In this paper, we researched an influence of sound (2000 Hz, 70 dB, 40 ms) to the discrimination of low-light intensities (0.3 and 1 cd/m2) in the visual cortex of the rabbit. We used a recording of evoked potentials from the visual cortex of awaked rabbits in chronic experiments. The sound was switched on with different time slots before and after the replacement of the light intensities at each other (range from -750 to +150 ms). Sound itself caused no response. In 42 experiments on 3 rabbits we revealed that' he sound has a significant modulating effect on the discrimination of low-light intensities in the range of time shifts from -300 to +50 ms. Maximum sound effect was manifested in the transition of light from a high-intensity (1 cd/m2) to lower (0.3 cd/m2). Analyses of the phases of visual evoked potentials revealed that significant influence of sound to the light occurs in the intervals -300, -100, -60, -40, -20, 0, -20 and + 50 ms. We found that phase P2 (120-150 ms from the moment of replacement of the light stimuli) is most affected by sound in response to the replacement of low-light intensities both in the number of significant (p < 0.05) time slots (7) and the impact of sound on the light response. In phase P2 the impact of sound was almost exclusively facilitating (by 19-36%) compared with the responses to the light, whereas in phases N1 80-110 ms) and N2 (180-250 ms) were only 2-3 intervals with the significant influence of the sound. And the degree of response facilitation to light was ranged by 8-12%. We assumed that the effect of sound on the light response in visual cortex is delayed that caused by the passage of auditory signal through the auditory,parietal cortex, superior colliculus.

Amplitude variations of visual evoked potentials (VEP) in rabbit were studied using changes of three types of stimuli: lines with different orientations (0-90 degree) but constant in intensity, lines with different intensities but constant in orientation, and complex stimuli with different intensities and different orientations. Factor analysis of component N85 of VEP to stimuli with varying orientation and constant intensity revealed two-dimensional sensorial space of orientations. Also, the two-dimensional achromatic sensorial space was revealed for stimuli different only in intensities. In experiments with complex stimuli, two versions of stimulation were used. In the first version, four stimuli with varying orientation from 0 to 38.58 degrees were of 5 cd/m2 in intensity, the remaining four stimuli (from 51.44 to 90 degrees) were of 15 cd/m2 in intensity. In the sensorial space, stimuli with different intensities were disposed on the plane formed by the first two significant factors in the opposite quadrants, whereas within each quadrant, stimuli were arranged according to their orientation from minimum to maximum degrees. It is suggested that, in this version of stimulation, the interaction between two characteristics (intensity and orientation) took place with clear-cut dominance of the factor of intensity. In the second version of the experiments, also eight complex stimuli were used. Each stimulus was characterized by specific combination of orientation (one of the eight directions in the range from 0 to 90 degrees) and intensity (one of the eight intensities in the range from 5 to 21 cd/m2). Three or four significant factors were revealed in each test. Only the plane of intensity of sensorial space (XIX2) formed by two significant factors was revealed in the overwhelming majority of cases. On this plane, stimuli were arranged according to their intensities. This fact can be explained by specific (twilight) type of rabbit's vision with predominant discrimination of intensities. However, some findings suggest that visual evoked potentials reflect simultaneous processing of two characteristics of visual stimuli (intensity and orientation) being indicative of a possibility of the complex stimuli analysis in the primary visual cortex.

Changes in activity of 83 neurons in the rabbit colliculus superior evoked by the replacement of eight color and eight achromatic stimuli in pairs were analyzed. It was found out that neurons displayed the early and late phasic responses (within 50-90 and 120-300 ms respectively, after the replacement) and long-term tonic response component, which depended on stimuli intensity. Analysis of phasic component revealed three neuronal groups. The first group (n=25, 30%) selected on the basis of the earliest component, was specialized to differentiate stimuli only by intensities. The perceptual spaces of these neurons reconstructed on the basis of spike discharge in the earliest response were two-dimensional. The second group of neurons (n=16, 19%) selected on the basis of the late phasic component demonstrated four-dimensional structure of perceptual space. Neurons of the third group (n=4, 5%) possessed a two-dimensional structure of perceptual space reconstructed by the analysis of the early component, whereas analysis of the late response revealed a four-dimensional structure. We suggest that information about differences between stimuli in color and intensity coming from cortical neurons is necessary for the reconstruction of four-dimensional space. The structure of perceptual spaces reconstructed on the basis of phasic responses of neurons in the colliculus superior was similar to the spaces of neurons in the primary visual cortex and lateral geniculate nucleus. The structure of perceptual space reconstructed on the basis of neuronal spikes was also similar to the space calculated from the N85 component of the visual evoked potential recorded under similar conditions. This finding confirms the general principle of vector coding in the visual system.

