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Scrutinizing memory experiential phenomena : from large-scale networks to single-unit activity

Depuis 10 ans, se multiplient les tentatives d'augmentation des performances mnésiques humaines par la stimulation électrique intracérébrales (SEIC), mais avec des résultats contradictoires et peu probants. Nous sommes incapables d'activer les réseaux mnésiques de manière reproductible et ne maitrisons pas les effets des SEIC dont le choix des paramètres est empirique. Surtout, les corrélats neuronaux de la mémoire à long-terme que les SEIC sont censées activer restent imparfaitement connus. Dans ce contexte, les phénomènes expérientiels mnésiques ressentis par les patients épileptiques, du déjà-vu aux réminiscences, spontanés ou induits par la SEIC, représentent une véritable porte d'entrée vers les réseaux de la mémoire à long-terme et un modèle pour comprendre comment activer ces réseaux par la SEIC. Ils sont d'ailleurs l'une des sources d'inspiration des essais de la neuromodulation mnésique. Pourtant, ils restent sous-exploités. Nous proposons de les étudier au travers d'une approche multidimensionnelle : (1) Une dimension phénoménologique, analysant la sémiologie de certains phénomènes jusque-là mal explorés, confondus entre eux ou avec le déjà-vu : les réminiscences, le déjà-rêvé et la préscience. Nous nous sommes basés pour cela sur nos propres données et l'analyse de l'ensemble des réminiscences induites par les SEIC rapportées dans la littérature. Nous avons également étudié le cas d'une patiente épileptique avec atrophie sévère bi-hippocampique et préservation du cortex périrhinal ayant développé des déjà-vus et des phénomènes avec préscience récurrents. (2) Une dimension électrophysiologique avec exploration des effets des SEIC sur les réseaux mnésiques à différentes échelles. Nous nous sommes basés sur l'analyse rétrospective des paramètres de SEIC et de leurs effets. Nous avons aussi analysé le couplage fonctionnel entre différentes structures du lobe temporal par un traitement de l'EEG intracrânien au moment des réminiscences induites par SEIC. Nous démontrons que : - Les SEIC peuvent induire une grande variété de souvenirs appartenant aux différents systèmes de la mémoire déclarative (ex. des souvenirs sémantiques ou autobiographiques épisodiques). Mais il s'agit majoritairement de souvenirs peu contextualisés et fragmentaires. [...]Over the past 10 years, attempts to increase human memory performances by electrical brain stimulation (EBS) led to unconvincing or contradictory results. We are still unable to activate memory networks by EBS in a reproducible way, the effects of EBS at different scales (from neuronal activity to large-scale networks) and the optimal EBS parameters are unknown. Above all, the neural correlates of the long-term memory that EBS are supposed to activate remain imperfectly known. In this context, the memory-related experiential phenomena reported by epileptic patients, like déjà-vu or reminiscences, either spontaneous or induced by EBS, are a gateway to the long-term memory networks and a precious model to understand how to activate them with EBS to improve human memory. However, they remain underused and misinterpreted. Therefore, we studied them with a multidimensional approach: (1) A phenomenological dimension, analysing the semiology of some poorly explored phenomena: reminiscences, déjà-rêvé and prescience. For this, we based our analyses on our own data and all of the reminiscences induced by EBS in the literature. We also studied the case of an epileptic patient with severe bi-hippocampal atrophy and preservation of the perirhinal cortex, who had developed frequent déjà-vu and experiential phenomena with prescience. (2) An electrophysiological dimension with the analysis of EBS effects on memory networks at different scales. We retrospectively analysed EBS parameters and their effects. We also analysed the intracranial EEG to compute the functional coupling between different structures inside the temporal lobe during the brief moments corresponding to the reminiscences. We demonstrated that: - EBS can induce a wide variety of memories belonging to the different systems of declarative memory (e.g. episodic semantic or autobiographical memories). However, most of these are little contextualized and fragmentary. - The activation of memory networks is possible only by some of their hubs, not all of them. Preferential input gates are more easily activated and the qualitative nature of memories depends largely on them. The rhinal cortex seems to be the gatekeeper of these memory networks, where EBS most frequently induce memories. [...

