Mapping information flow between the inferotemporal and prefrontal cortices via neural oscillations in memory retrieval and maintenance
Tao Zhou,
Keisuke Kawasaki,
Takafumi Suzuki,
Isao Hasegawa,
Anna Wang Roe,
Hisashi Tanigawa
Affiliations
Tao Zhou
Department of Neurosurgery of the Second Affiliated Hospital and Interdisciplinary Institute of Neuroscience and Technology, School of Brain Science and Brain Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; MOE Frontier Science Center for Brain Science and Brain-Machine Integration, School of Brain Science and Brain Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
Keisuke Kawasaki
Department of Physiology, Niigata University School of Medicine, Niigata, Niigata 951-8501, Japan
Takafumi Suzuki
Center for Information and Neural Networks, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan; Osaka University, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
Isao Hasegawa
Department of Physiology, Niigata University School of Medicine, Niigata, Niigata 951-8501, Japan
Anna Wang Roe
Department of Neurosurgery of the Second Affiliated Hospital and Interdisciplinary Institute of Neuroscience and Technology, School of Brain Science and Brain Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; MOE Frontier Science Center for Brain Science and Brain-Machine Integration, School of Brain Science and Brain Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; Corresponding author
Hisashi Tanigawa
Department of Neurosurgery of the Second Affiliated Hospital and Interdisciplinary Institute of Neuroscience and Technology, School of Brain Science and Brain Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; MOE Frontier Science Center for Brain Science and Brain-Machine Integration, School of Brain Science and Brain Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; Department of Physiology, Niigata University School of Medicine, Niigata, Niigata 951-8501, Japan; Corresponding author
Summary: Interaction between the inferotemporal (ITC) and prefrontal (PFC) cortices is critical for retrieving information from memory and maintaining it in working memory. Neural oscillations provide a mechanism for communication between brain regions. However, it remains unknown how information flow via neural oscillations is functionally organized in these cortices during these processes. In this study, we apply Granger causality analysis to electrocorticographic signals from both cortices of monkeys performing visual association tasks to map information flow. Our results reveal regions within the ITC where information flow to and from the PFC increases via specific frequency oscillations to form clusters during memory retrieval and maintenance. Theta-band information flow in both directions increases in similar regions in both cortices, suggesting reciprocal information exchange in those regions. These findings suggest that specific subregions function as nodes in the memory information-processing network between the ITC and the PFC.
