Norepinephrine (NE) is a key modulator of synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus, a brain structure crucially involved in memory formation. NE boosts synaptic plasticity mostly through initiation of signaling cascades downstream from beta (ß)-adrenergic receptors (ß-ARs). Previous studies demonstrated that a ß-adrenergic receptor agonist,…

Although there is strong evidence that Broca's area is important for syntax, this may simply be a by-product of greater working memory and/or cognitive control demands for more complex syntactic structures. Here we report an experiment with event-related transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to investigate whether Broca's area plays a causal…

We applied near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and electrocorticography (ECoG) recordings during cortical stimulation to a temporal lobe epilepsy patient who underwent subdural electrode implantation. Using NIRS, changes in blood concentrations of oxyhemoglobin (HbO[subscript 2]) and deoxyhemoglobin (HbR) during cortical stimulation of the left…

The remote associates test (RAT) is a complex verbal task with associations to both creative thought and general intelligence. RAT problems require not only lateral associations and the internal production of many words but a convergent focus on a single answer. Complex problem-solving of this sort may thus require both substantial verbal…

Oculomotor tracking of moving objects is an important component of visually based cognition and planning. Such tracking is achieved by a combination of saccades and smooth-pursuit eye movements. In particular, the saccadic and smooth-pursuit systems interact to often choose the same target, and to maximize its visibility through time. How do…

The mechanisms by which the mind encodes meaning into words and reconstructs it from them has been the subject of philosophical speculations at least since Plato and Aristotle in the 4th century B.C. Our current understanding of how the brain is involved in these processes, however, only started in the 19 th century, with precise descriptions of…

The forebrain cholinergic neurons are localized in the nucleus basalis magnocellularis (NBM), the major source of cholinergic innervation to the neocortex and to the amygdala, and in the medium septum-banda diagonalis complex, which provides cholinergic inputs to the hippocampus (Mesulam et al. 1983; Woolf et al. 1984; Nicoll 1985). Basic and…

Acetylcholine release in sensory neocortex contributes to higher-order sensory function, in part by activating nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs). Molecular studies have revealed a bewildering array of nAChR subtypes and cellular actions; however, there is some consensus emerging about the major nAChR subtypes and their functions in…

Man's long period of cerebral growth has important implications for education. The brain goes through major developmental changes after birth, and researchers have suggested that this growth process presents an opportunity for fostering the plasticity of genetically determined connections. Animal studies show that postnatal growth of the brain is…

Discusses implications of lateral dominance in infants for infant stimulation and development as well as implications for parents and teachers. (Author/DB)

Projects that soon a complete mechanistic understanding of simple forms of learning will be available. Describes some of the recent advances in neuroscience and psychology in understanding the changes in neural circuits that occur during certain behavioral situations. Suggests that learning involves the activation of second messenger systems. (TW)