Background
Despite its importance, in‐depth analysis of connected speech is often neglected in the diagnosis of primary progressive aphasia (PPA) – especially for the logopenic variant (lvPPA) for ...which unreliable differential diagnosis has been documented. Only a few studies have been conducted on this topic in lvPPA.
Aims
The aim of this study was to describe and compare lexico‐semantic and morphosyntactic features of connected speech in participants with lvPPA, in comparison with healthy controls, using three different elicitation tasks (i.e., picture description, story narration and semi‐structured interviews). In addition to a number of discourse features, we were particularly interested in the presence or absence of syntactic deficits in this PPA variant in line with recent findings.
Methods & Procedures
A prospective group study was conducted to compare lvPPA participants (n = 13) to age‐ and education‐matched healthy controls (n = 13). For each individual, connected speech was obtained using three tasks: (1) The Cookie Theft picture description; (2) Cinderella Story; (3) Topic‐directed interview. Production on each task was recorded, transcribed and analysed according to the Quantitative Production Analysis (QPA) protocol, a tool developed by Berndt et al. (2000) for the analysis of sentence production in aphasia. Differences between lvPPA and healthy controls and among elicitation tasks were analysed using repeated measures multilevel mixed‐effects regression, separately for each outcome.
Outcomes & Results
Four measures were significantly different between lvPPA participants and healthy controls across all elicitation tasks. Specifically, lvPPA participants produced a reduced proportion of open‐class words, a higher proportion of verbs, a higher proportion of pronouns and fewer well‐formed sentences. For these measures, the difference between lvPPA and healthy controls was consistent among elicitation tasks, except for the proportion of well‐formed sentences, where the difference between the two groups was significantly greater in the story narration task than in the other tasks.
Conclusions & Implications
Across elicitation tasks that used the same analysis protocol (i.e., QPA), a similar pattern of deficits in connected speech emerged in lvPPA patients. Importantly, the findings replicate previous studies, which used different elicitation tasks and analysis protocols. Especially in relation to the documented syntactic deficits, these findings provide implications for differential diagnosis in PPA.
What this paper adds
What is already known on the subject
Connected speech analysis can provide an important contribution to the language assessment for the logopenic variant of primary progressive aphasia (lvPPA). However, only a few studies have been conducted with this population.
What this paper adds to existing knowledge
This study highlights differences between patients with lvPPA and healthy controls regarding the proportion of open‐class words, nouns, verbs and well‐formed sentences.
What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work?
Importantly, our results highlight syntactic deficits in the same group of individuals with lvPPA, using the same analysis protocol and across various elicitation tasks, which has implications for differential diagnosis.
The mouse opossums of the genus Thylamys constitute a group of species mainly adapted to open xeric‐like habitats and restricted to the southern portion of South America. We used molecular data ...(mitochondrial and nuclear sequences) to evaluate the phylogenetic and biogeographical relationships of all currently known living species of the genus, recognizing a new taxon from the middle and high elevations of the Peruvian Andes and evaluating the phylogenetic structuring within T. pallidior and T. elegans, as well as the validity of T. sponsorius, T. cinderella and T. tatei, and the haplogroups recognized within T. pusillus. Our results confirm the monophyly of the genus and that the Caatinga and the Cerrado inhabitants Thylamys karimii and T. velutinus are the most basal species in the radiation of Thylamys. We also calibrated a molecular clock which hypothesized a time of origin of the genus of about 24 My, with most species differentiating in middle and late Miocene and Plio‐Pleistocene times of South America.
This study aims to describe the representation of women's dependence on men in Little Women. The descriptive qualitative approach was applied in this research. The data for this study were gathered ...from the talks of the characters in the novel's Little Women. The data of this research are collected from Cinderella Complex syndrome through their actions and words. The research results showed the level to which characters are affected by the Cinderella Complex varies depending on how the Cinderella Complex influences their thoughts and behavior, either consciously or unconsciously. Meg's most dominant Cinderella Complex is Fear of losing femininity, and the most dominant factor is self-concept. Jo's character showed only rely on man as the aspect and persona maturity as the factor. Meg and Jo were unconsciously reflected by Cinderella Complex syndrome.
