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Burnett, D. Graham; Mitchell, Eve
doi: 10.1111/nyas.15313pmid: 40111019
While scientific consensus on the nature and extent of the harms attributable to increased use of networked screen media remains elusive, widespread expressions of acute concern among first responders to the commodified attention crisis (teachers, therapists, caregivers) should not be overlooked. This paper reviews a series of emergent strategies of collective attention activism, rooted in social practices of community action, deliberation, and consensus‐building, and aimed at the creation of novel sanctuaries for the cultivation of new shared norms and habits regarding digital devices. Evidence suggests that such attention sanctuaries (and the formalization of the conventions for convening such spaces) will play an increasingly important role in addressing/mitigating the public health and welfare dimensions of societal‐scale digital platforms.
doi: 10.1111/nyas.15306pmid: 40096640
In 1953, Danely Slaughter proposed the concept of field cancerization, or field effect, to explain the development of additional neoplasia of similar type. A recent theory (de Groen, 2022) states that all DNA is exposed to a constant source of damage, resulting in a constant rate of germline and somatic DNA mutations. If the field effect and constant mutation theories are correct and a single somatic mutation causes the transition from non‐neoplastic to neoplastic phenotype, then all rates of neoplasia formation can be modeled by exponential equations containing a single variable that determines the chance of phenotype transition. In this perspective, studies from 1953 till 2021 originating from America, Europe, and Asia about head, chest, abdomen, pelvic, and skin neoplasia were reviewed and showed consistent field effects that are modeled by tapering exponential equations containing a single variable defining field effect strength; Pearson and linear correlation coefficients for observed and modeled data range from 0.994 to 1. Thus, existing data are compatible with a constant rate of DNA damage. Organ‐specific, tissue‐specific, or body‐wide mutagenesis conditions determine the rate of neoplasia development and explain the co‐occurrence of seemingly unrelated neoplasia at predictable frequencies. Shared risk factors explain increased risk for additional neoplasia in persons with one neoplastic lesion.
doi: 10.1111/nyas.15317pmid: 40112255
There is growing evidence that human‐induced climate change poses a major threat to bats. As climate change progresses, we can only hope to mitigate its negative effects on bat populations by gaining a more comprehensive understanding of the complex interactions of all the factors involved. Drawing on recent evidence, largely from long‐term field studies of individually marked bats, we discuss the multiple impacts—positive and negative—of climate change on temperate heterothermic bats and their responses to climate change in situ. For example, there is increasing evidence that warmer summers and milder winters are leading to changes in the seasonal phenology of bats, which in turn may lead to species‐specific changes in demography, morphology, physiology, food availability, and roost use. We also highlight open research questions on the responses of bats to climate change. This includes better data on population trends and the underlying direct and indirect climate‐related causes for changes in mortality and reproductive success. In order to assess the long‐term impacts of climate change on bats, more information is needed about the relative importance of phenotypic plasticity and evolutionary adaptation in the responses of bats to climate change.
Miedlich, Susanne U.; Lamberti, J. Steven
doi: 10.1111/nyas.15301pmid: 40072935
Serious mental disorders such as schizophrenia and major depression are associated with considerable morbidity and mortality, resulting in much shorter life expectancies in those affected. The discovery of antipsychotic medications ushered in improved health outcomes for people with serious mental disorders but also brought about increased morbidity due to their metabolic side effects, including obesity and diabetes mellitus. Antidepressant medications have a more favorable metabolic side effect profile, but some can still cause weight gain and hyperglycemia. In this narrative review, we discuss antipsychotic and antidepressant medications’ mechanisms of action, their respective effectiveness in treating psychosis and depression, and their metabolic side effects. In addition, we present therapeutic strategies for minimizing cardiometabolic health risks in patients treated with these medications by applying a comprehensive, biopsychosocial approach.
Casey, B. J.; Cohen, Alexandra O.; Galvan, Adriana
doi: 10.1111/nyas.15314pmid: 40096627
The adolescent brain has been characterized as a defective car, with no brakes or steering wheel—only an accelerator. This characterization has been used to explain the impulsive and risky behavior of this transient developmental period. But why do adolescents respond to the world the way they do? In this article, we consider adolescent‐specific changes in the brain and behavior from a developmental evolutionary viewpoint in how they might be adaptive. We suggest ways in which the adolescent brain has evolved to explore and learn from new and changing environments as the adolescent gains independence from the caregiver and transitions into an adult. We highlight adolescent‐specific changes in the brain and behavior in response to emotional and social cues that may facilitate learning to independently secure resources (e.g., food, water, and shelter) and to establish new social bonds beyond the family or pack for their own survival. Specifically, we focus on how rewards, social cues, and threats in the environment influence behavior and may serve an adaptive role for the adolescent.
