Implanted memory
In the USA, a brain implant was tested to improve memory
Natalia Pelezneva, Naked Science
American scientists have completed the first series of tests of a device for improving memory using electrical stimulation of the brain. According to the researchers, they managed to improve the ability of test participants to memorize words by an average of 15%. If the technology passes the next stages of testing, in the future it can be used for dementia and traumatic brain injuries affecting memory.
When creating the implant, the technique of deep brain stimulation (deep brain stimulation) was used. It is usually used in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. To do this, long thin electrodes are inserted into the brain, through which relatively weak electrical impulses are applied to certain areas of the brain. In patients with Parkinson's disease, continuous stimulation is usually used.
25 patients with epilepsy took part in the testing of the new device. All of them at that time underwent the procedure of electrocorticography – monitoring of brain activity using electrodes installed directly on the cerebral cortex. Participants were asked to memorize a list of 12 words, and then briefly distracted them by giving them several arithmetic problems to solve. During the tests, the scientists tracked the activity of the patients' brains, including the activity of the temporal lobe of the cortex. This area of the brain, along with the hippocampus, forms a person's long-term memory, and also participates in the processing of visual and auditory information.
During the first attempts to memorize words, a special algorithm determined the level of activity inherent in the patient's brain during memorization.
The blue circles indicate the location of the electrodes used to register brain activity in order to determine the time when stimulating impulses are applied to the electrode in a certain area of the lateral temporal cortex. Figure from the press release of the University of Pennsylvania Penn Researchers Prove That Precisely Timed Brain Stimulation Improves Memory – VM.
If activity dropped in the following tests, the brain was gently stimulated with an electrical pulse. According to patients, the stimulation is imperceptible. Each of the participants completed 25 tasks without knowing during which tests his brain would be stimulated. On average, the stimulation helped to recall 15% more words.
The methodology is waiting for several more tests. In addition, the researchers believe that their work can help in the search for non-invasive methods to improve memory in dementia and other diseases.
The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.
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