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Persistent posterior and transient anterior medial temporal lobe activity during navigation
Jian Xu1, Hallvard R Evensmoen, Hanne Lehn
1Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway.
Neuroimage
|August 3, 2010
Summary
The anterior medial temporal lobe (MTL) is crucial for the initial stages of navigation, like planning. The posterior MTL remains active throughout navigation, tracking location and aiding success.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Neuroimaging
Background:
- A functional segregation along the posterior-anterior axis of the medial temporal lobe (MTL) is proposed.
- The anterior MTL is hypothesized to represent the environment holistically and support behavior, while the posterior MTL encodes spatial details.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the distinct roles of anterior and posterior MTL regions during different phases of virtual navigation.
- To test the hypothesis that initial navigation phases recruit anterior MTL, while posterior MTL is active throughout.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to study participants navigating a large-scale virtual office.
- Participants undertook navigation under varying navigational conditions.
- Direct comparison of brain activity during initial versus sustained navigation phases.
Main Results:
- The initial navigational phase specifically engaged the anterior MTL, including the entorhinal cortex, anterior hippocampus, and anterior parahippocampal cortex.
- Sustained activity throughout navigation was observed in the right posterior hippocampus and parahippocampal cortex, particularly when the environment was unaltered.
- Navigational success correlated with activity in the anterior hippocampus during the initial phase and more posterior hippocampus during the entire navigation period.
Conclusions:
- Results support a functional segregation within the MTL based on navigational phases.
- The anterior MTL is implicated in forming environmental associations and behavioral planning for navigation.
- The posterior MTL appears critical for maintaining location awareness during navigation.