The activity of 41 visual cortex and 20 hippocampal neurons from field CA1 was registered in experiments using oddball-stimulation with different color stimuli varied in intensity. 34% cortical and 37% hippocampal neurons demonstrated plasticity reactions. The significant increase of latest phases of neuronal activity (200-500 and 200-1000 ms after stimulation for cortical neurons and 300-550 ms for hippocampal neurons) was shown in responses to rare deviant stimuli, which had a less intensity than frequently standards. The quantity of the earliest neuronal phase of activity (40-120 ms after stimulation) was stabilized in responses to deviants and standards during the experiment. We propose that such increase of the latest phases of neuronal activity (the limited plasticity) may reflect the mechanisms of orienting reaction.

The visual evoked potentials to a change in color stimuli were studied. The amplitude of the N85 component was correlated with color discrimination. In cases when the brightness of one color was fixed and that of the ether one changed, the amplitude dynamics of N85 was V-shaped with the minimum corresponding to the point of equal brightness of both colors. The N85 amplitude in this point serves as a measure of discrimination between stimuli chromaticity. The perceptual color space in rabbit (possessing two cone pigments) was constructed in accordance with the amplitudes of N85 to color change. This space represented a hypersphere in the four-dimensional Euclidean space. The perceptual spaces for brightness and color reconstructed on the basis of conditioning probabilities and N85 amplitudes evoked by replacement of colored and achromatic stimuli were shown to coincide. This suggests the common mechanism of the vector color coding.

A model which explains the human vision protanopic deficiency and its biologic prototype with the absence of red-absorbing pigment (rabbit) was constructed from neuron-like elements. In behavioral experiments and by means of evoked potential technique it was shown that the rabbit's color space is characterized by a spherical four-dimensional with a reduction of red-coding area. Similar spherical four-dimensional structure of color space is characteristic for a group of protanopic human subjects. The perceptive space of another group of protanopic subjects (protanomals) is characterized by a reduction of both parts of the red-green opponent axis. These disorders are reproduced in the model either by a loss of some color-coding elements (the absence of the red-absorbing pigment as in protanops) or a shift of the spectral characteristics of the red pigment towards those of the green one (protanomals).

In 11 subjects the dynamic localization (with 2-ms step) of the equivalent current dipole of alpha rhythm during travelling alpha waves was studied using one-dipole 3-layered spherical head model and MRI. The dipole was localized in the occipital cortex and during the development of a single alpha wave it shifted in one or another direction while dipole's moment revealed fan-like rotation mainly in sagittal and horizontal planes. The results obtained indicate changing localization of the alpha-rhythm source in the region corresponding to striate cortex. They seem to prove scanning hypothesis that is still under discussion.

Discrimination of colors was studied using instrumental learning paradigm in three rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus). The rabbits were able to discriminate all but red stimuli by their color. The red stimulus could not be discriminated from the black one. The confusion matrix composed of probabilities of instrumental reactions was subjected to factor analysis in order to reveal the basic axes of the color perceptual space. The four-dimensional spherical structure of perceptual color space was obtained, which was different from that of trichromatic species in a reduction of color axes in red and yellow parts. The evidence characterizes rabbit as a protanopic animal.

