Dataset Information

Behavioral and EEG Evidence for Auditory Memory Suppression.

ABSTRACT: The neural basis of motivated forgetting using the Think/No-Think (TNT) paradigm is receiving increased attention with a particular focus on the mechanisms that enable memory suppression. However, most TNT studies have been limited to the visual domain. To assess whether and to what extent direct memory suppression extends across sensory modalities, we examined behavioral and electroencephalographic (EEG) effects of auditory TNT in healthy young adults by adapting the TNT paradigm to the auditory modality. Behaviorally, suppression of memory strength was indexed by prolonged response time (RTs) during the retrieval of subsequently remembered No-Think words. We examined task-related EEG activity of both attempted memory retrieval and inhibition of a previously learned target word during the presentation of its paired associate. Event-related EEG responses revealed two main findings: (1) a centralized Think > No-Think positivity during auditory word presentation (from approximately 0-500 ms); and (2) a sustained Think positivity over parietal electrodes beginning at approximately 600 ms reflecting the memory retrieval effect which was significantly reduced for No-Think words. In addition, word-locked theta (4-8 Hz) power was initially greater for No-Think compared to Think during auditory word presentation over fronto-central electrodes. This was followed by a posterior theta increase indexing successful memory retrieval in the Think condition. The observed event-related potential pattern and theta power analysis are similar to that reported in visual TNT studies and support a modality non-specific mechanism for memory inhibition. The EEG data also provide evidence supporting differing roles and time courses of frontal and parietal regions in the flexible control of auditory memory.

SUBMITTER: Cano ME

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4811890 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Behavioral and EEG Evidence for Auditory Memory Suppression.

Cano Maya E ME Knight Robert T RT

Frontiers in human neuroscience 20160330

The neural basis of motivated forgetting using the Think/No-Think (TNT) paradigm is receiving increased attention with a particular focus on the mechanisms that enable memory suppression. However, most TNT studies have been limited to the visual domain. To assess whether and to what extent direct memory suppression extends across sensory modalities, we examined behavioral and electroencephalographic (EEG) effects of auditory TNT in healthy young adults by adapting the TNT paradigm to the auditor ...[more]

PMID: 27064461

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Project description:Auditory working memory (WM) processing in everyday acoustic environments depends on our ability to maintain relevant information online in our minds, and to suppress interference caused by competing incoming stimuli. A challenge in communication settings is that the relevant content and irrelevant inputs may emanate from a common source, such as a talkative conversationalist. An open question is how the WM system deals with such interference. Will the distracters become inadvertently filtered before processing for meaning because the primary WM operations deplete all available processing resources? Or are they suppressed post perceptually, through an active control process? We tested these alternative hypotheses by measuring magnetoencephalography (MEG), EEG, and functional MRI (fMRI) during a phonetic auditory continuous performance task. Contextual WM maintenance load was manipulated by adjusting the number of "filler" letter sounds in-between cue and target letter sounds. Trial-to-trial variability of pre- and post-stimulus activations in fMRI-informed cortical MEG/EEG estimates was analyzed within and across 14 subjects using generalized linear mixed effect (GLME) models. High contextual WM maintenance load suppressed left auditory cortex (AC) activations around 250-300 ms after the onset of irrelevant phonetic sounds. This effect coincided with increased 10-14 Hz alpha-range oscillatory functional connectivity between the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and left AC. Suppression of AC responses to irrelevant sounds during active maintenance of the task context also correlated with increased pre-stimulus 7-15 Hz alpha power. Our results suggest that under high auditory WM load, irrelevant sounds are suppressed through a "late" active suppression mechanism, which prevents short-term consolidation of irrelevant information without affecting the initial screening of potentially meaningful stimuli. The results also suggest that AC alpha oscillations play an inhibitory role during auditory WM processing.

Dataset Information

Behavioral and EEG Evidence for Auditory Memory Suppression.

Publications

Behavioral and EEG Evidence for Auditory Memory Suppression.

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