Associations between depressive symptoms and fronto-temporal activities during a verbal fluency task in patients with schizophrenia

A scoping review of utilization of the verbal fluency task in Chinese and Japanese clinical settings with near-infrared spectroscopy

This review targets the application of the Verbal Fluency Task (VFT) in conjunction with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) for diagnosing psychiatric disorders, specifically in the contexts of China and Japan. These two countries are at the forefront of integrating fNIRS with VFT in clinical psychiatry, often employing this combination as a complementary tool alongside traditional psychiatric examinations. Our study aims to synthesize research findings on the hemodynamic responses elicited by VFT task in clinical settings of the two countries, analyzing variations in task design (phonological versus semantic), stimulus modality (auditory versus visual), and the impact of language typology. The focus on China and Japan is crucial, as it provides insights into the unique applications and adaptations of VFT in these linguistically and culturally distinct environments. By exploring these specific cases, our review underscores the importance of tailoring VFT to fit the linguistic and cultural context, thereby enhancing its validity and utility in cross-cultural psychiatric assessments.

Differences in frontotemporal dysfunction during social and non-social cognition tasks between patients with autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia

Although literature evidence suggests deficits in social and non-social cognition in patients with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) and schizophrenia (SCZ), the difference in neural correlates of the impairments between the two disorders has not been elucidated. We examined brain function in response to a non-social cognition and a social cognition task using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) in 13 patients with ASD, 15 patients with SCZ, and 18 healthy subjects. We assessed the brain function of participants using a verbal fluency task and an emotional facial recognition task. The patients with ASD showed significantly reduced brain activation in the left frontotemporal area during both tasks compared to healthy subjects. The patients with ASD with larger score in ‘attention to detail’ in the autism spectrum quotient showed lower activation of the left frontotemporal area during the two tasks. The patients with SCZ showed significantly reduced activation, compared to healthy subjects, and greater activation, compared to patients with ASD, in the area during the verbal fluency task. The patients with SCZ with more severe symptoms had lower brain activation during the task in this area. Our results suggest that two distinct areas are involved in the distinctive brain pathophysiology relevant to cognitive processing in patients with ASD and SCZ.

Functional hemispheric asymmetry in female prefrontal hemodynamics corresponding to changes in auditory sense during pregnancy and child raising

We carried out further research into the prefrontal hemodynamics corresponding to changes in a women's auditory sense during pregnancy and child raising. A total of forty-six volunteers took part in our experiment, and we divided them into several groups in accordance with the progress of their child raising. For the auditory tasks performed by the volunteers, we used two auditory stimulations: the sound of baby crying, and a classical music as a control. Hemodynamic changes at the prefrontal regions were measured using a 2 ch functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) along with a 47 ch fNIRS instrument equipped with 3×5 probes (22 ch). Judging the results of the female groups about their prefrontal hemodynamics, there were almost no significant differences across the groups in the dynamics with the music task. However, in the section of the baby crying task, their hemodynamics were regarded as significant compared to the control. Concerning the time scale of the changes in the hemodynamic response to the two tasks, especially in the postnatal group, we took notice of the possibility that higher activations were clearly observed at the right sides of their brains than their left sides. Our experimental results not only demonstrated that postnatal women within one and a half years of their childbearing might have acute ears, but also revealed the hemispheric asymmetry in their prefrontal hemodynamics, as compared to pregnant and nonpregnant volunteers. We inferred that the pregnancy-inducing expression of such women's special capabilities is definitely due to a boost-up of a built-in female disposition, which is destined for expressions of maternal love.

Reduced prefrontal activation during verbal fluency task in chronic insomnia disorder: a multichannel near-infrared spectroscopy study

PURPOSE

Daytime complaints such as memory and attention deficits and failure to accomplish daily tasks are common in insomnia patients. However, objective psychological tests to detect cognitive impairment are equivocal. Neural function associated with cognitive performance may explain the discrepancy. The aim of this study was to investigate the hemodynamic response patterns of patients with chronic insomnia disorder (CID) using the noninvasive and low-cost functional neuroimaging technique of multichannel near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in order to identify changes of neural function associated with cognitive performance.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Twenty-four CID patients and twenty-five healthy controls matched for age, right-hand dominance, educational level, and gender were examined during verbal fluency tasks (VFT) using NIRS. A covariance analysis was conducted to analyze differences of oxygenated hemoglobin (oxy-Hb) changes in prefrontal cortex (PFC) between the two groups and reduce the influence of the severity of depression. Pearson correlation coeffcients were calculated to examine the relationship between the oxy-Hb changes, with the severity of insomnia and depressive symptoms assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD).

RESULTS

The number of words generated during the VFT in CID groups showed no statistical differences with healthy controls. CID patients showed hypoactivation in the PFC during the cognitive task. In addition, we found that the function of left orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) during the VFT was significantly negatively correlated with the PSQI scores and the function of right dorsolateral PFC (DLPFC) was significantly negatively correlated with the HAMD scores.

CONCLUSION

The present study detected dysfunctions in PFC in spite of intact performance which indicates the role of PFC in the neurophysiological underpinnings. Left OFC function is associated with insomnia symptoms and right DLPFC function is associated with depressive symptoms.