Functional neuroimaging studies of aging and emotion: Fronto-amygdalar differences during emotional perception and episodic memory

AbstractEmotional processes are enhanced in aging, such that aging is characterized by superior emotional regulation. This article provides a brief review of the neural bases supporting this effect with a focus on functional neuroimaging studies of perception and episodic memory. The most consistent finding across these studies is that older adults show an alteration in the recruitment of the amygdala, but greater recruitment of the frontal cortex. These Fronto-amygdalar Age-related Differences in Emotion (FADE) may reflect emotional regulation strategies mediated by frontal brain regions that dampen emotion-related activations in the amygdala. (JINS, 2009, 15, 819–825.)

Download Full-text

Age-Related Neural Dedifferentiation and Cognition

10.31219/osf.io/kvu29 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Joshua Koen ◽

Sabina Srokova ◽

Michael Rugg

Keyword(s):

Episodic Memory ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Functional Specificity ◽

Neural Representations ◽

Age Related ◽

Functional Brain Networks ◽

Age Related Cognitive Decline ◽

Neural Selectivity ◽

Invariant Relationship ◽

Existing Data

This review focuses on possible contributions of neural dedifferentiation to age-related cognitive decline. Neural dedifferentiation is held to reflect a breakdown in the functional specificity of brain regions and networks that compromises the fidelity of neural representations supporting episodic memory and related cognitive functions. The evidence for age-related dedifferentiation is robust when it is operationalized as neural selectivity for different categories of perceptual stimuli or as decreased segregation or modularity of resting-state functional brain networks. Neural dedifferentiation for perceptual categories appears to demonstrate a negative, age-invariant relationship with performance on tests of memory and fluid processing. Whether this pattern extends to network-level measures of dedifferentiation cannot currently be determined due to insufficient evidence. The existing data highlight the importance of further examination of neural dedifferentiation as a factor contributing to episodic memory and to cognitive performance more generally.

Download Full-text

REM sleep, hippocampus, and memory processing: Insights from functional neuroimaging studies

Behavioral and Brain Sciences ◽

10.1017/s0140525x13001441 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 36 (6) ◽

pp. 629-630 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Victor I. Spoormaker ◽

Michael Czisch ◽

Florian Holsboer

Keyword(s):

Prefrontal Cortex ◽

Episodic Memory ◽

Rem Sleep ◽

Functional Neuroimaging ◽

Memory Encoding ◽

Rem Sleep Deprivation ◽

Memory Processing ◽

Emotional Processes ◽

Memory Traces ◽

Increased Activity

AbstractNeuroimaging studies show that episodic memory encoding is associated with increased activity in hippocampus and lateral prefrontal cortex; however, the latter structure shows decreased activity in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Together with few episodic memory traces in REM sleep, and REM sleep deprivation affecting hippocampus-independent emotional processes, this argues for generic information processing in REM sleep rather than linking episodic memory traces.

Download Full-text

Neural Correlates of Decisions in Quasi-Realistic, Affective Social Interactions in Individuals With Violence-Related Socialization

Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience ◽

10.3389/fnbeh.2021.713311 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 15 ◽

Author(s):

Juliana Wiechert ◽

Axel Janzen ◽

Anja Achtziger ◽

Thorsten Fehr

Keyword(s):

Social Interactions ◽

Functional Neuroimaging ◽

Control Strategies ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Social Contexts ◽

