Poster presentation at the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Klinische Neurophysiologieund Funktionelle Bildgebung (DGKN) conference

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Today I presented a poster at the DGKN 2024 conference.

Summary: For our memory to work successfully, we need to retrieve information and evaluate this to assess its validity. It is thought that a memory network, including the prefrontal cortex and the posterior parietal cortex, plays an important role in this. However, little is known about the mechanisms by which these two brain regions interact. Neural brain waves (oscillations) enable interaction within and between brain regions to complete cognitive tasks. While neuronal oscillations can be measured through electroencephalography (EEG), the direct role of neural oscillations can be explored through transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS), because it can modulate brain activity in a rhythmic manner. In the current study, we used tACS to entrain frontal and parietal oscillations to the theta (4 Hz) and gamma (50 Hz) frequency, and in this way tried to alter specific memory processes. Participants performed a verbal memory task in which they encoded words in one of two conditions and later were tested on their recognition memory for these words. With this memory task we measured: memory for words (item memory accuracy), memory for the encoding context (source memory accuracy), and item and source memory confidence. We applied tACS while participants were remembering the words and explored the electrophysiological correlates with EEG. Our EEG findings confirm and add to the proposed roles of endogenous theta and gamma oscillations in memory processes. In addition, we show how EEG correlates can predict individual differences in subsequent tACS effects on memory processes. These findings provide important insights and guidelines for future implementation of non-invasive brain stimulation to alter memory and other cognitive processes.

For more detailed information, see the poster below.

(posterior parietal cortex)