampiamente dimostrato anche il suo coinvolgimento nella modulazione delle funzioni cognitive (Leiner et al., 1991; Leggio et al., 2000;Molinari et
al., 2002).Studi anatomici effettuati sui primati(Ito,1990,; Middleton and Strick; 1994)e studi funzionali su soggetti sani(Clower et al., 2001; Allen et al., 2005;)
hanno evidenziato l'esistenza di canali segregati e paralleli che mettono in comunicazione diverse aree cerebellari con specifiche aree della corteccia
fronto-temporo-parietale coinvolte nel controllo cognitivo.L'esistenza di queste connessioni tra cervelletto e aree associative giustifica la possibile insorgenza,in
seguito a lesioni cerebellari,dei tipici disturbi della sfera motoria (Holmes, 1939) ma anche di un ampio spettro di deficit che riguardano funzioni
linguistiche(Schmahmann and Sherman,1998;Leggio et al.,2000)visuospaziali(Petrosini et al.,1996; Leggio et al., 1999,2000;) emozionali (Wisoff et al.,1984;
Schmahmann and Sherman,1998;)ed esecutive(Schmahmann and Sherman,1998;Schmahmann et al.,2004).Queste osservazioni dimostrano come differenti patologie
cerebellari possano coinvolgere aree e proiezioni cerebellari diverse,generando un ampio e differenziato spettro di sintomi neurologici cognitivi e comportamentali.La
presente ricerca si propone di ricostruire,mediante Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI),una mappa rappresentativa delle connessioni cerebello-cortico-cerebellari in
soggetti sani e di caratterizzare tali circuiti in presenza di lesione cerebellare.Inoltre al fine di segregare i diversi moduli funzionali e di chiarire le relazioni tra sintomi
cognitivo/comportamentali e specifiche connessioni cerebello-corticali,i dati relativi all'acquisizione delle neuroimmagini verranno correlati con quelli relativi ai
diversi aspetti del funzionamento cognitivo
Functional connectivity changes as detected by resting state functional MRI: three cases of patients with focal cerebellar lesion.
No full textThe impact of cerebellar white matter damage on cortical grey matter:a diffusion imaging study
No full textImpact of cerebellar atrophy on cortical grey matter and cerebellar peduncles as assessed by voxel based morphometry and diffusion imaging
No full textBilateral effects of unilateral cerebellar lesion as detected by voxel based morphometry and diffusion imaging
No full text
The rising role of cognitive reserve and associated compensatory brain networks in spinocerebellar ataxia type 2
No full textPre-existing or enhanced cognitive abilities influence symptom onset and severity in neurodegenerative diseases, which improve an individual's ability to deal with neurodegeneration. This process is named cognitive reserve (CR), and it has acquired high visibility in the field of neurodegeneration. However, the investigation of CR has been neglected in the context of cerebellar neurodegenerative disorders. The present study assessed CR and its impact on cognitive abilities in spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 (SCA2), which is a rare cerebellar neurodegenerative disease. We investigated the existence of CR networks in terms of compensatory mechanisms and neural reserve driven by increased cerebello-cerebral functional connectivity. The CR of 12 SCA2 patients was assessed using the Cognitive Reserve Index Questionnaire (CRIq), which was developed for appraising life-span CR. Patients underwent several neuropsychological tests to evaluate cognitive functioning and a functional MRI examination. Network based statistics analysis was used to assess functional brain networks. The results revealed significant correlations of CRIq measures with cognitive domains and patterns of increased connectivity in specific cerebellar and cerebral regions, which likely indicated CR networks. This study showed that CR may influence disease-related cognitive deficits, and it was related to the effective use of specific cerebello-cerebral networks that reflect a CR biomarker
The emerging role of the cerebellum in the affective theory of mind in the behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia
No full textWe previously documented the relation between functional connectivity changes within mentalizing cerebello-cerebral networks and impaired performance on affective Theory of Mind (ToM) in patients with behavioral variant of Frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD). In the present study, we further extend our previous observations, with the attempt to also disentangle among affective and cognitive ToM components and better clarify the cerebellar role in social cognition alterations observed in bvFTD. By using a ToM task which allows to evaluate the two ToM components, we showed that both cognitive and affective ToM are altered in bvFTD patients. Notably, we demonstrated for the first time that FC changes between core social cerebellar and cerebral regions may selectively underlie altered affective ToM in bvFTD thus providing additional insight on the putative role of cerebello-cerebral mentalizing network in social alterations of patients
The role of the cerebellum in unconsciuos and conscious processing of emotions: a review
Full text linkStudies from the past three decades have demonstrated that there is cerebellar involvement in the emotional domain. Emotional processing in humans requires both unconscious and conscious mechanisms. A significant amount of evidence indicates that the cerebellum is one of the cerebral structures that subserve emotional processing, although conflicting data have been reported on its function in unconscious and conscious mechanisms. This review discusses the available clinical, neuroimaging and neurophysiological data on this issue. We also propose a model in which the cerebellum acts as a mediator between the internal state and external environment for the unconscious and conscious levels of emotional processing
The cerebellum is linked to theory of mind alterations in autism. A direct clinical and MRI comparison between individuals with autism and cerebellar neurodegenerative pathologies
Full text linkIn recent years, structural and functional alterations in the cerebellum have been reported in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Intriguingly, recent studies demonstrated that the social behavioural profile of individuals with cerebellar pathologies is characterized by a theory of mind (ToM) impairment, one of the main behavioural hallmarks of ASD. The aim of the present study was to compare ToM abilities and underlying cerebello-cortical structural patterns between ASD individuals and individuals with cerebellar atrophy to further specify the cerebellar role in mentalizing alterations in ASD. Twenty-one adults with ASD without language and intellectual impairments (based on DSM-5), 36 individuals affected by degenerative cerebellar damage (CB), and 67 healthy participants (HPs) were enrolled in the study. ToM abilities were assessed using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes test and the faux pas test. One-way ANCOVA was conducted to compare the performances between the two cohorts. Three-dimensional T1-weighted magnetic resonance scans were collected, and a voxel-based morphometry analysis was performed to characterize the brain structural alterations in the two cohorts. ASD and CB participants had comparable ToM performance with similar difficulties in both the tests. CB and ASD participants showed an overlapping pattern of grey matter (GM) reduction in a specific cerebellar portion (Crus-II). Our study provides the first direct comparison of ToM abilities between ASD and CB individuals, boosting the idea that specific cerebellar structural alterations impact the mentalizing process. The present findings open a new perspective for considering the cerebellum as a potential target for treatment implementation
- …
