The Memory Implant

                 There are many suggestions on how to improve your memory. From exercise to stimulate the brain with caffeine and all sorts of memory tricks and suggestions on how to remember all the organic compounds and important historical dates. Beyond these ‘classic’ methods of improving memory, exciting new research on the benefits of a brain implant could bring about a concrete process for improving memory. There could be a life-saving machine for patients with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and other neurodegenerative diseases affecting memory!

Dr. Joel Voss’s research on associative memory and the hippocampus sparked the idea that significant memory improvement was possible through non-invasive magnetic stimulation.  His study focused on the memory hub of the hippocampus and surrounding areas of the brain in older adults. To determine association areas, fMRI scans were used to track which areas had similar activity patterns to the hippocampus over time. The fMRI scans showed that the lateral parietal cortex had functional connectivity to the hippocampus. After transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) there was an increase in the correlation between the hippocampus and association areas. The parietal cortex was stimulated, and its connection to the hippocampus determined improvement in memory post-simulation. After repetitive TMS, participants showed an increase in ability to retain and learn new information. Theta frequency-specific stimulation induced memory enhancement and increased associative memory performance. The study found that the amount of effect on the hippocampus predicted the effect and maintenance of the memory long term. There was a strong positive correlation between the intensity of stimulation and effect on memory. Greater intensity caused a larger effect on the hippocampus and on memory. The participants in the study had a 30% increase in memory of the stimuli in the study. However, there is no indication of whether or not this memory improvement would be permanent or if it would improve memory making outside the study condition.

As the amount of scientific research on the brain grows, the process of memory is beginning to be better understood. And this understanding is leading to breakthroughs and the possibility to manipulate and improve memory processing and storage. Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania and Thomas Jefferson University have developed an implant to monitor electrical activity, with electrodes that can supply stimulating pulses to the brain as it works to store information. The implant would fire electrical impulses when the brain is low-functioning but remain dormant when the brain is functioning normally. The device has shown 15% improvements in memory storage and is further being tested for memory retrieval. Once the implant can assist the brain in memory retrieval, a much higher level of improvement could be achieved. Yet, a study at Washington University in St. Louis showed that memory improvements in remembering long lists of words by associating them with familiar places could occur without an implant. No surgery was required, but the memory improvement did not transfer to storing new information normally. Therefore, before this implant can be commercialized, the extent of its effects on memory outside testing conditions and in normal life should be determined. Though it is an invasive process, it has the potential to enhance memory and combat neurodegeneration.

Reference:

Carey, B. (2018, February 12). The First Step Toward a Personal Memory Maker? https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/12/health/memory-dementia-brain-implants.html