Does excessive memory load attenuate activation in the prefrontal cortex? Load-dependent processing in single and dual tasks: functional magnetic resonance imaging study

Jäggi, Susanne; Seewer, Ria; Nirkko, Arto Christian; Eckstein, Doris; Schroth, Gerhard; Groner, Rudolf; Gutbrod, Klemens (2003). Does excessive memory load attenuate activation in the prefrontal cortex? Load-dependent processing in single and dual tasks: functional magnetic resonance imaging study. NeuroImage, 19(2 Pt 1), pp. 210-225. Elsevier 10.1016/S1053-8119(03)00098-3

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Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to investigate the relationship between cortical activation and memory load in dual tasks. An n-back task at four levels of difficulty was used with auditory-verbal and visual-nonverbal material, performed separately as single tasks and simultaneously as dual tasks. With reference to single tasks, activation in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) commonly increases with incremental memory load, whereas for dual tasks it has been hypothesized previously that activity in the PFC decreases in the face of excessive processing demands, i.e., if the capacity of the working memory's central executive system is exceeded. However, our results show that during both single and dual tasks, prefrontal activation increases continuously as a function of memory load. An increase of prefrontal activation was observed in the dual tasks even though processing demands were excessive in the case of the most difficult condition, as indicated by behavioral accuracy measures. The hypothesis concerning the decrease in prefrontal activation could not be supported and was discussed in terms of motivation factors. Similar changes in load-dependent activation were observed in two other regions outside the PFC, namely in the precentral gyrus and the superior parietal lobule. The results suggest that excessive processing demands in dual tasks are not necessarily accompanied by a diminution in cortical activity.

Item Type:	Journal Article (Original Article)
Division/Institute:	07 Faculty of Human Sciences > Institute of Psychology 04 Faculty of Medicine > Department of Radiology, Neuroradiology and Nuclear Medicine (DRNN) > Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology 04 Faculty of Medicine > Department of Head Organs and Neurology (DKNS) > Clinic of Neurology 04 Faculty of Medicine > Pre-clinic Human Medicine > BioMedical Research (DBMR) > DCR Unit Sahli Building > Forschungsgruppe Neurologie
UniBE Contributor:	Jäggi, Susanne, Nirkko, Arto Christian, Schroth, Gerhard, Groner, Rudolf, Gutbrod, Klemens
Subjects:	100 Philosophy > 150 Psychology 600 Technology > 610 Medicine & health
ISSN:	1053-8119
Publisher:	Elsevier
Language:	English
Submitter:	Stefanie Hetzenecker
Date Deposited:	11 Jul 2017 13:58
Last Modified:	05 Dec 2022 15:02
Publisher DOI:	10.1016/S1053-8119(03)00098-3
PubMed ID:	12814572
URI:	https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/94735