Study: ‘memory suit’ helps damaged brains remember

A unique form of brain stimulation that mimics the way our brains create memories appears to be able to increase people’s ability to remember new information.

Research shows that a new form of brain stimulation, or “memory prosthesis,” which involves inserting an electrode deep into the brain, appears to work in people with memory disorders and is even more effective in people with initially poor memory, Reports MIT Technology Review.

In the future, advanced and more advanced versions of memory prostheses could help people who have experienced memory loss due to brain damage, aging or degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, according to the researchers. The study, published in the medical journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.

Mimics what happens in the hippocampus

Kim ShapiroD., a neuroscientist at the University of Birmingham in the UK, who was not involved in the research, believes the study offers a glimpse into the future and what we can do to restore memory.

The method works by copying what happens in the hippocampus, an area of ​​the brain that plays an important role in memory. Brain structure helps us form short-term memories and also appears to direct memories to other areas of the brain for long-term storage.

The electrodes mimic the process of the brain

Theodore Berger And the Dong Sung And their colleagues at the University of Southern California have been working for more than a decade to develop ways to mimic brain processes. They use the electrodes to understand the patterns of electrical activity that occur in the brain when memories are encoded, and then they use the same electrodes to send out similar patterns of activity.

The researchers tested versions of memory prostheses on animals and on some volunteers with epilepsy who had electrodes implanted in their brains to better understand and treat their condition.

Improve memory of subjects

To see if a memory suit can help people with poor memory with the test Rob HampsonA neuroscientist at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in North Carolina and colleagues, two copies of memory prostheses in 24 people who had electrodes implanted to study epilepsy, and some test subjects also developed brain damage.

The research team found that the memory suit improved the volunteers’ memory, suggesting that the memory suit could help encode memories in the brain.

“We’re seeing improvements between 11 percent and 54 percent,” Rob Hampson told MIT Technology Review.

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