OBJECTIVE: We investigated the associations between motor performance and IQ at 5 years of age and school difficulties and grade point averages (GPAs) at 18 years of age. Additionally, the accuracy of preschool IQ in predicting school difficulties was examined.
METHODS: A nationwide follow-up study of children born in 1994-1995 who were <28 weeks of gestation or had a birthweight <1000 g. The Danish personal identification number was used to merge data from a national cohort study with population-based registries. Logistic regression analyses examined the associations between motor performance/IQ and school difficulties. Linear regression analyses and the area under the receiver operator curve (AUC) were used to examine the relationship between IQ and GPAs.
RESULTS: The study population comprised 248 children, 37% were classified with school difficulties. Motor performance and IQ were associated with school difficulties. The odds of having school difficulties increased as IQ decreased, and the same pattern was observed for GPAs. IQ predicted school difficulties, with an AUC of 0.80 (confidence interval: 0.74-0.86).
CONCLUSIONS: Preschool motor performance and IQ were associated with school difficulties. Additionally, IQ was linked to GPAs. As a screening tool, the predictive ability of preschool IQ for academic difficulties was moderate/high in this cohort.

This study aimed to explore the relationship between food intake frequency, weight status, and intelligence among school children. A cross-sectional study involved 562 children (aged 6.3-12.7 years) randomly selected from five elementary schools in Taichung City, Taiwan. Demographic information was collected, and the children\'s body weight and height were measured to calculate their body mass index. A food frequency questionnaire assessed the participating children\'s dietary habits. Intelligence quotient scores were evaluated using Raven\'s colored progress matrices for first and second graders, and Raven\'s standard progressive matrices for third to sixth graders. This study found that there was no significant relationship in intelligence quotient scores between gender, birth order groups, and weight status. The higher consumption of pork liver, hamburgers, fruit juices, and the Taiwanese snack \"Science Noodles\" was associated with lower intelligence quotient scores among school children.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to describe the pre- and post-operative developmental and intellectual functions in a cohort of patients who underwent surgery for drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE) before the age of 5 years.
METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records and neurodevelopmental assessments of a cohort of 80 surgically treated pediatric patients with DRE. We included patients if they had at least one pre- and one post-surgical neuropsychological assessments; 27 met the inclusion criteria. We evaluated Developmental Quotient (DQ) and Intelligence Quotient (IQ) before and after surgery. We identified two groups based on psychological evaluation outcome: Group 1, with stable or improved developmental and intellectual functions, and Group 2, experiencing developmental and intellectual loss.
RESULTS: The mean age at seizure onset was 1.2 ± 1.0 years, and the mean age at surgery was 2.9 ± 1.2 years. At the last follow-up (mean 4 years, SD ± 2), 19/27 (70%) patients were seizure- and drug-free; 18/27 patients (67%) fit in Group 1, and 9/27 (33%) fit in Group 2. The mean age at surgery was 2.6 years (SD ± 1.1; range 1.2-5.1) in Group 1 and 3.4 years in Group 2 (SD ± 1.1; range 1.6-5.0). Group 1 had a lower pre-operative DQ/IQ total score than Group 2 (median DQ/IQ respectively 82 vs 108, p = 0.05). Between pre- and post-assessments, we found that in Group 1, Performance scores improved (82.7 vs 102, p = 0.001), while in Group 2, the Total and Verbal scores worsened (respectively 108 vs 75, p = 0.008, and 100 vs 76, p = 0.021).
CONCLUSIONS: Our study\'s results emphasize the positive impact of surgery before the age of 5 years on developmental and intellectual outcomes. Despite limitations such as a small sample size, lack of a control group, and diverse etiologies, our findings support the crucial role of early intervention in preserving or enhancing developmental and intellectual functions in young patients with DRE.
CONCLUSIONS: This retrospective study, conducted at the Bambino Gesù Children Hospital in Italy, reports neuropsychological and developmental and/or cognitive data for children undergoing early epilepsy surgery (before the age of 5). It found that children with lower developmental or cognitive profiles gained the highest scores on post-operative neuropsychological evaluations. This study provides information on the potential benefits of early surgery in shortening the duration of epilepsy, preventing or arresting deterioration, and enhancing plasticity and recovery.

