Old-new ERP effects and remote memories: the late parietal effect is absent as recollection fails whereas the early mid-frontal effect persists as familiarity is retained.

Understanding the electrophysiological correlates of recognition memory processes has been a focus of research in recent years. This study investigated the effects of retention interval on recognition memory by comparing memory for objects encoded four weeks (remote) or 5 min (recent) before testing. In Experiment 1, event related potentials (ERPs) were acquired while participants performed a yes-no recognition memory task involving remote, recent and novel objects.

Broca's area supports enhanced visuospatial cognition in orchestral musicians.

We provide neurobehavioral evidence supporting the transferable benefit of music training to alter brain function and enhance cognitive performance in a nonmusical visuospatial task in professional orchestral musicians. In particular, orchestral musicians' performance on a three-dimensional mental rotation (3DMR) task exhibited the behavioral profile normally only attained after significant practice, supporting the suggestion that these musicians already possessed well developed neural circuits to support 3DMR. Furthermore, functional magnetic resonance imaging revealed that only orchestral musicians showed significantly increased activation in Broca's area, in addition to the well known visuospatial network, which was activated in both musicians and nonmusicians who were matched on age, sex, and verbal intelligence.

Temporal order memory in patients with Korsakoff's syndrome and medial temporal amnesia.

Two groups of patients with global amnesia resulting either from Korsakoff's syndrome (KS) or from medial temporal lobe (MTL) damage were compared with groups of matched healthy control subjects on a list discrimination paradigm. Item recognition memory was matched across the amnesic and control groups in order to determine whether KS, but not MTL amnesics are disproportionately impaired on list discrimination as predicted by Parkin's [Functional significance of etiological factors in human amnesia. In: Squire LR, Butters N, editors.

Intellectual, mnemonic, and frontal functions in dementia with Lewy bodies: A comparison with early and advanced Parkinson's disease.

Both Parkinson's disease (PD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) share a common neuropathological marker, the presence of Lewy bodies in brain stem and basal forebrain nuclei. DLB, in addition, is associated with Lewy bodies in the neocortex, and, in it's more common form, with Alzheimer-type pathological markers, particularly amyloid plaques. Published neuropsychological studies have focused on the differential profiles of DLB and Alzheimer's disease (AD).