En este artículo se analizan los expedientes de censura que se tramitaron durante la dictadura franquista del cuento La Cenicienta. De este modo, se ofrece al lector la visión de conjunto del proceso ...de edición y censura entre 1939 y 1975, con la intención de mostrar los aspectos en los que los censores anotaron mayores incidencias: la religión y el modelo de mujer. Esta perspectiva temporal del análisis monográfico de un mismo relato es muy útil, ya que permite entender los cambios que la censura adopta como propios a lo largo de su existencia, así como la transformación de la legislación censora desde un inicio más general a la promulgación de normas concretas acerca de la literatura infantil y juvenil.
Summary
The objective of this study was to analyse the co‐contraction behaviour of jaw and neck muscles during force‐controlled experimental grinding in the supine position. Twelve symptom‐free ...subjects were enrolled in the experimental study. Electromyographic (EMG) activity of semispinalis capitis, splenius capitis and levator scapulae muscles was recorded bilaterally with intramuscular fine‐wire electrodes, whereas that of sternocleidomastoideus, infrahyoidal, suprahyoidal, masseter and anterior temporalis muscles were registered with surface electrodes. EMG and force measurements were performed during tasks simulating tooth grinding on custom‐made intraoral metal splints. The mean EMG activity normalised by maximum voluntary contraction (% MVC) of each of the neck muscles studied during grinding was analysed and compared with previous data from jaw clenching at identical force (100 N) and (supine) position. The occurrence of low‐level, long‐lasting tonic activation (LLTA) of motor units was also documented. The mean three‐dimensional force vector of the grinding forces was 106 ± 74 N. In the frontal plane, the incline to the midsagittal plane ranged between 10° and 15°. In the midsagittal plane, the incline to the frontal plane was negligibly small. Posterior neck muscle activity during grinding ranged between 4.5% and 12% MVC and during clenching with 100 N between 1.8% and 9.9% MVC. Masticatory muscle activity during grinding ranged between 17% and 21% MVC for contralateral masseter and ipsilateral temporalis and between 4% and 6.5% for ipsilateral masseter and contralateral temporalis. LLTA had an average duration of 195 ± 10 seconds. The findings from this study do not support pathophysiological muscle chain theories postulating simple biomechanical coupling of neck and jaw muscles. Co‐contractions of neck and masticatory muscles may instead occur as a result of complex neurophysiological interactions.
No one can deny the vital role that fairy tales played in forming the personalities of successive generations across various regions worldwide. All adults should have pleasant memories with these ...books during their early childhood. These memories make these tales enjoyable for children and adults, as all adults consider reading these books a part of the nostalgia for these past peaceful and cheerful days. On the other hand, many studies proved the passive and hazardous impacts of fairy tales' implicit themes and hidden messages. For instance, these themes heavily influenced the stereotyping of feminine roles in society. Furthermore, these books enhanced the gender roles with the advantage of the masculine, active role. Throughout the wide range of these books, the readers can quickly identify male characters as saviors, supporters, and always positioned in the center of the women's life. Moreover, the traditional happy ending should be associated with the marriage of the rich and handsome prince/ gentleman. The author will examine the portrayal of the prominent female characters in selected traditional fairy tales to shed light on the concept of "objectification" as a central concept in structuring these characters by making them passive, helpless, and naïve. Accordingly, these portrayals served to present these female characters as mere objects to satisfy the sexual and psychological fantasies of men.
The story of Cinderella is probably one of the most widely told fairy tales in the world. The Chinese tales “Yeh Hsien” (葉限) recorded in
Youyang Zazu
(
酉陽雜俎
,
The Miscellaneous Morsels from Youyang
...), dating back to ninth-century China, is one of the oldest Cinderella tales. Based on a comparative reading of the stories of Chinese “Yeh Hsien,” Charles Perrault’s “Cendrillon ou la petite pantouffle de verre” in his
Contes de ma mère l'Oye
(1697), and the German brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm’s “Aschenputtel” in their
Kinder und Hausmärchen
(1812), this paper seeks to highlight both common patterns and intrinsic differences between these stories, and to cast some light on what lies behind these similarities and differences.
