What Is the Connection Between the Prefrontal Cortex and Memory?

The prefrontal lobe of the human brain refers to the anterior region of the frontal lobe of the brain, in front of the motor cortex and the premotor cortex. In the classic Brudman subdivision, it includes 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 24, Areas 25, 32, 44, 45, 46 and 47.

Brain prefrontal lobe: The structure responsible for memory in the brain is called the hippocampus, and the structure equivalent to computer memory is the prefrontal lobe of the brain-the part of the cerebral cortex behind the forehead of the brain. This area is the most changed part in the evolution of primates. The primate has evolved to humans, and the brain capacity has doubled. The increase is mainly reflected in the prefrontal lobe of the brain becoming larger and larger. ^[1]

The frontal lobe of the brain, including the anterior, middle, and posterior regions, is an important area of neural tissue. The prefrontal area is the prefrontal lobe of the brain. It has one of the most important regions in the brain because of its extensive neural connections and complex structural patterns, as well as rich and complex two-way connections.

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In the past decades, brain imaging studies have been used to determine cortical thickness, volume, and nerve fiber connections in different brain regions. Some studies have shown that the volume of the prefrontal region is reduced and the interconnection with other brain regions is reduced in patients diagnosed with mental disorders.

Consequences of damage

People with damaged prefrontal lobe are not capable of initiating and realizing purposeful and planned behavioral activities, so there is no creativity at all. A large number of clinical observations have shown that the main symptoms of brain prefrontal injury are: the inability to focus attention on observation and thinking, and the inability to perform thorough logical reasoning. , Lonely, moody, moody. These manifestations are called "frontal syndrome" in clinical medicine.

Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley studied two types of patients with damage to the prefrontal cortex of the brain, one with damage to the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex, the other with damage to the orbitofrontal cortex, and a group of people with no brain injury. Control group. These people participated in an experiment called the "signal game," which is widely used in evolutionary biology, game theory, and experimental economics. ^[2]

Studies have shown that people with uninjured brains are more likely to tell the truth. People with damaged prefrontal cortex and dorsal cortex behave differently. Once honesty and self-interest conflict, they will make more dishonest choices. Studies have also found that there is no causal relationship between the orbital frontal cortex and honesty.

The dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex is one of the most important brain regions for cognitive control. Once this brain region is damaged, cognitive control cannot be performed, and only instinctual responses remain. After cognitive control is lost, only instinctual ones remain. selfish. ^[2]

Directly related to human IQ

The phenomenon of "man with one eye and ten lines" in the "strongest brain" has the foundation of neuroscience. The reporter learned yesterday from the Institute of Neuroscience of the Chinese Academy of Sciences that the latest issue of the "Science" journal published the brain region used by Li Chengyu's research group using advanced optogenetic methods to prove the core cognitive function of working memory. It is the medial prefrontal lobe, but after learning it will be transferred to other brain areas to perform tasks. ^[3]

Li Chengyu's concern is working memory, an important short-term memory measured in seconds. "It is like a temporary buffer in the computer, which stores many intermediate results of thinking." Li Chengyu explained, for example, a person with a 17 × 24 mental arithmetic and a strong working memory can store the intermediate results in his brain until the final result is obtained. In fact, it is difficult to find a task that does not require the participation of working memory; previous studies have shown that the quality of working memory is directly related to the level of human IQ, and working memory defects often appear in dementia, stroke, and brain aging. in the process of. ^[3]

Previously, scientists only knew that working memory exists in the medial prefrontal lobe. Due to insufficient experimental methods, it is not clear how it works. Now, Li Chengyu's group used lasers to control nerve cells to the second level, and finally confirmed the function of this group of prefrontal cortex cells in the brain. "They are only responsible for the storage of working memory behavior, and have no effect on decision-making behavior." He said, moreover, the activity of the medial prefrontal cortex during the delay period only works during the learning phase, so whether a person's working memory ability is related to whether Fast learning may be relevant.

"The human brain's prefrontal cortex accounts for 30% of the cortex, chimpanzees 20%, and monkeys only 10%." Li Chengyu said that although in-depth research is needed, the prefrontal correlates related to working memory are likely to affect human intelligent behavior Played no small role. ^[3]