Wu, Shanshan; Gao, Jia; Han, Yiran; Zhang, Wenzhe; Li, Xue; Kong, Derun; Wang, Hua; Zuo, Li
doi: 10.1111/nyas.15311pmid: 40101185
Claudin‐2 (CLDN2), a tight junction protein, is predominantly found in leaky epithelial cell layers where it plays a pivotal role in forming paracellular pores necessary for the efficient transport of cations and water. Its abundance is intricately regulated by upstream signals, modulating its synthesis, transport, and localization to adapt to diverse environmental changes. Aberrant expression levels of CLDN2 are observed in numerous pathological conditions including cancer, inflammation, immune disorders, fibrosis, and kidney and biliary stones. Recent advances have uncovered the mechanisms by which the loss or restoration of CLDN2 affects functions such as epithelial barrier, cell proliferation, renewal, migration, invasion, and tissue regeneration. This exerts a dual‐directional influence on the pathogenesis, perpetuation, and progression of diseases, indicating the potential to both accelerate and decelerate the course of disease evolution. Here, we discuss these nuanced bidirectional regulatory effects mediated by CLDN2, and how it may contribute to the progression or regression of disease when it becomes unbalanced.
doi: 10.1111/nyas.15318pmid: 40101114
This paper reviews the evolutionary processes that shape the evolution of sociality in mammalian species in an effort to understand the importance of sociality in the lives of modern humans. A body of theory and empirical evidence compiled by behavioral ecologists helps us to understand why (some) other animals live in groups, why group‐living animals form differentiated social bonds, how animals benefit from their social connections, and why some individuals are more social than others in their groups. Together, the answers to these questions help us to understand why humans are such social creatures, and why our social connections play such an important role in our lives.
Kraus, Jakub; Mlynski, Christopher; Hartmann, Franziska; Clay, Georgia; Goschke, Thomas; Silani, Giorgia; Job, Veronika
doi: 10.1111/nyas.15323pmid: 40126548
Challenging prominent neuroscientific conceptions of effort as generally aversive, recent research suggests that people can learn to seek effort. Importantly, it is unknown whether people once they learn to value effort for its instrumentality, experience pleasure when engaging in effortful tasks. In this preregistered study (N = 194), we tested the hypothesis that effort‐contingent rewards in a cognitive task will induce reward‐related hedonic facial responses before, during, or after effortful engagement in a subsequent non‐incentivized task. The results showed that effort‐contingent reward enhanced participants’ facial responses in the zygomaticus major (ZM) muscle after effort exertion (consumption phase) in the subsequent non‐incentivized task, especially in high‐difficulty trials. Electrical activity in the ZM was positively associated with subjective pleasure ratings in the experimental group when solving difficult trials, suggesting that it is implicitly tracking the hedonic value of effort. Our findings show that effort‐contingent reward promotes effort‐related reward experience, indicating that effort itself becomes intrinsically rewarding as experienced pleasure after effort exertion.
Yang, Zixiao; Sathe, Tejas S.; Shah, Meghal; Shah, Jay Hemant; Hu, David L.
doi: 10.1111/nyas.15308pmid: 40063674
A surgeon peers downward into a body cavity when operating. Holding this position for hours across weeks, months, and years may lead to neck pain and musculoskeletal disorders. We were inspired by ungulates such as giraffes and horses, which use dorsal‐ventral flexion to graze for 9–14 h per day without perceivable neck pain. Ungulates evolved a strong nuchal ligament that relieves neck muscles by stretching to support some of the weight of the head during grazing or running. In contrast, humans evolved an upright posture, and like many primates, have a reduced nuchal ligament. The goal of this study is to use the nuchal ligament as inspiration for a neck brace that passively supports the weight of the head while still permitting lateral flexion, ventral‐dorsal flexion, and rotation. We assembled a prototype using an elastic band, headband, and back posture corrector. Our device augments the human nuchal ligament by using a stiff material and greater mechanical advantage. By our calculations, flexing the head ventrally 40 degrees when wearing the brace reduces the torque applied by neck muscles by 21%. Our device is a proof‐of‐concept that a bioinspired device can offload neck muscular tension and prevent injury.
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