The obsessive-compulsive spectrum refers to disorders drawn from several diagnostic categories that share core features related to obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), such as obsessive thoughts, compulsive behaviors and anxiety. Disorders that include these features can be grouped according to the focus of the symptoms, e.g., bodily preoccupation (i.e., eating disorders, ED) or impulse control...
A fundamental aspect of the sense of self is its pre-reflective dimension specifying the self as a bounded and embodied knower and agent. Being a constant and tacit feature structuring consciousness, it eludes robust empirical exploration. Recently, deep meditative states involving global dissolution of the sense of self have been suggested as a promising path for advancing such an...
BACKGROUND: Recently, there has been an increased interest in the efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions (MBI) for people with cardiovascular diseases (CVD), although the exact beneficial effects remain unclear. METHODS: This review aims to establish the role of MBI in the management of wellbeing for patients with CVD. Seventeen articles have been included in this systematic synthesis of...
Meditation experience has previously been shown to improve performance on behavioral assessments of attention, but the neural bases of this improvement are unknown. Two prominent, strongly competing networks exist in the human cortex: a dorsal attention network, that is activated during focused attention, and a default mode network, that is suppressed during attentionally demanding tasks. Prior...
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on education. The restrictions imposed have undoubtedly led to impairment of the psychological well-being of both teachers and students, and of the way they experience interpersonal relationships. As reported previously in the literature, adverse effects such as loneliness, anxiety, and stress have resulted in a decrease in the cognitive...
The amount of knowledge on human consciousness has created a multitude of viewpoints and it is difficult to compare and synthesize all the recent scientific perspectives. Indeed, there are many definitions of consciousness and multiple approaches to study the neural correlates of consciousness (NCC). Therefore, the main aim of this article is to collect data on the various theories of...
Dream research has advanced significantly over the last twenty years, thanks to the new applications of neuroimaging and electrophysiological techniques. Many findings pointed out that mental activity during sleep and wakefulness shared similar neural bases. On the other side, recent studies have highlighted that dream experience is promoted by significant brain activation, characterized by...
Chanting is a form of rhythmic, repetitive vocalization practiced in a wide range of cultures. It is used in spiritual practice to strengthen community, heal illness, and overcome psychological and emotional difficulties. In many traditions, chanting is used to induce mystical states, an altered state of consciousness characterised by a profound sense of peace. Despite the global prevalence of...
Changes in serum copper concentration are observed in patients with depressive symptoms. Unmet needs in contemporary antidepressant treatment have increased interest in non-monoaminergic antidepressants, such as ketamine, an anaesthetic drug that has demonstrated a rapid antidepressant effect in patients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD). The purpose of this study was to examine whether...
Sex and gender deeply affect the subjective effects and pharmaco-toxicological responses to drugs. Men are more likely than women to use almost all types of illicit drugs and to present to emergency departments for serious or fatal intoxications. However, women are just as likely as men to develop substance use disorders, and may be more susceptible to craving and relapse. Clinical and...
The drastic increase in hallucinogenic compounds in illicit drug markets of new psychoactive substances (NPS) is a worldwide threat. Among these, 2, 5-dimetoxy-4-bromo-amphetamine (DOB) and paramethoxyamphetamine (PMA; marketed as “ecstasy”) are frequently purchased on the dark web and consumed for recreational purposes during rave/dance parties. In fact, these two substances seem to induce the...
Both non-rapid eye movements and rapid eye movements sleep facilitate the strengthening of newly encoded memory traces, and dream content reflects this process. Numerous studies evaluated the impact of diseases on dream content, with particular reference to cancer, and reported the presence of issues related to death, negative emotions, pain and illness. This study investigates death and...
Several findings support the activation hypothesis, positing that cortical arousal promotes dream recall (DR). However, most studies have been carried out on young participants, while the electrophysiological (EEG) correlates of DR in older people are still mostly unknown. We aimed to test the activation hypothesis on 20 elders, focusing on the Non-Rapid Eye Movement (NREM) sleep stage. All the...
Several studies have advanced the understanding of the effects of cannabis on cognitive function. A comprehensive reappraisal of such literature may help in drawing conclusions about the potential risks associated with cannabis use. In summary, the evidence suggests that earlier age of use, high-frequency and high-potency cannabis use, as well as sustained use over time and use of synthetic...
Brain SciencesSeptember 27, 2019Auretta S Kummar, Helen Correia, Hakuei Fujiyama
Neuroimaging studies in the area of mindfulness research have provided preliminary support for the idea of fear extinction as a plausible underlying mechanism through which mindfulness exerts its positive benefits. Whilst brain regions identified in the fear extinction network are typically found at a subcortical level, studies have also demonstrated the feasibility of cortical measures of the...
A nascent line of research aimed at elucidating the neurocognitive mechanisms of mindfulness has consistently identified a relationship between mindfulness and error monitoring. However, the exact nature of this relationship is unclear, with studies reporting divergent outcomes. The current study sought to clarify the ambiguity by addressing issues related to construct heterogeneity and...
Novel psychoactive substances (NPS) may have unsuspected addiction potential through possessing stimulant properties. Stimulants normally act at the dopamine transporter (DAT) and thus increase dopamine (DA) availability in the brain, including nucleus accumbens, within the reward and addiction pathway. This paper aims to assess DAT responses to dissociative diarylethylamine NPS by means of in...
Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD) is a rare, and therefore, poorly understood condition linked to hallucinogenic drugs consumption. The prevalence of this disorder is low; the condition is more often diagnosed in individuals with a history of previous psychological issues or substance misuse, but it can arise in anyone, even after a single exposure to triggering drugs. The aims...
Many novel psychoactive substances (NPS) have entered the recreational drug scene in recent years, yet the problems they cause are similar to those found with established drugs. This article will debate the psychobiological effects of these newer and more traditional substances. It will show how they disrupt the same core psychobiological functions, so damaging well-being in similar ways. Every...
Background—Cannabis is the most popular illicit drug in the Western world. Repeated cannabis use has been associated with short and long-term range of adverse effects. Recently, new types of designer-drugs containing synthetic cannabinoids have been widespread. These synthetic cannabinoid drugs are associated with undesired adverse effects similar to those seen with cannabis use, yet, in more...
Subliminal priming refers to behavioral modulation by an unconscious stimulus, and can thus be regarded as a form of unconscious visual processing. Theories on recurrent processing have suggested that the neural correlate of consciousness (NCC) comprises of the non-hierarchical transfer of stimulus-related information. According to these models, the neural correlate of subliminal priming (NCSP)...