1. Memory Deficiency & Memory
3.6 Explain how biological factors affect ONE cognitive process (memory).
Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer Brain

2. Anatomy of Memory Damage to the hippocampus results in anterograde
amnesia

3. Anatomy of Memory Amygdala: emotional memory and memory consolidation
Hippocampus: memory recognition, spatial, episodic memory, laying down new declarative long-term memories
Thalamus, formation of new memories and working memories
Cortical Areas: encoding of factual memories, storage of episodic and semantic memories, skill learning, priming.

4. Born with Half a Brain

5. Alzheimer’s Disease (AD)
Degenerative brain disease
Symptoms are gradual
Progression is continuous and irreversible
Symptoms (2 cognitive symptoms)
Main: memory impairment
Attentions, language (speaking/understanding) impaired movement, altered personality
Progression
Depression, hallucinations, delusions, loss of sleep and appetite

6. What memory is impacted?
Episodic memory!
Less impact: Memory from distant pass
Procedural memory less impacted through most of the course of the disease

7. Schwindt and Black, 2009
Hypothesis: The Medial Temporal Lobe (MTL) is responsible for the memory deficiencies in AD
Meta-Analysis
Collected fMRI scans from AD patients
Results
Compared to controls, AD patients showed a decrease activation in the MTL

8. The Brain and AD Temporal Lobe Stages in Brain change
Main responsibility 
Why?
fMRI shows a decrease in activity
Important to episodic memory
Stages in Brain change
Temporal Lobe + hippocampus
Parietal lobes
Other regions

10. Stages of Alzheimer’s

11. Abnormal Levels Lead to Atrophy
Amyloid-B Protein
Damages axons and dendrites.
Neurofibrillary tangles
Structural support of neuron collapses
Results  Cerebral Cortex Shrinks

12. Scoville and Milner, 1957 Hippocampus and Amnesia
Method: Case Study with HM
Scoville performed experimental surgery to stop seizures
Results
Anterograde amnesia
Couldn’t form new semantic and episodic memories (explicit)
Could form new implicit memory

13. What have we learned from HM?
Memory is a specialized and complex system
Hippocampus is critical in moving information from ST to LT Memory
Hippocampus is necessary for the storage of memory but does not store memories
Why? HM was able to remember events before the surgery
Cortical areas store long-term memory
Similarities are found in other people with amnesia

14. Never Forget a Face Why Memories Last
Why Memories Last

15. Cortisol and Memory Deficits
Chronic over-secretion of cortisol
Hinder ability to form NEW memories or ACCESS already existing memories
Example
Prolonged stress damages the hippocampus
Restore cortisol levels, restore hippocampus activity
Long-term  irreversible damage

16. (Review) Newcomer et al. 1999
Aim: investigate how cortisol levels impact memory
Method: double-blind experiment
Procedure: 3 Groups
High, Medium, Placebo injection
Verbal, declarative memory task
Results: high level preformed the worst after 1 day
Implications: Too much cortisol limits the formation of new memories
Evaluation:
Clear cause and effect (randomized and blind)
Informed consent
No long term exposure to cortisol

17. Lupien et al., 1998 Method: Longitudinal study, correlational, MRI
Participants: elderly people over 5 years
Results
30% has high levels of cortisol
Memory impairment
Shrinking of hippocampus
Memory impairment can be reversed IF the damage had not gone beyond “a point of no return”
Implications
Relationship between high levels of stress, high levels of cortisol and hippocampus damage

18. Lupien et al., 2002 Follow-up to 1998 research Method: experiment
AIM: investigate if it is possible to reverse memory problems with drugs (metyrapone)
Method: experiment
Participants: elderly from original 5-year study
3 groups (placebo, high and moderate levels of cortisol)
Procedure:
Drug  prevent cortisol (metyrapone)
Memory test
Drug  restore original cortisol level (hydrocortisone)
Results
Moderate  no problem restoring memory
High  no memory improvement, did worse on hydrocortisol

19. Exam Tip
Explain how biological factors affect ONE cognitive process (memory).
Be clear about which behavior you are focusing on (MEMORY)
Discuss at least two biological factors
Brain injury/surgery
Alzheimer's Disease
Cortisol