Effect and underlying mechanism of obstructive sleep apnea on memory consolidation / 四川精神卫生

The purpose of this paper is to review the research progress on the effects of obstructive sleep apnea （OSA） on memory consolidation， and to speculate on possible mechanisms underlying these effects， so as to inform the exploration of effective therapeutic measures for impaired memory consolidation. Previous studies have shown that mild OSA may impair different types of memory consolidation， and the impairments are closely related to certain indices of polysomnography （such as sleep microstructure， apnea hypopnea index， arousal index， etc）. Therefore， it is hypothesized that disruption of sleep architecture and damage to brain regions and neural pathways associated with sleep-dependent memory consolidation due to intermittent hypoxia may trigger a decline in memory consolidation. Meantime， long-term continuous positive airway pressure can alleviate the impairment of memory consolidation induced by OSA， but whether other interventions can mitigate the damage remains unclear.

Aprendizagem de línguas em neuropsicologia: a Teoria Declarativa/Procedural / Language learningin neuropsychology: Declarative/Procedural Theory

Este artigo objetiva oferecer uma ampla revisão do framework da Teoria Declarativa/Procedural (DPT), de Michael Ullman, a partir de artigos publicados entre 1998, quando a DPT foi proposta, até 2016. A DPT sustenta que a aprendizagem da linguagem depende de dois sistemas de memória: o léxico é aprendido por memória declarativa, e as regras gramaticais, por memória procedural. Com esta revisão, os resultados obtidos são: (a) estudos com pacientes com distúrbios, utilizando neuroimagens, verificaram as áreas encefálicas ativadas durante a realização de atividades ligadas à linguagem e à memória; (b) identificação de que as memórias declarativa e procedural não são específicas da linguagem, pois atuam em habilidades motoras e recordações de fatos e eventos; (c) com o avanço das pesquisas, a DTP tornou-se mais flexível, admitindo que os sistemas de memória, mesmo independentes, interagem de várias formas; e (d) fatores como idade, frequência de exposição ao input linguístico, disfunções e hormônios impactam no uso dos dois sistemas.

This paper aims at providing a wide review of the Michael Ullman's Declarative/Procedural Theory framework from papers published between 1998 (when DPT was proposed) and 2016. The DPTclaims that the language learning depends upon two distinct memory systems: lexicon is learned by declarative memory, whereas grammar rules use procedural memory. From this review, the results are: (a) studies with patients with disorders, using neuroimaging, revealed regions of the encephalon that were activated during the performance of activities involving language and memory; (b) identification that the declarative and procedural memories are not domain-specific, since they act on motor abilities and retrieval of facts and events; c) with the improvement of the researches, Ullman's theory became more flexible, admitting that even though the memory systems are independent, they interact many times; and variables such as age, frequency, disorders and hormonal issues impact on the use of both memory systems.

The effect of transcranial direct current stimulation on memory function / 中华行为医学与脑科学杂志

Memory function is the core component of human brain cognition.Memory impairment significantly affects people's daily life and social ability,but existing cognitive training or drug therapy can not effectively improve memory function.In recent years,new techniques and methods have been emerging in brain science research,especially neural regulation techniques,such as transcranial electrical / magnetic stimulation,which can significantly regulate cognitive ability and effectively promote memory function.Transcranial direct current stimulation is a kind of noninvasive and safe technique.It can regulate cerebral cortex activity by changing the cerebral cortex excitability,and play a role in regulating brain function.At present,there have been reports at home and abroad that transcranial direct current stimulation can promote memory function and improve memory effectively.This technique is applied to the diagnosis and treatment of clinical diseases,but its mechanism is not clear.This article reviews the mechanism and application of transcranial direct current stimulation (TDCS) in promoting different types of memory function in order to provide evidence for early intervention and treatment of memory impairment.

Consolidation of a Learned Skill Correlates with Dopamine SPECT Uptake in Early Parkinson's Disease

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Basal ganglia play a pivotal role in procedural memory. However, the correlation between skill learning and striatal 123I-ioflupane uptake in Parkinson's disease (PD) has not been reported previously. Our objective was to determine whether visuomotor skill learning is associated with striatal 123I-ioflupane uptake in early PD. METHODS: We designed a case–control study to assess learning and consolidation of a visuomotor learning task (mirrored drawing of star-shaped figures) performed on two consecutive days by early-PD patients (disease duration 0.18) other than the score on part III of the Movement Disorders Society Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale, which was higher in the PD patients (mean±SD: 15.0±10.4 vs. 1.3±1.1, p 0.5), whereas PD patients showed a lower consolidation index for the time per trial (p=0.009). Moreover, this performance was correlated with uptake in the right caudate nucleus (Spearman's rho=0.82, p=0.007) and the right striatum (Spearman's rho=0.67, p=0.049), including when multiple linear regression adjusting for the levodopa equivalent daily dose was performed (p=0.005 for the caudate nucleus and p=0.024 for the striatum). CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence of a correlation between procedural memory impairment and striatal dopaminergic dysfunction in early PD.

Memoria de trabajo y memoria procedimental en las dificultades específicas del aprendizaje y del lenguaje: algunos hallazgos / Working memory and procedural memory in Specific Learning and Language Difficulties: some findings

Este artículo describe las relaciones entre los déficit de memoria de trabajo y de memoria procedimental con las dificultades específicas de aprendizaje y el trastorno específico del lenguaje. La memoria de trabajo es un sistema que comprende varios componentes cuya actividad coordinada proporciona la capacidad para el almacenamiento temporal y la manipulación de la información en una variedad de dominios. La memoria procedimental de largo plazo es un sistema particularmente importante para la adquisición y ejecución de habilidades que involucran secuencias de diferentes tipos (motoras y cognitivas). Los trastornos específicos del lenguaje y dificultades específicas del aprendizaje están estrechamente asociados con déficit selectivos en los dos sistemas de memoria. Se comentan las implicaciones de estos hallazgos para la práctica educativa y la rehabilitación.

This paper describes the relationships between working and procedural memory deficits with specific learning disabilities and specific language impairment. Working memory is a system comprising multiple components whose coordinated activity provides the capacity for the temporary storage and manipulation of information in a variety of domains. Long term procedural memory is a system particularly important for acquiring and performing skills involving sequences of different types (motor and cognitive). Specific language impairments and specific learning disabilities are closely associated to selective deficits in both memory systems. The implications of these findings for educational practice and rehabilitation are considered.

Relationship between the auditory P300 and the procedural memory function in drug-naive patients with Parkinson's disease

We evaluated and compared procedural memory and auditory P300 event-related potential in age-matched normal controls (n = 15) and drug-naive patients with Parkinson's disease (n = 16). We used Gollin's incomplete picture test for visual procedural memory function and Tower of Hanoi puzzle for visuomotor procedural memory function. The mean latency of P300 was significantly prolonged in the Parkinsonian group than in the controls. In the neuropsychology test, the patients group revealed selective impairment of visuomotor procedural memory against preserved visual procedural memory. In the patients group, the latency of P300 was inversely correlated with performance of visuomotor procedural memory. These results suggest that prolonged auditory P300 event-related potential show the dysfunction of visuomotor procedural memory in the basal ganglia, which appears to be more selectively impaired than visual procedural memory in drug-naive patients with Parkinson's disease.