HUMAN

MEMORY
Prepared by
DR: Shimaa Elgamal
Lecturer of neurology
Faculty of medicine
Kafr Elsheikh university
• Memory
Is the faculty of the brain by which data or information is encoded,
stored, and retrieved when needed. It is the retention of information
over time for the purpose of influencing future action.
If past events could not be remembered, it would be impossible for
language, relationships, or personal identity to develop.
Memory loss is usually described as forgetfulness or amnesia.
• Memory is often understood as an informational processing system
with explicit and implicit functioning that is made up of a
sensory processor, short-term (or working) memory, and
long-term memory. This can be related to the neuron.
• The sensory processor allows information from the outside
world to be sensed in the form of chemical and physical stimuli
and attended to various levels of focus and intent.
• Working memory serves as an encoding and retrieval
processor. Information in the form of stimuli is encoded in
accordance with explicit or implicit functions by the working
memory processor.
• The working memory also retrieves information from previously
stored material. Finally, the function of long-term memory is to
store data through various categorical models or systems.
• Declarative, or explicit, memory is the conscious storage and
recollection of data. Under declarative memory resides semantic and
episodic memory.
• Semantic memory refers to memory that is encoded with specific
meaning, while episodic memory refers to information that is encoded
along a spatial and temporal plane.
• Declarative memory is usually the primary process thought of when
referencing memory
• Non-declarative, or implicit, memory is the unconscious storage and
recollection of information.
• An example of a non-declarative process would be the unconscious
learning or retrieval of information by way of procedural memory, or a
priming phenomenon
• Priming is the process of subliminally arousing specific responses
from memory and shows that not all memory is consciously activated,
whereas procedural memory is the slow and gradual learning of skills
that often occurs without conscious attention to learning.
Memory-related brain structures
 Subcortical structures
• Hippocampus

• The hippocampus
• The hippocampus is a structure in the brain that has been associated
with various memory functions. It is part of the limbic system, and lies
next to the medial temporal lobe. It is made up of two structures, the
Ammon's Horn, and the Dentate gyrus, each containing different types
of cells
Cognitive maps

There is evidence that the hippocampus contains cognitive maps in humans. In

one study, single-cell recordings were taken from electrodes implanted in a rat's
hippocampus, and it was found that certain neurons responded strongly only
when the rat was in certain locations. These cells are called place cells, and
collections of these cells can be considered to be mental maps.
Individual place cells do not only respond to one unique area only however, the
patterns of activation of these cells overlap to form layered mental maps within
the hippocampus.
• A good analogy is the example of the same television or computer screen
pixels being used to light up any trillions of possible combinations to
produce images, just as the place cells can be used in any multiple
possible combinations to represent mental maps.
• The hippocampus' right side is more oriented towards responding to
spatial aspects, whereas the left side is associated with other context
information.
• Also, there is evidence that experience in building extensive mental maps,
such as driving a city taxi for a long time (since this requires considerable
memorization of routes), can increase the volume of one's hippocampus.
Cerebellum

The cerebellum ("little brain") is a structure located at the rear of the brain, near
the spinal cord. It looks like a miniature version of the cerebral cortex, in that it
has a wavy, or convoluted surface.

Unlike the hippocampus which is involved in the encoding of complex memories,

the cerebellum plays a role in the learning of procedural memory, and motor
learning, such as skills requiring co-ordination and fine motor control.
An example of a skill requiring procedural memory would be playing a musical
instrument, or driving a car or riding a bike.
Individuals with transient global amnesia that have difficulty forming new
memories and/or remembering old events may sometimes retain the ability to
perform complex musical pieces, suggesting that procedural memory is
completely dissociated from conscious memory, also known as explicit memory.
• This separation makes sense if the cerebellum, which is far removed
from the hippocampus, is responsible for procedural learning. The
cerebellum is more generally involved in motor learning, and damage
to it can result in problems with movement, specifically it is
considered to co-ordinate timing and accuracy of movements, and to
make long-term changes (learning) to improve these skills
Amygdala

The amygdala.
Located above the hippocampus in the medial temporal lobes are two
amygdalae (singular "amygdala").
The amygdalae are associated with both emotional learning and memory, as
it responds strongly to emotional stimuli, especially fear.
These neurons assist in encoding emotional memories and enhancing them.
This process results in emotional events being more deeply and accurately
encoded into memory. Lesions to the amygdalae in monkeys have been
shown to impair motivation, as well as the processing of emotions
• Memory consolidation
• Emotional experiences and events are somewhat fragile and take a while to be
completely set into memory. This slow process, referred to as consolidation,
allows emotions to influence the way the memory is stored.

• The amygdala is involved in memory consolidation, which is the process of

transferring information that is currently in working memory into ones long-
term memory.
• This process is also known as memory modulation. The amygdala works to
encode recent emotional information into memory.
• Memory research has shown that the greater ones emotional arousal level at
the time of the event, the greater the chance that the event will be
remembered. This may be due to the amygdala enhancing the emotional aspect
of the information during encoding, causing the memory to be processed at a
deeper level and therefore, more likely to withstand forgetting.
Basal ganglia and motor memory

Basal ganglia (red) and related structures (blue)

