Enhancing memory network via brain stimulation

Magnetic stimulation of the posterior parietal cortex increases functional connectivity of a neural network implicated in memory, shows human research published in eNeuro. This finding confirms a previous study, validating further exploration of this technique for experimental and clinical applications.

Five daily sessions of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation had been previously shown by Wang et al. to increase functional connectivity of a hippocampal brain network and improve memory performance in humans. Freedberg et al. now report a successful replication and extension of the original neuroimaging findings with fewer stimulation sessions in healthy adults. The researchers observed enhanced functional connectivity after as few as three daily sessions. Unlike the original study, they did not assess memory performance.

###

Manuscript title: Persistent enhancement of hippocampal network connectivity by parietal rTMS is reproducible

Please contact [email protected] for full-text PDF and to join SfN’s journals media list.

JNeurosci, the Society for Neuroscience’s first journal, was launched in 1981 as a means to communicate the findings of the highest quality neuroscience research to the growing field. Today, the journal remains committed to publishing cutting-edge neuroscience that will have an immediate and lasting scientific impact, while responding to authors’ changing publishing needs, representing breadth of the field and diversity in authorship.

The Society for Neuroscience is the world’s largest organization of scientists and physicians devoted to understanding the brain and nervous system. The nonprofit organization, founded in 1969, now has nearly 37,000 members in more than 90 countries and over 130 chapters worldwide.