The secret to a good memory is simple - zap an electric current into the right part of your brain.
Scientists found passing an electric current through a part of the brain known as the 'gateway' to memory caused people's memory to improve instantly.
The researchers worked with seven epileptic patients who had already had electrodes implanted into their brains.
They stimulated nerve fibres one part of their brain while they played a videogame where they had to remember and plan routes as a taxi driver.
The volunteers played the role of cab drivers who picked up passengers and traveled across town to deliver them to one of six requested shops.
'When we stimulated the nerve fibers in the patients' brains during learning, they later recognized landmarks and navigated the routes more quickly,'said Fried.
'They even learned to take shortcuts.'
The finding could lead to a new method for boosting memory in patients with early Alzheimer's disease.
The UCLA team focused on a brain site called the entorhinal cortex.
Considered the doorway to the hippocampus, which helps form and store memories, the entorhinal cortex plays a crucial role in transforming daily experience into lasting memories.
'The entorhinal cortex is the golden gate to the brain's memory mainframe,' explained senior author Dr. Itzhak Fried, professor of neurosurgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
Every visual and sensory experience that we eventually commit to memory funnels through that doorway to the hippocampus. Our brain cells must send signals through this hub in order to form memories that we can later consciously recall.'
Fried and his colleagues followed seven epilepsy patients who already had electrodes implanted in their brains to pinpoint the origin of their seizures.
The researchers monitored the electrodes to record neuron activity as memories were being formed.
'Critically, it was the stimulation at the gateway into the hippocampus – and not the hippocampus itself – that proved effective,' he added.
The use of stimulation only during the learning phase suggests that patients need not undergo continuous stimulation to boost their memory, but only when they are trying to learn important information, Fried noted. T
his may lead the way to neuro-prosthetic devices that can switch on during specific stages of information processing or daily tasks.
'Our preliminary results provide evidence supporting a possible mechanism for enhancing memory, particularly as people age or suffer from early dementia,' says Fried 'At the same time, we studied a small sample of patients, so our results should be interpreted with caution.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2098383/Electric-pulses-head-boost-memory-say-scientists--All-remember-brain-zapper.html#ixzz1ltSpw6xS
Scientists found passing an electric current through a part of the brain known as the 'gateway' to memory caused people's memory to improve instantly.
The researchers worked with seven epileptic patients who had already had electrodes implanted into their brains.
They stimulated nerve fibres one part of their brain while they played a videogame where they had to remember and plan routes as a taxi driver.
The volunteers played the role of cab drivers who picked up passengers and traveled across town to deliver them to one of six requested shops.
'When we stimulated the nerve fibers in the patients' brains during learning, they later recognized landmarks and navigated the routes more quickly,'said Fried.
'They even learned to take shortcuts.'
The finding could lead to a new method for boosting memory in patients with early Alzheimer's disease.
The UCLA team focused on a brain site called the entorhinal cortex.
Considered the doorway to the hippocampus, which helps form and store memories, the entorhinal cortex plays a crucial role in transforming daily experience into lasting memories.
'The entorhinal cortex is the golden gate to the brain's memory mainframe,' explained senior author Dr. Itzhak Fried, professor of neurosurgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
Every visual and sensory experience that we eventually commit to memory funnels through that doorway to the hippocampus. Our brain cells must send signals through this hub in order to form memories that we can later consciously recall.'
Fried and his colleagues followed seven epilepsy patients who already had electrodes implanted in their brains to pinpoint the origin of their seizures.
The researchers monitored the electrodes to record neuron activity as memories were being formed.
'Critically, it was the stimulation at the gateway into the hippocampus – and not the hippocampus itself – that proved effective,' he added.
The use of stimulation only during the learning phase suggests that patients need not undergo continuous stimulation to boost their memory, but only when they are trying to learn important information, Fried noted. T
his may lead the way to neuro-prosthetic devices that can switch on during specific stages of information processing or daily tasks.
'Our preliminary results provide evidence supporting a possible mechanism for enhancing memory, particularly as people age or suffer from early dementia,' says Fried 'At the same time, we studied a small sample of patients, so our results should be interpreted with caution.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2098383/Electric-pulses-head-boost-memory-say-scientists--All-remember-brain-zapper.html#ixzz1ltSpw6xS
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