Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Duke University, Box 90999, LSRC Bldg., Durham, NC 27708, USA.
J Cogn Neurosci. 2011 Apr;23(4):757-71. doi: 10.1162/jocn.2010.21487. Epub 2010 Mar 29.
Emotion is known to influence multiple aspects of memory formation, including the initial encoding of the memory trace and its consolidation over time. However, the neural mechanisms whereby emotion impacts memory encoding remain largely unexplored. The present study used a levels-of-processing manipulation to characterize the impact of emotion on encoding with and without the influence of elaborative processes. Participants viewed emotionally negative, neutral, and positive scenes under two conditions: a shallow condition focused on the perceptual features of the scenes and a deep condition that queried their semantic meaning. Recognition memory was tested 2 days later. Results showed that emotional memory enhancements were greatest in the shallow condition. fMRI analyses revealed that the right amygdala predicted subsequent emotional memory in the shallow more than deep condition, whereas the right ventrolateral PFC demonstrated the reverse pattern. Furthermore, the association of these regions with the hippocampus was modulated by valence: the amygdala-hippocampal link was strongest for negative stimuli, whereas the prefrontal-hippocampal link was strongest for positive stimuli. Taken together, these results suggest two distinct activation patterns underlying emotional memory formation: an amygdala component that promotes memory during shallow encoding, especially for negative information, and a prefrontal component that provides extra benefits during deep encoding, especially for positive information.
情绪被认为会影响记忆形成的多个方面，包括记忆痕迹的初始编码和随着时间的推移的巩固。然而，情绪影响记忆编码的神经机制在很大程度上仍未被探索。本研究使用加工水平的操纵来描述情绪对编码的影响，同时考虑到精心加工过程的影响。参与者在两种条件下观看情绪消极、中性和积极的场景：一种是关注场景的感知特征的浅层条件，另一种是询问其语义意义的深层条件。2 天后进行识别记忆测试。结果表明，在浅层条件下，情绪记忆增强最大。fMRI 分析表明，右杏仁核在浅层条件下比深层条件更能预测随后的情绪记忆，而右腹外侧前额叶则呈现相反的模式。此外，这些区域与海马体的关联受到效价的调节：对于负性刺激，杏仁核-海马体的联系最强，而对于正性刺激，前额叶-海马体的联系最强。总之，这些结果表明情绪记忆形成有两种不同的激活模式：一个是在浅层编码过程中促进记忆的杏仁核成分，特别是对于负性信息，另一个是在深层编码过程中提供额外好处的前额叶成分，特别是对于正性信息。