Une exploration multidimensionnelle des phénomènes expérientiels mnésiques : de la sémiologie à l'activité neuronale unitaire

Over the past 10 years, attempts to increase human memory performances by electrical brain stimulation (EBS) led to unconvincing or contradictory results. We are still unable to activate memory networks by EBS in a reproducible way, the effects of EBS at different scales (from neuronal activity to large-scale networks) and the optimal EBS parameters are unknown. Above all, the neural correlates of the long-term memory that EBS are supposed to activate remain imperfectly known. In this context, the memory-related experiential phenomena reported by epileptic patients, like déjà-vu or reminiscences, either spontaneous or induced by EBS, are a gateway to the long-term memory networks and a precious model to understand how to activate them with EBS to improve human memory. However, they remain underused and misinterpreted. Therefore, we studied them with a multidimensional approach: (1) A phenomenological dimension, analysing the semiology of some poorly explored phenomena: reminiscences, déjà-rêvé and prescience. For this, we based our analyses on our own data and all of the reminiscences induced by EBS in the literature. We also studied the case of an epileptic patient with severe bi-hippocampal atrophy and preservation of the perirhinal cortex, who had developed frequent déjà-vu and experiential phenomena with prescience. (2) An electrophysiological dimension with the analysis of EBS effects on memory networks at different scales. We retrospectively analysed EBS parameters and their effects. We also analysed the intracranial EEG to compute the functional coupling between different structures inside the temporal lobe during the brief moments corresponding to the reminiscences. We demonstrated that: - EBS can induce a wide variety of memories belonging to the different systems of declarative memory (e.g. episodic semantic or autobiographical memories). However, most of these are little contextualized and fragmentary. - The activation of memory networks is possible only by some of their hubs, not all of them. Preferential input gates are more easily activated and the qualitative nature of memories depends largely on them. The rhinal cortex seems to be the gatekeeper of these memory networks, where EBS most frequently induce memories. [...]Depuis 10 ans, se multiplient les tentatives d'augmentation des performances mnésiques humaines par la stimulation électrique intracérébrales (SEIC), mais avec des résultats contradictoires et peu probants. Nous sommes incapables d'activer les réseaux mnésiques de manière reproductible et ne maitrisons pas les effets des SEIC dont le choix des paramètres est empirique. Surtout, les corrélats neuronaux de la mémoire à long-terme que les SEIC sont censées activer restent imparfaitement connus. Dans ce contexte, les phénomènes expérientiels mnésiques ressentis par les patients épileptiques, du déjà-vu aux réminiscences, spontanés ou induits par la SEIC, représentent une véritable porte d'entrée vers les réseaux de la mémoire à long-terme et un modèle pour comprendre comment activer ces réseaux par la SEIC. Ils sont d'ailleurs l'une des sources d'inspiration des essais de la neuromodulation mnésique. Pourtant, ils restent sous-exploités. Nous proposons de les étudier au travers d'une approche multidimensionnelle : (1) Une dimension phénoménologique, analysant la sémiologie de certains phénomènes jusque-là mal explorés, confondus entre eux ou avec le déjà-vu : les réminiscences, le déjà-rêvé et la préscience. Nous nous sommes basés pour cela sur nos propres données et l'analyse de l'ensemble des réminiscences induites par les SEIC rapportées dans la littérature. Nous avons également étudié le cas d'une patiente épileptique avec atrophie sévère bi-hippocampique et préservation du cortex périrhinal ayant développé des déjà-vus et des phénomènes avec préscience récurrents. (2) Une dimension électrophysiologique avec exploration des effets des SEIC sur les réseaux mnésiques à différentes échelles. Nous nous sommes basés sur l'analyse rétrospective des paramètres de SEIC et de leurs effets. Nous avons aussi analysé le couplage fonctionnel entre différentes structures du lobe temporal par un traitement de l'EEG intracrânien au moment des réminiscences induites par SEIC. Nous démontrons que : - Les SEIC peuvent induire une grande variété de souvenirs appartenant aux différents systèmes de la mémoire déclarative (ex. des souvenirs sémantiques ou autobiographiques épisodiques). Mais il s'agit majoritairement de souvenirs peu contextualisés et fragmentaires. [...

