Posterior Cingulate Cortex and Executive Control of Episodic Memory
University of Pennsylvania
Summary
This project will use intracranial recordings and stimulation of the human brain to understand the unique contributions of the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) to episodic memory behavior. The goal is to test how distinct subregions of the PCC differentially contribute to memory-based decisions (e.g., have I seen this picture before?). The ability to perform invasive studies of the human brain is through routine clinical monitoring of brain activity which occurs during the neurosurgical treatment of epilepsy. However, this project only focuses on the basic science of PCC and memory behavior. Specifically, the investigators will use single-0cell and population measures of brain activity to test a new theory of PCC function which focuses on the executive processes needed to support memory retrieval and memory-based decisions. By studying the PCC, a convergence zone of memory and executive brain systems, progress can be made in elucidating how the failure to successfully leverage past experiences in daily behavior can occur as a common symptom of both neurodegenerative disease (e.g., Alzheimer's disease) and multiple psychiatric conditions (e.g., schizophrenia) implicating PCC dysfunction.
Description
This project reflects a basic experimental study involving human participants (BESH), which focuses on the neuroscience of episodic memory. Episodic memory involves the encoding and retrieval of past experiences to support learned behavior. Aside from these mnemonic processes, it also requires the ability to regulate memory (i.e. executive processes). For example, many real-world decisions will engage episodic retrieval, for which executive processes must help to integrate and evaluate the quality of remembered information (mnemonic evidence) and guide behavior to either decision, action, or c…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18–50 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- No
Inclusion Criteria: * All participants are patients undergoing invasive brain monitoring for epilepsy and will be asked to consent to participation in this basic science protocol (which is focused on the patient group but is not focused on the study of epilepsy). Exclusion Criteria: * Individuals not undergoing invasive brain monitoring for epilepsy. * Individuals outside of the age range (18-50 yrs). * Individuals with cognitive impairment or intellectual difficulty.
Interventions
- BehavioralCognitive testing
Cognitive tasks testing executive and episodic based decisions, and the switching between these processes.
Location
- Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania - PavilionPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania