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Updated: Aug 19, 2026

Brain Imaging Investigation of the Neural Correlates of Emotional Autobiographical Recollection
Published on: August 26, 2011
Medial temporal lobe structures are needed to re-experience remote autobiographical memories: evidence from H.M. and
Sarah Steinvorth1, Brian Levine, Suzanne Corkin
1Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, NE20-392, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA. ssteinv@nmr.mgh.harvard.edu
Abstract:
The nature and extent of retrograde amnesia in patients with medial temporal lobe (MTL) lesions is currently under debate. While some investigators propose a temporally limited role for the MTL in episodic and semantic memory, others claim that MTL structures are needed for episodic memories of one's entire lifetime, and that only semantic memory becomes independent of the MTL. To address this issue, we tested two amnesic patients, H.M. and W.R., with bilateral MTL lesions on a series of remote memory tests that together distinguished episodic memory from semantic memory performance. Notably, we used a new method to assess autobiographical memory that measured the degree of re-experiencing of personal happenings from the past. Both patients showed relatively spared semantic memory, but severe impairment on measures of autobiographical memory, with no temporal gradient. Our data support the view that MTL structures play a significant role in recalling specific personal episodes, not only from the recent past but from the distant past as well.
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Amnesia
The severity and duration of memory loss vary depending on the type and underlying cause. Amnesia is classified into two main types: retrograde and anterograde.
Retrograde amnesia is marked by the loss of memories formed before the onset of the condition. Patients may recall distant past events but often forget those occurring shortly before the incident.
Anterograde...