Self Control ◽

Medium Effect ◽

Top Down ◽

Video Clips ◽

Frontal Brain

Appropriate social behavior in aggressive-provocative interactions is a prerequisite for a peaceful life. In previous research, the dysfunctions of the control of aggression were suggested to be modulated by enhanced bottom-up (sub-cortically driven) and reduced top-down (iso-cortical frontal) processing capability. In the present study, two groups of individuals with enhanced (EG) and normal (NG) experiences of violent acts during their socialization made binary behavioral decisions in quasi-realistic social interactions. These interactions were presented in short video clips taken from a first-person perspective. The video clips showed social interaction scenarios oriented on realistic everyday life situations. The behavioral data supported the distinct affective qualities of three categories of social interactions. These categories were labeled as aggressive–provocative, social–positive, and neutral–social interactions. Functional neuroimaging data showed extended activation patterns and higher signal intensity for the NG compared to the EG in the lateral inferior frontal brain regions for the aggressive provocative interactions. Furthermore, the peri-aqueductal gray (PAG) produced enhanced activations for the affective interaction scenarios (i.e., aggressive-provocative and social-positive) in both groups and as a trend with the medium effect size for the neutral interactions in the EG. As the individuals in the EG did not show open aggression during the functional MRIA (fMRI) investigation, we concluded that they applied individual self-control strategies to regulate their aggressive impulses immediately. These strategies appeared to be top-down regulated through the dorsal frontal brain areas. The predominant recruitment of the heteromodal cortices during the neural processing of complex social interactions pointed to the important role of the learning history of individuals and their socialization with differing levels of violent experiences as crucial modulators in convicts. Our data suggest that building or strengthening the association between prototypical social contexts (e.g., aggressive-provocative interactions) and appropriate behaviors as a response to it provides a promising approach to successfully re-socialize people with a delinquent history.

Download Full-text

Age moderation of the association between negative subsequent memory effects and episodic memory performance

10.31234/osf.io/v57qa ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Patrick Pruitt ◽

Lingfei Tang ◽

Jessica Hayes ◽

Noa Ofen ◽

Jessica S. Damoiseaux

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Young Adults ◽

Episodic Memory ◽

Functional Neuroimaging ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Age Groups ◽

Recognition Task ◽

Memory Formation ◽

Memory Effects ◽

Age Related

Negative subsequent memory effects in functional MRI studies of memory formation, have been linked to individual differences in memory performance, yet the effect of age on this association is currently unclear. To provide insight into the brain systems related to memory across the lifespan, we examined functional neuroimaging data acquired during episodic memory formation and behavioral performance from a memory recognition task in a sample of 109 participants, including three developmental age groups (8-12, 13-17, 18-25 year-olds) and one additional group of older adults (55-85 year-olds). Young adults showed the highest memory performance and strongest negative subsequent memory effects, while older adults showed reduced negative subsequent memory effects relative to young adults. Across the sample, negative subsequent memory effects were associated with better memory performance, and there was a significant interaction between negative subsequent memory effects and memory performance by age groups. Posthoc analyses revealed that this effect was driven by a strong association between negative subsequent memory effects and memory performance in adolescents and young adults, but not in children and older adults. These findings suggest that negative subsequent memory effects may differentially support memory performance across a lifespan trajectory characterized by developmental maturation and age-related deterioration.

Download Full-text

Large Scale Neurocognitive Networks Underlying Episodic Memory

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience ◽

10.1162/089892900561805 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

pp. 163-173 ◽

Cited By ~ 100

Author(s):

Lars Nyberg ◽

Jonas Persson ◽

Reza Habib ◽

Endel Tulving ◽

Anthony R. McIntosh ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Episodic Memory ◽

Large Scale ◽

Functional Neuroimaging ◽

Brain Activity ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Target Density ◽

Functional Connections ◽

Positron Emission ◽

Episodic Encoding

Large-scale networks of brain regions are believed to mediate cognitive processes, including episodic memory. Analyses of regional differences in brain activity, measured by functional neuroimaging, have begun to identify putative components of these networks. To more fully characterize neurocognitive networks, however, it is necessary to use analytical methods that quantify neural network interactions. Here, we used positron emission tomography (PET) to measure brain activity during initial encoding and subsequent recognition of sentences and pictures. For each type of material, three recognition conditions were included which varied with respect to target density (0%, 50%, 100%). Analysis of large-scale activity patterns identified a collection of foci whose activity distinguished the processing of sentences vs. pictures. A second pattern, which showed strong prefrontal cortex involvement, distinguished the type of cognitive process (encoding or retrieval). For both pictures and sentences, the manipulation of target density was associated with minor activation changes. Instead, it was found to relate to systematic changes of functional connections between material-specific regions and several other brain regions, including medial temporal, right prefrontal and parietal regions. These findings provide evidence for large-scale neural interactions between material-specific and process-specific neural substrates of episodic encoding and retrieval.