Contaminant concentrations are reported for surface water, sediment, flora and fauna collected during 2010–2011 from the mangrove fringe along eastern Tampa Bay, Florida. Concentrations of trace metals, chlorinated pesticides, atrazine, total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and polychlorinated biphenyls were species-, chemical- and location-specific. Contaminants in sediments did not exceed proposed individual sediment quality guidelines. Most sediment quality assessment quotients were less than one indicating the likelihood of no inhibitory effect based on chemical measurements alone. Faunal species typically contained more contaminants than plant species; seagrass usually contained more chemicals than mangroves. Bioconcentration factors for marine angiosperms were usually less than 10 and ranged between 1 and 31. Mercury concentrations (ppm) in blue crabs and fish did not exceed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency fish tissue criterion of 0.3 and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration action level of 1.0. In contrast, total mercury concentrations in faunal species often exceeded guideline values for wildlife consumers of aquatic biota.

Color vision of three protanomal subjects was studied by means of direct paired comparison technique using 25 colors with different brightness. It was shown that the characteristics or their color vision could be completely and adequately described in the frames of the four-dimensional spherical model of color perception The spatial axes could be identified as the two color-opponent mechanisms (red-green and blue-yellow) and the two achromatic mechanisms (brightness and darkness. Deformation of the color axes in protanomals (as compared with the normal trichromatics) was demonstrated in the "red" and "yellow" spectral region. The visual disturbance in protanomal subjects involves not only color but also achromatic mechanisms. This is manifested in the a deformation of perceptual brihgtness scale. In comparison with normal trichromatic subjects, the protanomals perceive the red and adjacent colors as achromatic while green, yellow-green, and orange as more bright but low-saturated colors.

Hypertension risk may be associated with increased pressor response to mental stress. However, studies using family history as a predictor of reactivity have obtained mixed results. We assessed cardiovascular responses to mental arithmetic stress (a 5-min serial subtraction task) in male medical students (n = 220) at three levels of hypertension risk based on parental history and the subject's systolic blood pressure (SBP): low (SBP < 125 mm Hg and 0 or 1 hypertensive parent), moderate (resting SBP ≥ 125 mm Hg or 2 hypertensive parents), or high (resting SBP ≥ 125 mm Hg and 1 or 2 hypertensive parents). High risk men showed the greatest blood pressure responses (+ 22/ + 16 mm Hg), while moderate and low-risk groups showed correspondingly smaller responses (+ 17/ + 13 and + 14/ + 11 mm Hg, p's < 0.02). Family history alone did not predict differential reactivity. This study replicates and extends our previous work suggesting the importance of using both family history and resting blood pressure level in determining future risk for hypertension in studies of cardiovascular reactivity in relation to hypertension risk in males.

Elaboration of differential instrumental conditioned reflexes in rabbits showed that probabilities of responses to differential stimuli were inversely related to differences in intensity between conditioned and differential stimuli. Factor analysis of a response probability matrix revealed two orthogonal axes. They could be interpreted as the axes of brightness and darkness in achromatic space of a rabbit. Lights of different intensities were located on a semicircle in accordance with their intensities. The experiments imply that light intensities are coded by excitation vectors composed of responses of brightness and darkness neurons.

Discrimination of colours was studied using choice conditioning paradigm (one of a pair of colour stimuli) in carps. Matrix of probabilities of instrumental reactions (catching a bead) was constructed by the results of eight experimental sessions with successive reinforcement of one of the eight colours. It was processed by factor analysis. The spherical structure of carp's perceptual colour space revealed by factor analysis was similar to that of monkeys and humans. Four eigenvectors which constituted four-dimensional Euclidean hypersphere corresponded to excitation of four colour-encoding neuronal channels, i.e., red-green, blue-yellow, bright and dark.

Discrimination of colours by Macaque rhesus was studied by the method of elaboration of differentiation inhibition of instrumental conditioned responses to colour stimuli. Matrix of probabilities of instrumental reactions to presentation of colour stimuli, the columns of which corresponded to the colours applied, and the lines - to series of experiments with definite reinforced colour, - was processed by the method of factor analysis. Four factors describing the used colours in four-dimensional Euclide space were singled out. Spatial structure of the seven used colours satisfies the equation of four-dimensional sphere. Two first factors are interpreted as colour-opponent redgreen and yellow-blue and the third and fourth ones as achromatic light and dark neuronal channels. Perceptive space of colour stimuli based on the data of instrumental behaviour of the monkey corresponds to analogous results obtained by the method of multidimensional scaling of subjective evaluations of super-threshold colour differences for the man.