Memory Processing and Cortical Plasticity

描述(申请人提供)：记忆对心理健康和正常的认知功能至关重要，但在短期(工作)记忆中存储和处理信息的能力还没有被很好地理解。这个应用程序的实验将使用一个流行的工作记忆任务(变化检测)来调查鸽子、猕猴和人类的对象(什么)、位置(位置)和时间(何时)记忆。我们已经开发了程序来训练猴子和鸽子执行相同的变化检测任务(其中一个对象在测试中发生变化)，使用相同的对象记忆阵列，精度接近人类。动物研究将提供证据，证明记忆系统从与人类关系较近的物种(猕猴)和与人类关系较远的物种(鸽子)进化而来。语言和神经结构的物种差异将为语言和大脑结构在不同测试条件下对这些不同类型的记忆至关重要的作用提供证据。某些条件(阻塞的大存储集)会将这些不同的记忆类型分开；其他条件会混淆对象和位置记忆(记忆显示中重复的对象，以及对象和位置试验的混合)或干扰记忆(重复先前试验中的项目)。在分别测试记忆类型、表现更多地依赖于感觉和自下而上加工的条件下，动物和人类可能会表现出类似的记忆结果。灵长类动物，尤其是人类，预计在必须解决干扰或混淆的条件下表现最好，这更依赖于自上而下的处理和前额叶皮质--大脑结构通常被认为在认知上区分灵长类动物(和其他物种)最关键。人类功能磁共振成像研究将确定分别测试对象和位置记忆时的活动模式差异；对象、位置和时间记忆的组合；以及对时间(时间)记忆的主动干扰。这些研究的结果可能为从人类功能磁共振研究中识别的猴子大脑区域进行实时记录奠定基础，并可能有助于识别患者(例如创伤后应激障碍)的特定记忆缺陷，从而更好地进行有针对性的治疗和评估。 公共健康相关性：记忆对认知功能和心理健康至关重要，这一应用程序的实验将更好地理解这一点，该应用程序将与鸽子、恒河猴和人类一起研究物体(什么)、位置(地点)和时间(何时)的记忆，以比较短期记忆和工作记忆的机制。语言和神经结构的物种差异将为语言和大脑结构对这些不同类型的记忆至关重要的作用提供证据，人类将在功能磁共振扫描仪中进行测试，以确定不同记忆类型及其连接的活动模式和关键大脑区域。总之，这些研究将为更好地了解记忆奠定基础，可能会导致实时记录从人类功能磁共振研究中确定的猴子大脑区域，并更好地识别患者(例如创伤后应激障碍)的特定记忆缺陷，以便进行有针对性的治疗和评估。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Memory is critical for mental health and proper cognitive functioning, but the ability to store and process information in short-term (working) memory is not well understood. Experiments of this application will use a popular working memory task (change-detection) to investigate object (what), location (where) and time (when) memory in pigeons, rhesus monkeys, and humans. We have developed procedures to train monkeys and pigeons to perform the same change-detection task (where one object changes at test) with the same memory arrays of objects at accuracies approaching those of humans. Animal studies will provide evidence about evolution of memory systems from a species (rhesus monkeys) comparatively closely related to humans and a species (pigeons) more distantly related. Species differences in language and neural architectures will provide evidence about the role of language and brain structures critical to these different types of memory under different testing conditions. Some conditions (blocked, large memory sets) will separate these different memory types; others will confound object and location memory (objects repeated in memory displays, and intermixing of object and location trials) or interfere with memory (repeating items from prior trials). Animals and humans may show similar memory results under conditions where memory types are separately tested and where performance depends more on sensory and bottom-up processing. Primates, particularly humans, are expected to perform best under conditions where interference or confounds must be resolved which depends more on top-down processing and the prefrontal cortex-the brain structure often considered most critical in cognitively separating primates (and other species). Human fMRI studies will determine activity-pattern differences when object and location memory are tested separately; conjunctions of object, location, and time memory; and proactive interference for time (when) memory. The results from these studies may lay the foundation for real-time recordings from monkey brain areas identified from the human fMRI studies and may help identify specific memory deficits in patients (e.g., PTSD) leading to better targeted treatment and evaluation. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Memory is critical to cognitive functioning and mental health and will be better understood by experiments of this application that will study memory for objects (what), locations (where) and time (when) with pigeons, rhesus monkeys, and humans to compare mechanisms of short-term memory and working memory. Species differences in language and neural architectures will provide evidence about the role of language and brain structures critical to these different types of memory and humans will be tested in an fMRI scanner to determine activity patterns and critical brain areas for different memory types and their conjunctions. Together these studies will lay the foundation for better understanding memory perhaps leading to real-time recordings from monkey brain areas identified from the human fMRI studies and better identification of specific memory deficits in patients (e.g., PTSD) for targeted treatment and evaluation.