Reward-Motivated Learning: Mesolimbic Activation Precedes Memory Formation

We examined anticipatory mechanisms of reward-motivated memory formation using event-related FMRI. In a monetary incentive encoding task, cues signaled high- or low-value reward for memorizing an upcoming scene. When tested 24 hr postscan, subjects were significantly more likely to remember scenes t...

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Published inNeuron (Cambridge, Mass.) Vol. 50; no. 3; pp. 507 - 517
Main Authors Adcock, R. Alison, Thangavel, Arul, Whitfield-Gabrieli, Susan, Knutson, Brian, Gabrieli, John D.E.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Elsevier Inc 04.05.2006
Elsevier Limited
Subjects
Adolescent
Adult
Brain
Brain Mapping
Cues
Dopamine
Dopamine - metabolism
Dopamine - secretion
Feedback
Female
Hippocampus - anatomy & histology
Hippocampus - physiology
Humans
Learning - physiology
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Memory - physiology
Motivation
Neural Pathways - anatomy & histology
Neural Pathways - physiology
Neurons
Neuropsychological Tests
Nucleus Accumbens - anatomy & histology
Nucleus Accumbens - physiology
Reward
Rodents
Scholarships & fellowships
Synaptic Transmission - physiology
SYSNEURO
Ventral Tegmental Area - anatomy & histology
Ventral Tegmental Area - physiology
SYSNEURO
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Summary:We examined anticipatory mechanisms of reward-motivated memory formation using event-related FMRI. In a monetary incentive encoding task, cues signaled high- or low-value reward for memorizing an upcoming scene. When tested 24 hr postscan, subjects were significantly more likely to remember scenes that followed cues for high-value rather than low-value reward. A monetary incentive delay task independently localized regions responsive to reward anticipation. In the encoding task, high-reward cues preceding remembered but not forgotten scenes activated the ventral tegmental area, nucleus accumbens, and hippocampus. Across subjects, greater activation in these regions predicted superior memory performance. Within subject, increased correlation between the hippocampus and ventral tegmental area was associated with enhanced long-term memory for the subsequent scene. These findings demonstrate that brain activation preceding stimulus encoding can predict declarative memory formation. The findings are consistent with the hypothesis that reward motivation promotes memory formation via dopamine release in the hippocampus prior to learning.
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ISSN:0896-6273
1097-4199
DOI:10.1016/j.neuron.2006.03.036