The impact of auditory induced synchronization on memory processing

以往的研究表明，脑电相位同步是支持记忆过程的一种重要机制。该项目旨在研究听觉刺激是否增加了内侧颞叶和新皮质之间的相位同步性，以及这是否反过来提高了记忆能力。为此，单耳和双耳听觉心跳的节拍频率在主要脑电节律的范围内将被应用于术前癫痫患者，同时从颅内电极记录脑电。在第一步中，我们将评估脑电在节拍频率上的幅度增加，以及不同新皮质和中颞区之间的相位同步是否可以通过听觉刺激实现，并与增强的记忆功能相关。在第二步，将研究是否可以通过听觉节拍的持续刺激来增强癫痫患者睡眠中梦记忆的形成。最后，将评估事件相关听觉节拍刺激是否可以提高健康受试者在工作和长期记忆任务中的表现。

Previous research indicates that EEG phase synchronization is an important mechanism supporting memory processes. This project aims at investigating whether auditory stimulation increases phase synchronization between mediotemporal and neocortical areas and whether this, in turn, enhances memory performance. For this purpose, monaural and binaural auditory beats with beat frequencies in the range of the dominant EEG rhythms will be applied to presurgical epilepsy patients while recording EEG from intracranial electrodes. In a first step, we will evaluate whether an EEG amplitude increase at the beat frequencies, as well as phase synchronization between different neocortical and mediotemporal areas can be achieved by auditory stimulation and is associated with enhanced memory functions. In a second step, it will be investigated whether formation of dream memories during sleep can be enhanced in epilepsy patients by continuous stimulation with auditory beats. Finally, it will be evaluated whether performance in working and long-term memory tasks can be enhanced in healthy subjects by event-related auditory beat stimulation.