title: Precuneus is involved in allocentric spatial location encoding and recognition.
abstract: Using a declarative memory paradigm, the anatomical correlates of spatial location encoding and retrieval in the healthy human brain as reflected by BOLD fMRI were investigated. During encoding, subjects were instructed to view and keep in mind different locations of an object on a platform seen from different viewpoints in virtual 3D. In retrieval trials, subjects had to recognize previously learned object locations. Comparing activation patterns associated with encoding and recognition on a voxel-by-voxel basis, we found regions in the precuneus bilaterally activated by both processes. To our knowledge, this is the first study that directly compared human brain activation patterns associated with allocentric encoding and retrieval of spatial locations in virtual 3D. Our results provide further information concerning the role of the precuneus in declarative memory processes, pointing to precuneus involvement in encoding and retrieval of spatial locations.
authors.affiliation: Epilepsy Center, University Hospital of Freiburg, Breisacher Str. 64, 79106 Freiburg, Germany. Frings@nz.ukl.uni-freiburg.de
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Frings
authors.forename: Kathrin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wagner
authors.forename: Ansgar
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Quiske
authors.forename: Ralf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schwarzwald
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Spreer
authors.forename: Ulrike
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Halsband
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schulze-Bonhage
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory; D021641:Recognition, Psychology / Q000502:physiology*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013028:Space Perception; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*