The mitochondrial genome is dwarfed by its neighbour in the nucleus, and, thus, it has been sensible for far more resources to be invested in the study of nuclear, rather than mitochondrial, DNA ...metabolism. Furthermore, few researchers have considered using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) as a model system for nuclear DNA metabolism. A quick look into the history of mtDNA provides ready answers as to why this was the case; however, recently mitochondria have been found to contain several nuclear replication and repair factors, so is there any potential to adopt the mitochondrion as a tool to unravel some of the intricacies of replication and repair in higher-order eukaryotes? Perhaps it is now time to invite the Cinderella genome to the ball.
Abstract
Paleoproterozoic massive Cu-Zn±Pb±Au±Ag sulphide deposits metamorphosed to the middle-upper amphibolite facies in central-south Colorado formed in a volcanic arc setting on the edge of the ...Yavapai crustal province. Previously published U-Pb ages on spatially related granitoids range from ∼1.9 to ∼1.1 Ga, while Pb isotope studies on galena from massive sulphides suggest mineralization formed at around 1.8–1.7 Ga. Some deposits in the Dawson-Green Mountain trend (DGMT) and the Gunnison belt are composed of Cu-Zn-Au-(Pb-Ag) mineralization that were overprinted by later Au-(Ag-Cu-Bi-Se-Te) mineralization. Sulphide mineralization is spatially related to amphibolite and bimodal, mafic-felsic volcanic rocks (gabbro, amphibolite, rhyolite and dacite) and granitoids, but it occurs mostly in biotite-garnet-quartz±sillimanite±cordierite schists and gneisses, spatially related to nodular sillimanite rocks, and in some locations, exhalative rocks (iron formations, gahnite-rich rocks and quartz-garnetite). The major metallic minerals of the massive sulphides include chalcopyrite, sphalerite, pyrite, pyrrhotite, and magnetite, with minor galena and gahnite. Altered rocks intimately associated with mineralization primarily consist of various amphiboles (gedrite, tremolite and hornblende), gahnite, biotite, garnet, cordierite, carbonate and rare högbomite. The Zn/Cd ratios of sphalerite (44 to 307) in deposits in the DGMT fall within the range of global volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) deposits but overlap with sphalerite from sedimentary exhalative (Sedex) deposits. Sulphur isotope values of sulphides (δ
34
S = −3.3 to +6.5) suggest sulphur was largely derived from magmatic sources, and that variations in isotopic values resulting from thermochemical sulphate reduction are due to small differences in physicochemical conditions. The preferred genetic model is for the deposits to be bimodal-mafic (Gunnison) to mafic-siliciclastic VMS deposits (Cotopaxi, Cinderella-Bon Ton, DGMT).
Recently, a multilevel analytic approach called Main Concept, Sequencing, and Story Grammar (MSSG) was presented along with preliminary normative information. MSSG analyses leverage the strong ...psychometrics and rich procedural knowledge of both main concept analysis and story grammar component coding, complementing it with easy-to-obtain sequencing information for a rich understanding of discourse informativeness and macrostructure. This study is the next critical step for demonstrating the clinical usefulness of MSSG's six variables (main concept composite, sequencing, main concept+sequencing, essential story grammar components, total episodic components, and episodic complexity) for persons with aphasia (PWAs). We present descriptive statistical information for MSSG variables for a large sample of PWAs and compare their performance to a large sample of persons not brain injured (PNBIs). We observed significant differences between PWAs and PNBIs for all MSSG variables. These differences occurred at the omnibus group level and for each aphasia subtype, even for PWAs with very mild impairment that is not detected with standardized aphasia assessment. Differences between PWAs and PNBIs were also practically significant, with medium to large effect sizes observed for nearly all aphasia subtypes and MSSG variables. This work deepens our understanding of discourse informativeness and macrostructure in PWAs and further develops an efficient tool for research and clinical use. Future research should investigate ways to expand MSSG analyses and to improve sensitivity and specificity.
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