Cerebellar contributions to orthographic working memory: A single case cognitive neuropsychological investigation.

Single case cognitive neuropsychological investigations involve the precise characterization of cognitive impairment at the level of an individual participant. This deep data precision affords a more fine-grained understanding of the cognitive and neural underpinnings of complex tasks, and continues to provide unique insights that inform theory in cognitive neuroscience. Here, we present a single case study of an individual, F.R., who suffered a stroke that led to chronic reading and writing problems that include an impairment to the orthographic working memory system proposed to be involved in both written language production and comprehension. Individuals who have been previously reported with a similar cognitive impairment commonly have left parietal lesions. However, F.R.'s orthographic working memory deficit resulted from damage to the right cerebellum, specifically to a region that is both structurally and functionally connected to the left parietal lobe and has been identified as part of the spelling network in previous meta-analyses of writing fMRI studies. From this lesion-symptom association, we argue that orthographic working memory is subserved by a cortical-cerebellar circuit, with damage at any point in the circuit resulting in an impairment to this function. Such a conclusion is warranted by observations from this single case approach, and we argue that these observations would likely have been missed if F.R. had been included in a larger, shallower group study. In addition to elucidating our understanding of the neural basis of spelling, this case study demonstrates the value that single case neuropsychology can continue to bring to cognitive neuroscience.

Acid Mine Drainage as Energizing Microbial Niches for the Formation of Iron Stromatolites: The Tintillo River in Southwest Spain.

The Iberian Pyrite Belt in southwest Spain hosts some of the largest and diverse extreme acidic environments with textural variation across rapidly changing biogeochemical gradients at multiple scales. After almost three decades of studies, mostly focused on molecular evolution and metagenomics, there is an increasing awareness of the multidisciplinary potential of these types of settings, especially for astrobiology. Since modern automatized exploration on extraterrestrial surfaces is essentially based on the morphological recognition of biosignatures, a macroscopic characterization of such sedimentary extreme environments and how they look is crucial to identify life properties, but it is a perspective that most molecular approaches frequently miss. Although acid mine drainage (AMD) systems are toxic and contaminated, they offer at the same time the bioengineering tools for natural remediation strategies. This work presents a biosedimentological characterization of the clastic iron stromatolites in the Tintillo river. They occur as laminated terraced iron formations that are the most distinctive sedimentary facies at the Tintillo river, which is polluted by AMD. Iron stromatolites originate from fluvial abiotic factors that interact with biological zonation. The authigenic precipitation of schwertmannite and jarosite results from microbial-mineral interactions between mineral and organic matrices. The Tintillo iron stromatolites are composed of bacterial filaments and diatoms as Nitzschia aurariae, Pinnularia aljustrelica, Stauroneis kriegeri, and Fragilaria sp. Furthermore, the active biosorption and bioleaching of sulfur are suggested by the black and white coloration of microbial filaments inside stromatolites. AMD systems are hazardous due to physical, chemical, and biological agents, but they also provide biogeochemical sources with which to infer past geochemical conditions on Earth and inform exploration efforts on extraterrestrial surfaces in the future.

Nurses and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Prevention.

Women of reproductive age who are drinking alcohol and not using effective contraception are at-risk for an alcohol-exposed pregnancy, which could result in a child with a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Nurses are an important partner in addressing at-risk alcohol use. It is imperative for alcohol education to be incorporated into nursing curricula so that future nurses have the tools to identify at-risk alcohol use. Three universities have worked together to create Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders: A Toolkit. This toolkit was designed for nurses to facilitate the recognition and prevention of FASD and address gaps that exists around alcohol use.

Asthma, tobacco smoke and the indoor environment: a qualitative study of sheltered homeless families.

OBJECTIVE: Asthma is common in homeless children with an incidence of 28-40%. There are few published studies investigating asthma in homeless children. This study examines the perspectives of both caregivers and shelter staff regarding challenges and opportunities of caring for children with asthma. METHODS: A focus group of sheltered parents (n = 10) with children who have asthma was conducted to identify barriers to optimal asthma management. Key informant interviews (n = 6) were conducted with shelter staff to discuss the shelter systems and policies to address childhood asthma. Data were audio-recorded and transcribed. A representative analysis team performed qualitative theme analysis. RESULTS: Key themes across 5 domains were identified: asthma education, access to asthma medication and equipment, asthma action plans, structural barriers to asthma management and environmental triggers. Parents identified multiple asthma triggers present in the shelter environment but cited lack of control as a barrier to remediation. Shelter staff desired elimination of asthma triggers but refer to the lack of resources as the primary barrier. Shelter staff favored a smoking ban on shelter property but named challenges to policy implementation. Both parents and staff identified asthma education and increased access to medications would be helpful. CONCLUSIONS: Policies to reduce environmental exposures, such as a smoking ban, to asthma triggers has the potential to improve the health of sheltered children with asthma.

Respiratory syncytial virus infection as a precipitant of thyroid storm in a previously undiagnosed case of graves' disease in a prepubertal girl.

Graves' disease is less common in prepubertal than pubertal children, and initial presentation with thyroid storm is rare. We report an 11-year-old prepubertal Hispanic girl who presented with a one-day history of respiratory distress, fever, and dysphagia. She had exophthalmos, a diffuse bilateral goiter and was agitated, tachycardic, and hypertensive. Nasal swab was positive for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). She was diagnosed with thyroid storm and admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit. While infection is a known precipitant of thyroid storm and RSV is a common pediatric infection, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of RSV infection apparently precipitating thyroid storm in a prepubertal child.

Edad gestacional del recién nacido pretermino por longitud de la pelmatoscopia

Presentamos un análisis de la longitud de la pelmatoscopia en recién nacidos comprendidos entre la 28 y 37 semanas; como un método complementario para la determinación rápida de la edad gestacional. Planteamos los objetivos de determinar la longitud de la pelmatoscopia y relacionarla posteriormente con la edad gestacional. Este estudio fue realizado en el Hospital Regional Honorio Delgado, el método utilizado fue el de revisión de historias clínicas que cumplieran con los criterios de inclusión y exclusión establecidos, con lo que se definió el número total de integrantes del estudio. Se realizó la medición de la pelmatoscopia con un juego de escuadras graduadas en milímetros, siguiendo el eje mayor del pie. Se encontró una alta correlación (r de Pearson: 0.963) entre la edad gestacional y la longitud de la pelmatoscopia. Concluimos afirmando que es un método complementario útil para la determinación de la edad gestacional.