The basal ganglia are a group of nuclei which are located in the medial
temporal lobe, above the thalamus and connected to the cerebral cortex.
Specifically, the basal ganglia includes the subthalamic nucleus, substantia
nigra, the globus pallidus, the ventral striatum and the dorsal striatum, which
consists of the putamen and the caudate nucleus.
The basic functions of these nuclei deal with cognition, learning, and motor
control and activities. The basal ganglia are also associated with learning,
memory, and unconscious memory processes, such as motor skills and implicit
memory.
• The caudate nucleus is thought to assist in learning and memory of
associations taught during operant conditioning. Specifically, research has
shown that this part of the basal ganglia plays a role in acquiring stimulus-
response habits, as well as in solving sequence tasks
• Damage to the basal ganglia has been linked to dysfunctional
learning of motor and perceptual-motor skills. Most disorders that
are associated with damage to these areas of the brain involve
some type of motor dysfunction, as well as trouble with mental
switching between tasks in working memory. Such symptoms are
often present in those who suffer from dystonia,
Huntington's disease or Parkinson's disease. Huntington's and
Parkinson's disease involve both motor deficits and cognitive
impairment
 Cortical structures
• Frontal lobe
• The frontal lobes are located at the front of each cerebral hemisphere and
positioned anterior to the parietal lobes. It is separated from the parietal
lobe by the primary motor cortex, which controls voluntary movements of
specific body parts associated with the precentral gyrus.
• The cortex here serves our ability to plan the day, organize work, type a
letter, pay attention to details and control the movements of your arms
and legs. It also contributed to your personality and behaviour.
• When considering the frontal lobes in regards to memory, we see that
it is very important in the coordination of information. Therefore, the
frontal lobes are important in working memory.
• For example, when you are thinking about how to get to a mall you
have never been to before, you combine various bits of knowledge
you already have: the layout of the city the mall is in, information
from a map, knowledge of traffic patterns in that area and
conversations with your friends about the location of the mall.
• By actively using all of this information, you can determine the best
route for you to take. This action involves the controlled use of
information in working memory, coordinated by the frontal lobes.
Temporal lobe
• The temporal lobes are a region of the cerebral cortex that is located
beneath the Sylvian fissure on both the left and right hemispheres of the
brain.
• Lobes in this cortex are more closely associated with memory and in
particular autobiographical memory.

• The temporal lobes are also concerned with recognition memory. This is
the capacity to identify an item as one that was recently encountered.
• Recognition memory is widely viewed as consisting of two components,
a familiarity component (i.e. Do I know this person waving at me?) and a
recollective component (i.e. That is my friend Julia, from evolutionary
psychology class)
• Damage to the temporal lobe can affect an individual in many ways
ranging from: disturbance of auditory sensation and perception,
disturbance of selective attention of auditory and visual input,
disorders of visual perception, impaired organization and
categorization of verbal material, disturbance of language
comprehension, and altered personality.

• In regard to memory, temporal lobe damage can impair long-term

memory. Thus, general semantic knowledge or more personal
episodic memories of one's childhood could be affected
• Parietal lobe
• The parietal lobe is located directly behind the central sulcus, superior to the
occipital lobe and posterior to the frontal lobe, visually at the top of the back of the
head.

• The parietal lobe has many functions and duties in the brain and its main functioning
can be divided down into two main areas:
• (1) sensation and perception
• (2) constructing a spatial coordinate system to represent the world around us.
The parietal lobe helps us to mediate attention when necessary and provides spatial
awareness and navigational skills. Also, it integrates all of our sensory information
(touch, sight, pain etc.) to form a single perception. Parietal lobe gives the ability to
focus our attention on different stimuli at the same time.
Parietal lobe also assists with verbal short term memory and damage to the
supramarginal gyrus cause short term memory loss.
• Damage to the parietal lobe results in the syndrome ‘neglect' which is when
patients treat part of their body or objects in their visual field as though it never
existed.
• Damage to the left side of the parietal lobe can result in what is called
Gerstmann syndrome.It includes right-left confusion, difficulty with writing
(agraphia) and difficulty with mathematics (acalculia). It can also produce
disorders of language (aphasia) and the inability to perceive objects.
• Damage to the right parietal lobe can result in neglecting part of the body or
space (contralateral neglect), which can impair many self-care skills such as
dressing and washing. Right side damage can also cause difficulty in making
things (constructional apraxia), denial of deficits (anosognosia) and drawing
ability.
• Neglect syndrome tends to be more prevalent on the right side of the parietal
lobe, because the right mediates attention to both the left and right fields.
Damage in the somatic sensory cortex results in loss of perception of bodily
sensations, namely sense of touch.
• Occipital lobe
• The occipital lobe is the smallest of all four lobes in the human cerebral
cortex and located in the rearmost part of the skull and considered to be
part of the forebrain.
• The occipital lobe sits directly above the cerebellum and is situated
posterior to the Parieto-occipital sulcus, or parieto-occipital sulcus.
• This lobe is known as the center of the visual perception system, the main
function of the occipital lobe is that of vision.
• Retinal sensors send signals through the optic tract to the Lateral geniculate
nucleus.
• Once the Lateral Geniculate Nucleus receives the information it is sent down
the primary visual cortex where it is organized and sent down one of two
possible path ways; dorsal or ventral stream. The ventral stream is responsible
for object representation and recognition and is also commonly known as the
"what" stream. The dorsal stream is responsible for guiding our actions and
recognizing where objects are in space, commonly known as the "where" or
"how" stream. Once in the information is organized and sent through the
pathways it continues to the other areas of the brain responsible for visual
processing.
• The most important function of the Occipital lobe is vision. Due to the
positioning of this lobe at the back of the head it is not susceptible to much
injury but any significant damage to the brain can cause a variety of damage
to our visual perception system.
• Common problems in the occipital lobe are field defects and scotomas,
movement and colour discrimination, hallucinations, illusions, inability to
recognize words and inability to recognize movement.