Emotional sounds in space: asymmetrical representation within early-stage auditory areas

Evidence from behavioral studies suggests that the spatial origin of sounds may influence the perception of emotional valence. Using 7T fMRI we have investigated the impact of the categories of sound (vocalizations; non-vocalizations), emotional valence (positive, neutral, negative) and spatial origin (left, center, right) on the encoding in early-stage auditory areas and in the voice …

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Quaternary Ammonium Compounds: A Chemical Class of Emerging Concern

Quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs), a large class of chemicals that includes high production volume substances, have been used for decades as antimicrobials, preservatives, and antistatic agents and for other functions in cleaning, disinfecting, personal care products, and durable consumer goods. QAC use has accelerated in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the banning of 19 …

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Successful aging of musicians: Preservation of sensorimotor regions aids audiovisual speech-in-noise perception

Musicianship can mitigate age-related declines in audiovisual speech-in-noise perception. We tested whether this benefit originates from functional preservation or functional compensation by comparing fMRI responses of older musicians, older nonmusicians, and young nonmusicians identifying noise-masked audiovisual syllables. Older musicians outperformed older nonmusicians and showed comparable performance to young nonmusicians. Notably, older musicians retained similar neural …

Continue reading Successful aging of musicians: Preservation of sensorimotor regions aids audiovisual speech-in-noise perception

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and risk of rheumatoid arthritis: a cross-sectional analysis of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2007–2016

AbstractObjective While there are several well-established environmental risk factors for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a paucity of evidence exists linking environmental toxicants with RA prevalence. We aimed to examine the associations between various environmental toxicants and RA among adults in the U.S. general population while adjusting for non-heritable risk factors.Design Cross-sectional study.Setting National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted …

Continue reading Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and risk of rheumatoid arthritis: a cross-sectional analysis of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2007–2016

Association of Rurality With Risk of Heart Failure

Rural populations experience an increased burden of heart failure (HF) mortality compared with urban populations. Whether HF incidence is greater among rural individuals is less known. Additionally, the intersection between racial and rural health inequities is understudied.Objective To determine whether rurality is associated with increased risk of HF, independent of cardiovascular (CV) disease and socioeconomic …

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