http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/8611 2026-06-19T07:59:24Z http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/33460 Title: Effects of aging on recognition and dominance perception in laughter Authors: Szameitat, DP; Wildgruber D; Szameitat, AJ Abstract: Introduction: Aging is associated with reduced accuracy in recognizing others’ emotions, an ability that is important for maintaining social connectedness in later life. Laughter is a social signal with multiple functions, as it can facilitate social bonding but also convey negative social meanings, for example when directed at someone. In previous research we have shown that younger adults are able to classify spontaneously emitted joyful, schadenfreude, and tickling laughter above chance level, and that these laughter sounds differ according to the perceived dominance. Given evidence that affect recognition generally declines with age, the present study examined whether comparable age effects emerge in the perception of laughter. Methods: 64 younger adults (mean 25 years, 18–33 years) and 30 older adults (mean age 60 years, 50–77 years) evaluated 117 spontaneously emitted laughter sounds according to the laughter type, i.e., joyful, Schadenfreude, and tickling laughter and according to the perceived sender’s dominance. Results: Results showed that both age groups classified laughter above chance level. Younger adults showed higher classification rates than older adults for all laughter types, with the largest age effect for Schadenfreude laughter. The dominance ratings showed an age effect only for Schadenfreude, where older adults rated Schadenfreude laughter less dominant than younger adults. Discussion: Pronounced differences in Schadenfreude perception might be ascribed to difficulties of older adults in perceiving non-literal messages or to cultural differences between age groups. Description: Data availability statement: The original contributions presented in the study are publicly available. This data can be found here: Figshare, https://doi.org/10.17633/rd.brunel.32521458. 2026-06-16T00:00:00Z http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/33453 Title: Toads on Roads: Summary 2025 Authors: Sumpter, JP Abstract: 2025 Data Collection: Data collection is now complete for another year with results from 280 patrols processed. 2025-12-01T00:00:00Z http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/33451 Title: Embryotoxicity of pyrethroid insecticides and their mixtures in a human induced pluripotent stem cell-based model in vitro Authors: Ma, Y; Gutierrez, CT; Scholze, M; Valente, MJ; Vinggaard, AM Abstract: Pyrethroid insecticides are used worldwide, yet their potential effects on early human development remain poorly understood. We applied the PluriLum assay, a human induced pluripotent stem cell-based 3D in vitro model, to evaluate the embryotoxicity of three commonly used pyrethroids (α-cypermethrin, deltamethrin, and etofenprox), and their shared metabolite 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (3-PBA). Embryoid bodies (EBs) were repeatedly exposed to these compounds throughout their differentiation into cardiomyocytes, and effects on cardiomyocyte beating, expression of the early cardiac marker NKX2.5, as well as their impact at a transcriptional level was assessed. The three pyrethroids were tested in combination at two different mixture compositions to investigate their potential for additivity. All three pyrethroids impaired cardiomyocyte differentiation at micromolar levels, with the following potency ranking: α-cypermethrin > etofenprox > deltamethrin. At higher concentrations, α-cypermethrin also reduced cardiomyocyte contractility. In contrast, 3-PBA showed no significant effects on neither differentiation nor contractile function. The pyrethroid mixtures followed the principle of concentration addition. An exploratory transcriptomic analysis revealed that α-cypermethrin and deltamethrin significantly altered the EBs gene expression profiles, affecting pathways related to ion channel activity, receptor signalling, and extracellular matrix organization. These findings suggest that exposure to pyrethroids may interfere with early human cardiac development through effects on multiple molecular targets. This study also highlights the value of the PluriLum assay as a human-relevant platform for assessing the embryotoxic potential of environmental chemicals. Description: Data availability: The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.; Supplementary Information is available online at: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00204-026-04448-2#Sec211 . 2026-05-20T00:00:00Z http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/33448 Title: In Vitro Bioassay Evidence for Chemical Mixture Propagation from the Environment to Humans Authors: Escher, B; Scholze, M; Margalef, M; König, M; Valente, MJ; Hamers, T; Renko, K; Audebert, M; Lee, J; Khoury, L; Cenijn, P; Ma, Y; Treschow, AF; Toms, L-M; Rørbye, C; Braun, G; Motteau, S; Antignac, J-P; Dervilly, G; Lamoree, M; Vinggaard, AM Abstract: Complex mixtures of organic chemicals extracted from representative but not directly related environmental samples (wastewater, surface water, fish), food items (drinking water, fish, milk) and human blood were tested in 22 in vitro bioassays targeting pathways associated with neurodevelopmental and reproductive health. Extraction methods were optimized to extract common chemicals across matrices capturing both persistent and nonpersistent, neutral and charged organic chemicals─albeit with some bias toward more hydrophilic chemicals over highly hydrophobic chemicals. Most bioassay end points─except genotoxicity─were responsive, with strongest effects observed higher up the food chain in fish and humans. Experimental mixture effects of 24 chemicals quantified in these extracts conformed to the mixture prediction model of concentration addition in the six most responsive bioassays, namely neurite outgrowth inhibition, mitochondrial membrane potential inhibition, transthyretin protein binding, sodium-iodide symporter inhibition and androgen receptor antagonism. Designed mixtures explained little of total bioactivity, indicating that many of the thousands of unannotated molecular features detected by nontarget analysis contribute to mixture effects. Preliminary effect-based trigger (EBT) values defined for water and food by extrapolation from safe levels of individual chemicals indicate no immediate health risks at these average contamination levels. The high complexity and multivalent bioactivity of these mixtures on neurodevelopmental and reproductive pathways necessitate further toxicological scrutiny. Description: Data Availability: The concentration–response curves can be accessed at zenodo (https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20402074).; Supporting Information is available online at: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/acs.est.6c00908#_i41 . 2026-06-02T00:00:00Z