Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Working Memory

Working Memory

Working memory refers to a combination of components, including short-term memory and attention, that allow an individual to hold information temporarily as we perform cognitive tasks. It is an essential cognitive function that enables the execution of complex tasks such as problem-solving, comprehension, and reasoning. Unlike short-term memory, which simply involves the storage of information for a brief period, working memory involves the active manipulation and processing of this...

Role of Cerebellum and Prefrontal Cortex in Memory

Role of Cerebellum and Prefrontal Cortex in Memory

The cerebellum, while traditionally associated with motor control, also plays a crucial role in memory, particularly in procedural memory, which involves learning motor tasks that become automatic through repetition. For example, studies have shown that when the cerebellum is damaged, individuals or animals lose the ability to learn conditioned motor responses, such as the conditioned eye-blink response in classical conditioning experiments with rabbits. This study demonstrates the...

Motor Unit Stimulation

Motor Unit Stimulation

When the neuron of a motor unit fires an action potential, it triggers a series of events, leading to a twitch contraction in the muscle fibers. The process of excitation-contraction coupling is crucial in relaying the action potential to the muscle fibers.
The latent period of contraction marks the onset of excitation-contraction coupling, when the action potential propagates across the sarcolemma, preparing the muscle fibers for contraction. As the fibers enter the contraction phase, the...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Enhanced source localization accuracy through bidirectional deep brain stimulation (DBS) electrodes: A comparative study with non-invasive EEG methods.

Journal of neural engineering·2026

Same author

Intraoperative 5-aminolevulinic acid fluorescence-guided aspirate tissue monitoring in high-grade glioma surgery: The first-in-human study on clinical performance and safety.

Neuro-oncology advances·2026

Same author

Patterns of levetiracetam and lacosamide use for treatment of status epilepticus with respect to clinical features and prior antiseizure medications.

BMC neurology·2026

Same author

Attention and Executive Functions Are the Most Vulnerable Cognitive Domains in Patients With Drug-Resistant Epilepsy Prior to Neurostimulation Therapy.

Brain and behavior·2026

Same author

M-PACT leverages cell-free DNA methylomes to achieve robust classification of pediatric brain tumors.

Nature cancer·2026

Same author

Genomic analysis of PLNTY-like tumor progression into epithelioid glioblastoma: a case report.

Acta neuropathologica communications·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 2, 2026

Vagus Nerve Stimulation as a Tool to Induce Plasticity in Pathways Relevant for Extinction Learning

Vagus Nerve Stimulation as a Tool to Induce Plasticity in Pathways Relevant for Extinction Learning

Published on: August 21, 2015

Vagus nerve stimulation improves working memory performance.

Lihua Sun¹, Jari Peräkylä^1,2, Katri Holm^1,2

¹a Behavioral Neurology Research Unit , Tampere University Hospital , Tampere , Finland.

Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology

|May 12, 2017

Summary

Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) immediately improved working memory and altered emotional reactivity in epilepsy patients. This study provides the first evidence of VNS enhancing cognitive function and emotional processing in humans.

Keywords:

Attention Cognition Executive functions Frontal alpha asymmetry Vagus nerve stimulation

More Related Videos

Preparation of Peripheral Nerve Stimulation Electrodes for Chronic Implantation in Rats

Preparation of Peripheral Nerve Stimulation Electrodes for Chronic Implantation in Rats

Published on: July 14, 2020

Vagus Nerve Stimulation As an Adjunctive Neurostimulation Tool in Treatment-resistant Depression

Vagus Nerve Stimulation As an Adjunctive Neurostimulation Tool in Treatment-resistant Depression

Published on: January 7, 2019

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Mar 2, 2026

Vagus Nerve Stimulation as a Tool to Induce Plasticity in Pathways Relevant for Extinction Learning

Vagus Nerve Stimulation as a Tool to Induce Plasticity in Pathways Relevant for Extinction Learning

Published on: August 21, 2015

Preparation of Peripheral Nerve Stimulation Electrodes for Chronic Implantation in Rats

Preparation of Peripheral Nerve Stimulation Electrodes for Chronic Implantation in Rats

Published on: July 14, 2020

Vagus Nerve Stimulation As an Adjunctive Neurostimulation Tool in Treatment-resistant Depression

Vagus Nerve Stimulation As an Adjunctive Neurostimulation Tool in Treatment-resistant Depression

Published on: January 7, 2019

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Cognitive Science
Neurology

Background:

Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is an established treatment for refractory epilepsy and major depression.
The effects of VNS on human cognition are not fully understood, despite its known impact on seizures.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the immediate effects of VNS on attention, cognition, and emotional reactivity in patients with epilepsy.
To determine how VNS influences cognitive performance and brain activity related to emotional processing.

Main Methods:

Twenty epilepsy patients undergoing VNS therapy participated.
Subjects completed a computer-based executive function test with emotional distractors.
Electroencephalography (EEG) recorded brain activity, focusing on N1 potentials and frontal alpha asymmetry.

Main Results:

VNS improved working memory performance, indicated by fewer errors on a working memory subtask.
VNS increased the amplitude of the early visual event-related potential N1.
VNS led to longer reaction times and increased frontal alpha asymmetry in response to threat-related distractors, suggesting altered emotional reactivity.

Conclusions:

This study demonstrates the first evidence of immediate working memory improvement in humans with clinically relevant VNS.
VNS has immediate effects on emotional reactivity, observable in both behavior and brain physiology.
Findings suggest VNS may have broader cognitive and emotional regulatory effects beyond seizure control.