scholarly journals Transcranial stimulation over the left inferior frontal gyrus increases false alarms in an associative memory task in older adults

2016 ◽  
Vol 05 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan C Leach ◽  
Matthew P McCurdy ◽  
Michael C Trumbo ◽  
Laura E Matzen ◽  
Eric D Leshikar
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Associative Memory ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
False Alarms ◽  
Transcranial Stimulation ◽  
Left Inferior Frontal Gyrus

scholarly journals Effects of Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol Administration on Human Encoding and Recall Memory Function: A Pharmacological fMRI Study

2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 588-599 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthijs G. Bossong ◽  
Gerry Jager ◽  
Hendrika H. van Hell ◽  
Lineke Zuurman ◽  
J. Martijn Jansma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Task Performance ◽  
Associative Memory ◽  
Animal Studies ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Memory Function ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Convincing Evidence ◽  
Compensatory Mechanism ◽  
Novel Target ◽  
The Right

Deficits in memory function are an incapacitating aspect of various psychiatric and neurological disorders. Animal studies have recently provided strong evidence for involvement of the endocannabinoid (eCB) system in memory function. Neuropsychological studies in humans have shown less convincing evidence but suggest that administration of cannabinoid substances affects encoding rather than recall of information. In this study, we examined the effects of perturbation of the eCB system on memory function during both encoding and recall. We performed a pharmacological MRI study with a placebo-controlled, crossover design, investigating the effects of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) inhalation on associative memory-related brain function in 13 healthy volunteers. Performance and brain activation during associative memory were assessed using a pictorial memory task, consisting of separate encoding and recall conditions. Administration of THC caused reductions in activity during encoding in the right insula, the right inferior frontal gyrus, and the left middle occipital gyrus and a network-wide increase in activity during recall, which was most prominent in bilateral cuneus and precuneus. THC administration did not affect task performance, but while during placebo recall activity significantly explained variance in performance, this effect disappeared after THC. These findings suggest eCB involvement in encoding of pictorial information. Increased precuneus activity could reflect impaired recall function, but the absence of THC effects on task performance suggests a compensatory mechanism. These results further emphasize the eCB system as a potential novel target for treatment of memory disorders and a promising target for development of new therapies to reduce memory deficits in humans.

Dopamine Receptor Genes Modulate Associative Memory in Old Age

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 245-253 ◽  
Author(s):  
Goran Papenberg ◽  
Nina Becker ◽  
Beata Ferencz ◽  
Moshe Naveh-Benjamin ◽  
Erika J. Laukka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Episodic Memory ◽  
Associative Memory ◽  
Genetic Risk ◽  
Genetic Risk Score ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Item Memory ◽  
Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽  
Genetic Score

Previous research shows that associative memory declines more than item memory in aging. Although the underlying mechanisms of this selective impairment remain poorly understood, animal and human data suggest that dopaminergic modulation may be particularly relevant for associative binding. We investigated the influence of dopamine (DA) receptor genes on item and associative memory in a population-based sample of older adults (n = 525, aged 60 years), assessed with a face–scene item associative memory task. The effects of single-nucleotide polymorphisms of DA D1 (DRD1; rs4532), D2 (DRD2/ANKK1/Taq1A; rs1800497), and D3 (DRD3/Ser9Gly; rs6280) receptor genes were examined and combined into a single genetic score. Individuals carrying more beneficial alleles, presumably associated with higher DA receptor efficacy (DRD1 C allele; DRD2 A2 allele; DRD3 T allele), performed better on associative memory than persons with less beneficial genotypes. There were no effects of these genes on item memory or other cognitive measures, such as working memory, executive functioning, fluency, and perceptual speed, indicating a selective association between DA genes and associative memory. By contrast, genetic risk for Alzheimer disease (AD) was associated with worse item and associative memory, indicating adverse effects of APOE ε4 and a genetic risk score for AD (PICALM, BIN1, CLU) on episodic memory in general. Taken together, our results suggest that DA may be particularly important for associative memory, whereas AD-related genetic variations may influence overall episodic memory in older adults without dementia.

scholarly journals Do Alzheimer’s Disease Patients Benefit From Prior-Knowledge in Associative Recognition Memory?

