Kolarik, B. S. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2019

Enriching hippocampal memory function in older adults through real-world exploration

Age-related structural and functional changes in the hippocampus can have a severe impact on hippocampally-dependent memory performance. Here we test the hypothesis that a real-world spatial exploration intervention will improve hippocampally-dependent memory performance in healthy older adults. We found that following our intervention, participants lure discrimination index (LDI) was significantly higher than it was at baseline, while traditional recognition scores remained relatively unchanged. These results point to the viability of a spatial exploration intervention for improving hippocampally-dependent memory in older adults.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2018

The role of the fornix in human navigational learning

Studies in rodents have demonstrated that transecting the white matter pathway linking the hippocampus and anterior thalamic nuclei - the fornix - impairs flexible navigational learning in the Morris Water Maze (MWM), as well as similar spatial learning tasks. While diffusion MRI studies in humans have linked fornix microstructure to scene discrimination and memory, its role in human navigation is currently unknown. We used high-angular resolution diffusion MRI to ask whether inter-individual differences in fornix microstructure would be associated with spatial learning in a virtual MWM task. To increase sensitivity to individual learning across trials, we adopted a novel curve fitting approach to estimate a single index of learning rate. We found a significant correlation between learning rate and the microstructure (mean diffusivity) of the fornix, but not that of a control tract linking occipital and anterior temporal cortices (the inferior longitudinal fasciculus, ILF). Further, this correlation remained significant when controlling for hippocampal volume. These findings extend previous animal studies by demonstrating the functional relevance of the fornix for human navigational learning, and highlight the importance of a distributed neuroanatomical network, underpinned by key white matter pathways, such as the fornix, in complex spatial behaviour.

neuroscience↗