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Integration of diverse information in working memory within the frontal lobe

Nature Neuroscience volume 3, pages 85–90 (2000)Cite this article

Abstract

Ability to integrate diverse forms of information in current thought, or working memory, is essential for human reasoning and problem solving. We used functional imaging to identify brain regions preferentially involved in maintaining integrated versus unintegrated information in working memory. For equal amounts of verbal and spatial information, activation of prefrontal cortex was greater for maintaining integrated rather than unintegrated representations. Posterior brain regions showed the opposite pattern. These results demonstrate frontal-lobe specialization in maintaining working-memory representations that integrate verbal and spatial information. The role of prefrontal cortex in integrating multiple forms of information in working memory may underlie its unique contribution to high-level cognition that demands flexible mental representations.

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Figure 1: Spatial and verbal trial types.
Figure 2: Bound and separate trial types.
Figure 3: Composite activation maps of spatial and verbal conditions.
Figure 4: Difference maps of bound versus separate scans.
Figure 5: Activation in the right frontal cortex in six subjects.
Figure 6: Difference maps of bound or separate condition versus spatial (SPA) and verbal (VER) conditions.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by grants from the National Institute on Aging and the National Center for Research Resources. V.P. is supported by a NRSA training grant awarded by the National Institutes of Health. The authors thank Mark D'Esposito for comments on earlier drafts of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Program in Neurosciences, Jordan Hall, Bldg. 420, Stanford University, Stanford, 94305, California, USA

    V. Prabhakaran & J. D. E. Gabrieli

  2. Dept. of Psychology, Jordan Hall, Bldg. 420, Stanford University, Stanford, 94305, California, USA

    K. Narayanan, Z. Zhao & J. D. E. Gabrieli

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  1. V. Prabhakaran
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  2. K. Narayanan
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  3. Z. Zhao
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  4. J. D. E. Gabrieli
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Correspondence to V. Prabhakaran.

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Prabhakaran, V., Narayanan, K., Zhao, Z. et al. Integration of diverse information in working memory within the frontal lobe. Nat Neurosci 3, 85–90 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1038/71156

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