Download Full-text

Age- and reserve-related increases in fronto-parietal and anterior hippocampal activity during episodic encoding predict subsequent memory

10.1101/535674 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Abdelhalim Elshiekh ◽

Sivaniya Subramaniapillai ◽

Sricharana Rajagopal ◽

Stamatoula Pasvanis ◽

Elizabeth Ankudowich ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Episodic Memory ◽

Brain Activity ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Task Demands ◽

Aging Brain ◽

Older Individuals ◽

Age Related ◽

Brain Responses ◽

Encoding And Retrieval

AbstractRemembering associations between encoded items and their contextual setting is a feature of episodic memory. Although this ability deteriorates with age in general, there is substantial variability in how older individuals perform on episodic memory tasks. This variability may stem from genetic and/or environmental factors related to reserve, allowing some individuals to compensate for age-related decline through differential recruitment of brain regions. In this fMRI study, we tested predictions related to reserve and compensation in a large adult lifespan sample (N=154). We used multivariate Behaviour Partial Least Squares (B-PLS) analysis to examine how age, retrieval accuracy, and a proxy measure of reserve, impacted brain activity patterns during spatial and temporal context encoding and retrieval. Reserve modulated age-related compensatory brain responses in ventral visual, temporal, and fronto-parietal regions during memory encoding as a function of task demands. Activity in inferior parietal, medial temporal, and ventral visual regions were strongly impacted by age at encoding and retrieval, but were also related to individual differences in reserve. Our findings are consistent with the concepts of reserve and compensation and suggest that reserve may mitigate age-related decline by modulating compensatory brain responses in the aging brain.

Download Full-text

Inefficient Encoding as an Explanation for Age-Related Deficits in Recollection-Based Processing

Journal of Psychophysiology ◽

10.1027/0269-8803/a000122 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 28 (3) ◽

pp. 148-161 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

David Friedman ◽

Ray Johnson

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Young Adults ◽

Cognitive Processes ◽

Brain Activity ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Semantic Retrieval ◽

Age Related ◽

The Face ◽

Episodic Memories

A cardinal feature of aging is a decline in episodic memory (EM). Nevertheless, there is evidence that some older adults may be able to “compensate” for failures in recollection-based processing by recruiting brain regions and cognitive processes not normally recruited by the young. We review the evidence suggesting that age-related declines in EM performance and recollection-related brain activity (left-parietal EM effect; LPEM) are due to altered processing at encoding. We describe results from our laboratory on differences in encoding- and retrieval-related activity between young and older adults. We then show that, relative to the young, in older adults brain activity at encoding is reduced over a brain region believed to be crucial for successful semantic elaboration in a 400–1,400-ms interval (left inferior prefrontal cortex, LIPFC; Johnson, Nessler, & Friedman, 2013 ; Nessler, Friedman, Johnson, & Bersick, 2007 ; Nessler, Johnson, Bersick, & Friedman, 2006 ). This reduced brain activity is associated with diminished subsequent recognition-memory performance and the LPEM at retrieval. We provide evidence for this premise by demonstrating that disrupting encoding-related processes during this 400–1,400-ms interval in young adults affords causal support for the hypothesis that the reduction over LIPFC during encoding produces the hallmarks of an age-related EM deficit: normal semantic retrieval at encoding, reduced subsequent episodic recognition accuracy, free recall, and the LPEM. Finally, we show that the reduced LPEM in young adults is associated with “additional” brain activity over similar brain areas as those activated when older adults show deficient retrieval. Hence, rather than supporting the compensation hypothesis, these data are more consistent with the scaffolding hypothesis, in which the recruitment of additional cognitive processes is an adaptive response across the life span in the face of momentary increases in task demand due to poorly-encoded episodic memories.

Download Full-text