Brain Signals Linked to Good Memory Performance

People differ significantly in their memory performance. Researchers at the University of Basel have now discovered that certain brain signals are related to these differences.

While it is well known that certain brain regions play a crucial role in memory processes, so far it has not been clear whether these regions exhibit different activities when it comes to storing information in people with better or worse memory performance.

Having investigated this matter, a research team led by Professor Dominique de Quervain and Professor Andreas Papassotiropoulos has now published its results in the journal Nature Communications.

In the world’s largest functional imaging study on memory, they asked nearly 1,500 participants between the ages of 18 and 35 to look at and memorize a total of 72 images. During this process, the researchers recorded the subjects’ brain activity using MRI. The participants were then asked to recall as many of the images as possible — and as in the general population, there were considerable differences in memory performance among them.

In certain brain regions including the hippocampus, the researchers found a direct association between brain activity during the memorization process and subsequent memory performance. Individuals with a better memory showed a stronger activation of these brain areas. No such association was found for other memory-relevant brain areas in the occipital cortex — they were equally active in individuals with all levels of memory performance.

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Sources:

Léonie Geissmann, David Coynel, Andreas Papassotiropoulos, Dominique J. F. de Quervain. Neurofunctional underpinnings of individual differences in visual episodic memory performance. Nature Communications, 2023; 14 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41380-w

University of Basel. (2023, September 25). Brain signals for good memory performance revealed. ScienceDaily. Retrieved September 28, 2023 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/09/230925124817.htm

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