Lasting thalamus volume reduction after preterm birth is a prominent finding. However, whether thalamic nuclei volumes are affected differentially by preterm birth and whether nuclei aberrations are relevant for cognitive functioning remains unknown. Using T1-weighted MR-images of 83 adults born very preterm (≤ 32 weeks\' gestation; VP) and/or with very low body weight (≤ 1,500 g; VLBW) as well as of 92 full-term born (≥ 37 weeks\' gestation) controls, we compared thalamic nuclei volumes of six subregions (anterior, lateral, ventral, intralaminar, medial, and pulvinar) across groups at the age of 26 years. To characterize the functional relevance of volume aberrations, cognitive performance was assessed by full-scale intelligence quotient using the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale and linked to volume reductions using multiple linear regression analyses. Thalamic volumes were significantly lower across all examined nuclei in VP/VLBW adults compared to controls, suggesting an overall rather than focal impairment. Lower nuclei volumes were linked to higher intensity of neonatal treatment, indicating vulnerability to stress exposure after birth. Furthermore, we found that single results for lateral, medial, and pulvinar nuclei volumes were associated with full-scale intelligence quotient in preterm adults, albeit not surviving correction for multiple hypotheses testing. These findings provide evidence that lower thalamic volume in preterm adults is observable across all subregions rather than focused on single nuclei. Data suggest the same mechanisms of aberrant thalamus development across all nuclei after premature birth.

The negative regulation on neurogenesis has been implicated in fluoride neurotoxicity, while the evidence is limited. To explore whether fluoride interferes with neurogenesis via the Notch1 signaling and the potential alleviation effects of carvacrol (CAR), we conducted in vivo and in vitro experiments, as well as epidemiological analyses in this study. The results showed that urinary fluoride levels and circulating Notch1 levels were associated with IQ levels in boys. NaF-treated rats had fewer neurons, lower densities of dendritic spines, depressed neurogenesis, and impaired learning and memory abilities. In vitro experiments using undifferentiated PC12 cells mimicking neurogenesis revealed that NaF suppressed differentiation and neurite outgrowth. Besides, Notch1 signaling activation was detected in vivo and in vitro. The latter was confirmed using an in vitro model supplemented with DAPT, a potent Notch1 inhibitor. Furthermore, CAR supplementation negatively regulated NICD1 and Hes1 expressions and promoted hippocampal neurogenesis, thereby improving neurological functions in NaF-treated rats. These findings indicated that the inhibition of neurogenesis in hippocampi induced by fluoride via Notch1 signaling activation may be one of the underlying mechanisms of its neurotoxicity, and that CAR significantly alleviated the neurotoxicity of NaF via the Notch1 signaling.

BACKGROUND: There is a notable lack of harmonisation in newborn screening (NBS) programmes worldwide. The Galician programme for early detection of inborn errors of metabolism (IEM) was one of the first NBS programmes in Europe to incorporate mass spectrometry (July 2000). This programme currently screens for 26 IEMs in dried blood and urine samples collected 24-72 h after birth.
RESULTS: In its 22-year history, this programme has analysed samples from 440,723 neonates and identified 326 cases of IEM with a prevalence of 1:1351. The most prevalent IEMs were hyperphenylalaninaemia (n = 118), followed by medium chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (MCADD, n = 26), galactosaemia (n = 20), and cystinurias (n = 43). Sixty-one false positives and 18 conditions related to maternal pathologies were detected. Urine samples have been identified as a useful secondary sample to reduce the rate of false positives and identify new defects. There were 5 false negatives. The overall positive value was 84.23%. The fatality rate over a median of 12.1 years of follow-up was 2.76%. The intelligence quotient of patients was normal in 95.7% of cases, and school performance was largely optimal, with pedagogic special needs assistance required in < 10% of cases. Clinical onset of disease preceded diagnosis in 4% of cases. The age at which first NBS report is performed was reduced by 4 days since 2021.
CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the benefits of collecting urine samples, reduce NBS reporting time and expanding the number of IEMs included in NBS programmes.

BACKGROUND: Prenatal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) influences neurodevelopment. Thyroid homeostasis disruption is thought to be a possible underlying mechanism. However, current epidemiological evidence remains inconclusive.
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the effects of prenatal PFAS exposure on the intelligence quotient (IQ) of school-aged children and assess the potential mediating role of fetal thyroid function.
METHODS: The study included 327 7-year-old children from the Sheyang Mini Birth Cohort Study (SMBCS). Cord serum samples were analyzed for 12 PFAS concentrations and 5 thyroid hormone (TH) levels. IQ was assessed using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Chinese Revised (WISC-CR). Generalized linear models (GLM) and Bayesian Kernel Machine Regression (BKMR) were used to evaluate the individual and combined effects of prenatal PFAS exposure on IQ. Additionally, the impact on fetal thyroid function was examined using a GLM, and a mediation analysis was conducted to explore the potential mediating roles of this function.
RESULTS: The molar sum concentration of perfluorinated carboxylic acids (ΣPFCA) in cord serum was significantly negatively associated with the performance IQ (PIQ) of 7-year-old children (β = -6.21, 95 % confidence interval [CI]: -12.21, -0.21), with more pronounced associations observed among girls (β = -9.57, 95 % CI: -18.33, -0.81) than in boys. Negative, albeit non-significant, cumulative effects were noted when considering PFAS mixture exposure. Prenatal exposure to perfluorooctanoic acid, perfluorononanoic acid, and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid was positively associated with the total thyroxine/triiodothyronine ratio. However, no evidence supported the mediating role of thyroid function in the link between PFAS exposure and IQ.
CONCLUSIONS: Increased prenatal exposure to PFASs negatively affected the IQ of school-aged children, whereas fetal thyroid function did not serve as a mediator in this relationship.

