title: Rhythmic Working Memory Activation in the Human Hippocampus.
abstract: Working memory (WM) maintenance is assumed to rely on a single sustained process throughout the entire maintenance period. This assumption, although fundamental, has never been tested. We used intracranial electroencephalography (EEG) recordings from the human hippocampus in two independent experiments to investigate the neural dynamics underlying WM maintenance. We observed periodic fluctuations between two different oscillatory regimes: Periods of "memory activation" were reflected by load-dependent alpha power reductions and lower levels of cross-frequency coupling (CFC). They occurred interleaved with periods characterized by load-independent high levels of alpha power and CFC. During memory activation periods, a relevant CFC parameter (load-dependent changes of the peak modulated frequency) correlated with individual WM capacity. Fluctuations between these two periods predicted successful performance and were locked to the phase of endogenous delta oscillations. These results show that hippocampal maintenance is a dynamic rather than constant process and depends critically on a hierarchy of oscillations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epileptology, University of Bonn, Sigmund-Freud-Strasse 25, 53127 Bonn, Germany; Department of Neuropsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitätsstrasse 150, 44801 Bochum, Germany. Electronic address: leszczynski.marcin@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Marcin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Leszczyński
authors.affiliation: Department of Epileptology, University of Bonn, Sigmund-Freud-Strasse 25, 53127 Bonn, Germany.
authors.forename: Juergen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fell
authors.affiliation: Department of Epileptology, University of Bonn, Sigmund-Freud-Strasse 25, 53127 Bonn, Germany; German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Ernst Robert Curtius Strasse 12, 53117 Bonn, Germany; Department of Neuropsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitätsstrasse 150, 44801 Bochum, Germany. Electronic address: nikolai.axmacher@rub.de.
authors.forename: Nikolai
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Axmacher
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003700:Delta Rhythm; D005260:Female; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D008875:Middle Aged