Neural mechanisms of information storage in visual short-term memory

• Published in: Vision research (Oxford) Vol. 128; pp. 53 - 67
• Main Author: Serences, John T.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.11.2016
• Subjects: Cognition - physiology; Cognitive control; Executive control; Executive Function - physiology; Humans; Memory, Short-Term - physiology; Photic Stimulation; Prefrontal Cortex - physiology; Sensory recruitment; Short-term memory; Vision; Visual Cortex - physiology; Visual Perception - physiology; Working memory; Sensory recruitment; Working memory; Vision; Executive control; Cognitive control; Short-term memory
• ISSN: 0042-6989; 1878-5646
• DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2016.09.010

•Prefrontal cortex (PFC) controls what information is stored in working memory (WM).•Stored information is maintained in early areas of visual cortex.•Likely more flexible: content-specific WM representations in PFC and visual cortex.•This flexibility is perhaps achieved by employing spiking and non-spiking codes. The capacity to briefly memorize fleeting sensory information supports visual search and behavioral interactions with relevant stimuli in the environment. Traditionally, studies investigating the neural basis of visual short term memory (STM) have focused on the role of prefrontal cortex (PFC) in exerting executive control over what information is stored and how it is adaptively used to guide behavior. However, the neural substrates that support the actual storage of content-specific information in STM are more controversial, with some attributing this function to PFC and others to the specialized areas of early visual cortex that initially encode incoming sensory stimuli. In contrast to these traditional views, I will review evidence suggesting that content-specific information can be flexibly maintained in areas across the cortical hierarchy ranging from early visual cortex to PFC. While the factors that determine exactly where content-specific information is represented are not yet entirely clear, recognizing the importance of task-demands and better understanding the operation of non-spiking neural codes may help to constrain new theories about how memories are maintained at different resolutions, across different timescales, and in the presence of distracting information.