1-s2.0-S0896627315005590-main.pdf (1.97 MB)
Rapid Encoding of New Memories by Individual Neurons in the Human Brain
journal contribution
posted on 2015-09-02, 10:14 authored by Matias J. Ison, Rodrigo Quian Quiroga, Itzhak FriedThe creation of memories about real-life episodes requires rapid neuronal changes that may appear after a single occurrence of an event. How is such demand met by neurons in the medial temporal lobe (MTL), which plays a fundamental role in episodic memory formation? We recorded the activity of MTL neurons in neurosurgical patients while they learned new associations. Pairs of unrelated pictures, one of a person and another of a place, were used to construct a meaningful association modeling the episodic memory of meeting a person in a particular place. We found that a large proportion of responsive MTL neurons expanded their selectivity to encode these specific associations within a few trials: cells initially responsive to one picture started firing to the associated one but not to others. Our results provide a plausible neural substrate for the inception of associations, which are crucial for the formation of episodic memories.
History
Citation
Neuron, 2015, 87 (1), pp. 220-230Author affiliation
/Organisation/COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING/Department of EngineeringVersion
- VoR (Version of Record)