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Updated: Aug 2, 2025
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Assessing Pupil-linked Changes in Locus Coeruleus-mediated Arousal Elicited by Trigeminal Stimulation
Published on: November 26, 2019
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Testing locus coeruleus-norepinephrine accounts of working memory, attention control, and fluid intelligence
Matthew K Robison1, Kathryn J Ralph2, Dawn M Gondoli2
1Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, USA. matthew.robison@uta.edu.
Cognitive, Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience
|April 20, 2023
Summary
Phasic responsiveness, not tonic arousal, correlates with cognitive abilities like working memory and fluid intelligence. This supports theories linking the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine system to cognitive function.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Neurobiology
Background:
- Individual differences in cognitive abilities are influenced by the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine (LC-NE) system.
- Two theories propose different mechanisms for this influence: arousal regulation and resting-state functional connectivity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between working memory, attention control, fluid intelligence, and pupillary correlates of arousal regulation.
- To test predictions from theories on the LC-NE system's role in cognitive abilities.
Main Methods:
- Examined over 1,000 participants across two age groups (adolescents and young adults).
- Assessed working memory capacity, attention control, and fluid intelligence.
- Measured pupillary correlates of tonic arousal and phasic responsiveness.
Main Results:
- Phasic responsiveness showed consistent correlations with working memory, attention control, and fluid intelligence.
- No evidence supported a resting-state functional connectivity theory.
- Tonic arousal regulation showed inconsistent correlations with attention control and no correlation with working memory or fluid intelligence.
Conclusions:
- Phasic responsiveness of the LC-NE system is linked to individual differences in cognitive abilities.
- Arousal regulation and resting-state connectivity theories received limited or no support.
- Findings support the role of phasic LC-NE system responses in cognitive performance.
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