Increased task demand during spatial memory testing recruits the anterior cingulate cortex
Joshua K Carr1, Neil M Fournier1, Hugo Lehmann2
1Department of Psychology, Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario K9J 7B8, Canada.
Learning & Memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.)
|August 18, 2016
Summary
Increasing retrieval difficulty in spatial memory tasks activates the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). This brain region
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Behavioral Neuroscience
Background:
- The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is implicated in memory retrieval.
- Cognitive demand influences neural recruitment during memory tasks.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if heightened retrieval difficulty in a spatial memory task increases ACC activation.
- To compare ACC recruitment under high cognitive demand to remote memory retrieval.
Main Methods:
- Rats performed the Morris Water Task with varying retention intervals (3 vs. 30 days).
- Retrieval difficulty was manipulated by removing salient extra-pool spatial cues.
- Immediate early gene expression (c-Fos) was measured in the ACC as an indicator of neural activity.
Main Results:
- Increased c-Fos expression was observed in the ACC following cue removal.
- ACC activation levels under high retrieval difficulty matched those seen during remote memory retrieval.
- This suggests enhanced ACC involvement when memory retrieval is cognitively demanding.
Conclusions:
- The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) plays a crucial role in memory retrieval processes that require significant cognitive effort.
- Manipulating retrieval difficulty provides a method to probe the cognitive demands on memory systems.
- Findings support the ACC's contribution to high-demand memory retrieval, irrespective of memory age.
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