Minamoto Takehiro, Yaoi Ken, Osaka Mariko, Osaka Naoyuki
Center for Information and Neural Networks, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, Suita, Osaka, Japan.
Department of Psychology, Faculty of Letters, Kyoto University, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Cortex. 2015 Oct;71:277-90. doi: 10.1016/j.cortex.2015.07.025. Epub 2015 Aug 1.
Neuroimaging and behavioral evidence has suggested that the lateral prefrontal cortex is involved in individual differences in working memory capacity (WMC). However, few studies have localized the neural structures that differentiate high and low WMC individuals, considering the functional architecture of the prefrontal cortex. The present study aimed to identify a frontal region that underlies individual differences from the perspective of the hierarchical architecture of the frontal cortex. By manipulating an episodic factor of cognitive control (control in selecting an appropriate task set according to a temporal context) and using a parametric modulation analysis, we found that both high- and low- WMC individuals have similar activation patterns in the premotor cortex (BA6, 8), caudal prefrontal cortex (BA44, 45), and frontopolar cortex (BA10, 11), but differed in the rostral part of the prefrontal cortex (BA46/47); high WMC individuals showed greater activation in the higher episodic control condition, whereas low WMC individuals showed reduced activation when episodic control was required. Similar patterns of activation were found in the right inferior parietal and middle/inferior temporal cortices. These results indicate that the rostral prefrontal cortex, which supports episodic cognitive control, possibly by sending a weighting signal toward the inferior parietal and middle/inferior temporal cortices that modulate saliency and sensory processing, underlies individual differences in WMC. Episodic control account, which considers the organization of the prefrontal cortex, fits well with previous findings of individual differences in WMC.
神经影像学和行为学证据表明,外侧前额叶皮层与工作记忆容量(WMC)的个体差异有关。然而,考虑到前额叶皮层的功能结构,很少有研究确定区分高WMC个体和低WMC个体的神经结构。本研究旨在从额叶皮层的层次结构角度确定一个构成个体差异基础的额叶区域。通过操纵认知控制的一个情景因素(根据时间背景选择合适任务集的控制)并使用参数调制分析,我们发现高WMC个体和低WMC个体在前运动皮层(BA6、8)、前额叶尾侧皮层(BA44、45)和额极皮层(BA10、11)具有相似的激活模式,但在前额叶皮层的嘴侧部分(BA46/47)存在差异;高WMC个体在更高情景控制条件下表现出更大的激活,而低WMC个体在需要情景控制时激活降低。在右侧顶下叶和颞中/颞下皮层也发现了类似的激活模式。这些结果表明,支持情景认知控制的前额叶嘴侧皮层可能通过向下顶叶和颞中/颞下皮层发送加权信号来调节显著性和感觉处理,是WMC个体差异的基础。考虑到前额叶皮层组织的情景控制理论与先前关于WMC个体差异的研究结果非常吻合。