OBJECTIVE: To identify neurodevelopmental disorders in children with obesity, and investigate associations to cognitive functions as well as parents\' self-reported neurodevelopmental problems.
METHODS: Eighty children were included at two outpatient obesity clinics in Sweden 2018-2019. Of these, 50 children without previously diagnosed neurodevelopmental disorders were screened, and so were their parents. Children who screened positive for neurodevelopmental problems were referred to a specialised psychiatry unit for further diagnosis. Test results of cognitive functioning were compared with the norm and between study groups by neurodevelopmental diagnoses.
RESULTS: Of the screened families, 17/50 children were diagnosed by the psychiatric unit with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and 15/82 parents screened positive for neurodevelopmental problems. Having a mother who screened positive for neurodevelopmental problems was associated with child ADHD (p < 0.05). The children\'s full-scale intelligence quotient (92.86 ± 12.01, p < 0.001) and working memory index (90.62 ± 12.17, p < 0.001) were lower than the norm. Working memory index was lower in children with ADHD compared to without ADHD: 84.76 ± 9.58 versus 94.09 ± 12.29 (p ≤ 0.01). Executive constraints were associated with verbal deviances.
CONCLUSIONS: Increased awareness is needed about the overlap between neurodevelopmental problems and obesity in obesity clinics.

In simple terms, consciousness is constituted by multiple goals for action and the continuous adjudication of such goals to implement action, which is referred to as the maps of meaning (MoM) consciousness theory. The MoM theory triangulates through three parallel corollaries: action (behavior), mechanism (morphology/pathophysiology), and goals (teleology). (1) An organism\'s consciousness contains fluid, nested goals. These goals are not intentionality, but intersectionality, via the Darwinian byproduct of embodiment meeting the world, i.e., Darwinian inclusive fitness or randomization and then survival of the fittest. (2) These goals are formed via a gradual descent under inclusive fitness and are the abstraction of a \"match\" between the evolutionary environment and the organism. (3) Human consciousness implements the brain efficiency hypothesis, genetics, epigenetics, and experience-crystallized efficiencies, not necessitating best or objective but fitness, i.e., perceived efficiency based on one\'s adaptive environment. These efficiencies are objectively arbitrary but determine the operation and level of one\'s consciousness, termed as extreme thrownness. (4) Since inclusive fitness drives efficiencies in the physiologic mechanism, morphology, and behavior (action) and originates one\'s goals, embodiment is necessarily entangled to human consciousness as it is at the intersection of mechanism or action (both necessitating embodiment) occurring in the world that determines fitness. (5) Perception is the operant process of consciousness and is the de facto goal adjudication process of consciousness. Goal operationalization is fundamentally efficiency-based via one\'s unique neuronal mapping as a byproduct of genetics, epigenetics, and experience. (6) Perception involves information intake and information discrimination, equally underpinned by efficiencies of inclusive fitness via extreme thrownness. Perception is not a \'frame rate\' but Bayesian priors of efficiency based on one\'s extreme thrownness. (7) Consciousness and human consciousness are modular (i.e., a scalar level of richness, which builds up like building blocks) and dimensionalized (i.e., cognitive abilities become possibilities as the emergent phenomena at various modularities such as the stratified factors in factor analysis). (8) The meta dimensions of human consciousness seemingly include intelligence quotient, personality (five-factor model), richness of perception intake, and richness of perception discrimination, among other potentialities. (9) Future consciousness research should utilize factor analysis to parse modularities and dimensions of human consciousness and animal models.

The research investigates the relationship between intelligence quotient (IQ) and environmental degradation, aiming to understand how cognitive abilities influence environmental outcomes across different nations and time periods. The objective is to examine the impact of intelligence quotient (IQ) on environmental indicators such as carbon emissions, ecological demand, and the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC), seeking insights to inform environmental policy and stewardship. The study utilizes statistical techniques including Ordinary Least Squares (OLS), Two Stage Least Squares (2SLS), and Iteratively Weighted Least Squares (IWLS) to analyze data from 147 nations over the years 2000-2017. These methods are applied to explore the relationship between IQ and environmental metrics while considering other relevant variables. The findings reveal unexpected positive associations between human intelligence quotient and carbon emissions, as well as ecological demand, challenging conventional notions of \"delay discounting.\" Additionally, variations in the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis are identified across different pollutants, highlighting the roles of governance and international commitments in mitigating emissions. The study concludes by advocating for the adoption of a \"delay discounting culture\" to address environmental challenges effectively. It underscores the complex interactions between intelligence, governance, and population dynamics in shaping environmental outcomes, emphasizing the need for targeted policies to achieve sustainability objectives.