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (04) ◽  
pp. 443-452
Author(s):  
Emma Delhaye ◽  
Adrien Folville ◽  
Isabelle Simoes Loureiro ◽  
Laurent Lefebvre ◽  
Eric Salmon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Prior Knowledge ◽  
Semantic Memory ◽  
Associative Memory ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Semantic Knowledge ◽  
Healthy Older Adults

AbstractObjectives: Although the influence of prior knowledge on associative memory in healthy aging has received great attention, it has never been studied in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). This study aimed at assessing whether AD patients could benefit from prior knowledge in associative memory and whether such benefit would be related to the integrity of their semantic memory. Methods: Twenty-one AD patients and 21 healthy older adults took part in an associative memory task using semantically related and unrelated word pairs and were also submitted to an evaluation of their semantic memory. Results: While participants of both groups benefited from semantic relatedness in associative discrimination, related pairs recognition was significantly predicted by semantic memory integrity in healthy older adults only. Conclusions: We suggest that patients benefitted from semantic knowledge to improve their performance in the associative memory task, but that such performance is not related to semantic knowledge integrity evaluation measures because the two tasks differ in the way semantic information is accessed: in an automatic manner for the associative memory task, with automatic processes thought to be relatively preserved in AD, and in a controlled manner for the semantic knowledge evaluation, with controlled processes thought to be impaired in AD. (JINS, 2019, 25, 443–452)

scholarly journals Oscillatory Mechanisms of Successful Memory Formation in Younger and Older Adults Are Related to Structural Integrity

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 3744-3758 ◽  
Author(s):  
Myriam C Sander ◽  
Yana Fandakova ◽  
Thomas H Grandy ◽  
Yee Lee Shing ◽  
Markus Werkle-Bergner
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Memory Formation ◽  
Cued Recall ◽  
Interindividual Differences ◽  
Alpha Beta ◽  
Oscillatory Mechanisms

Abstract We studied oscillatory mechanisms of memory formation in 48 younger and 51 older adults in an intentional associative memory task with cued recall. While older adults showed lower memory performance than young adults, we found subsequent memory effects (SME) in alpha/beta and theta frequency bands in both age groups. Using logistic mixed effects models, we investigated whether interindividual differences in structural integrity of key memory regions could account for interindividual differences in the strength of the SME. Structural integrity of inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and hippocampus was reduced in older adults. SME in the alpha/beta band were modulated by the cortical thickness of IFG, in line with its hypothesized role for deep semantic elaboration. Importantly, this structure–function relationship did not differ by age group. However, older adults were more frequently represented among the participants with low cortical thickness and consequently weaker SME in the alpha band. Thus, our results suggest that differences in the structural integrity of the IFG contribute not only to interindividual, but also to age differences in memory formation.

scholarly journals Associative Imagery as a Strategy to Improve Destination Memory in Younger and Older Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 361-362
Author(s):  
Tara Johnson ◽  
Katie Stanko ◽  
Susan Jefferson
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Mental Imagery ◽  
Source Monitoring ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Grocery Store ◽  
Control Group ◽  
False Alarms ◽  
Imagery Condition ◽  
Destination Memory ◽  
Shared Information

Abstract Destination memory errors (inability to remember to whom information was shared) affects all ages, but older adults are particularly vulnerable due to poor source monitoring. Individuals may assume information was already shared when it was not or repeat previously shared information. The current study explored two mental imagery strategies (vivid imagery, visualizing context) to improve destination memory. Using a software program, younger and older adults told randomly generated facts to random celebrity faces. Participants were unaware of the upcoming memory tests. The control group did not use a strategy. The imagery group used vivid imagery to connect the fact and face (e.g., visualize Oprah on a dime to remember Oprah was told that dimes have 118 ridges). The context group visualized a provided context (e.g., grocery store) when telling a fact to a face. Assessments of performance on item memory (facts, faces) as well as destination memory (face-fact pairings) were counterbalanced. Results indicated an associative memory deficit among older adults, which was driven by a higher rate of false alarms. However, across all adults, the vivid imagery condition was more accurate than the control condition, and they demonstrated fewer false alarms. These findings suggest that older adults can use mental imagery to reduce false alarms and improve destination memory performance. Implications include reducing age stereotypes, improving conversations, and decreasing potentially dangerous situations (e.g., withholding important health information thinking it already was shared with a doctor).

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