Improving the integrative memory model by integrating the temporal dynamics of memory

International audienceDespite highlighting the role of the attribution system and proposing a coherent large-scale architecture of declarative memory, the integrative memory model would be more "integrative" if the temporal dynamics of the interactions between its components was clarified. This is necessary to make predictions in patients with brain injury and hypothesize dissociations

Suicidal Ideation and Traumatic Exposure Should Not Be Neglected in Epileptic Patients: A Multidimensional Comparison of the Psychiatric Profile of Patients Suffering From Epilepsy and Patients Suffering From Psychogenic Nonepileptic Seizures

International audienceIntroduction: Patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNESs) have often been exposed to traumatic events, which is a risk factor for suicidal behavior. This would suggest that the severity of suicidal ideation is greater in PNES than in patients suffering only from epileptic seizures (ESs). However, these psychiatric symptoms may be underestimated in the ES population. The specific features or similarities between the psychiatric clinical profiles of these two groups should be elaborated to improve therapeutic management. Our study is the first to compare suicidal ideation, suicide risk, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and depression disorder simultaneously in both groups, in a tertiary care epilepsy center.Material and methods: We prospectively enrolled patients hospitalized for video-electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring to assess repeated seizures before an ES or a PNES diagnosis was made. During the psychiatric consultation that accompanied the video EEG, we rated the severity of suicidal ideation and depressive symptoms, suicidal risk, traumatic exposure history, and PTSD symptoms.Results: Eighteen subjects were enrolled and diagnosed with PNES, and 42, with ES. The PNES group reported more exposures to traumatic events and more intense PTSD symptoms (median: 17 vs. 27; p = 0.001). The severity of suicidal ideation did not differ significantly between the two groups.Conclusion: It is the severity of PTSD symptoms in PNES patients that differentiates them from ES patients, although exposure to traumatic events is also frequent in ES patients. We demonstrated that suicidal ideation and suicide risk are equally high in the ES and PNES groups. Therefore, both groups require extreme vigilance in terms of suicidal risk

Is iEEG-based cognitive neuroscience research clinically relevant? Examination of three "neuromemes"

International audienceMuch progress has been made in the field of cognitive neuroscience thanks to intracerebral EEG (iEEG) research, largely due to the possibility of directly recording brain activity with unsurpassed spatial and temporal precision while patients perform cognitive tasks. However, do these patients gain anything from the time and effort they devote to this endeavour? In this chapter, we focus on three neuromemes, the "eloquent cortex", "localisationism" and the "nociferous cortex" to provide possible answers to this question. We discuss the value of these neuromemes and show that clinical care of epilepsy and iEEG-based cognitive neuroscience are consubstantial in the sense that iEEG during epilepsy assessment provides an understanding of physiological processes of the healthy brain; but also, that cognitive iEEG research in epileptic patients has a direct impact on semiology and curative neurosurgery. Last, we highlight how recent cognitive iEEG research provides insights into interictal complaints and could improve identification of the epileptogenic zone

Intracranial electrical brain stimulation as an approach to studying the (dis)continuum of memory experiential phenomena.

peer reviewedDéjà vu and involuntary autobiographical memories (IAM) can be induced by intracranial electric brain stimulation in epileptic patients, sometimes in the same individual. We suggest that there may be different types of IAM which should be taken into account and provide several ideas to test the hypothesis of a continuity between IAM and déjà vu phenomena

Awake Craniotomy and Memory Induction Through Electrical Stimulation: Why Are Penfield's Findings Not Replicated in the Modern Era?

International audienc

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder With Flashbacks of an Old Childhood Memory Triggered by Right Temporal Lobe Epilepsy Surgery in Adulthood

International audienceBackground: A plethora of data show that the hippocampus and the amygdala are involved in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Neural dysfunctions leading to PTSD (e.g. how the amygdala and the hippocampus are altered) are only partially known. The unusual case of a patient presenting with refractory epilepsy and developing PTSD immediately after surgery is described. Such symptoms in epileptic patients may help to explore PTSD mechanisms.Case report: A 41-year-old male suffering from partial refractory temporal lobe epilepsy was operated in May 2017. A right amygdala, hippocampus, and temporal pole selective resection was performed. He experienced intense PTSD symptoms 1 month after surgery. He complained about repetitive intrusive memories of abuse. The PTSD checklist score was equal to 62/80. He reported a history of childhood abuse: physical and emotional abuse as well as emotional negligence, assessed with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. No other medical history was recorded. He never complained about PTSD or any other psychiatric symptoms before surgery.Conclusion: this case indicates that PTSD may occur after temporal lobe epilepsy surgery and may specifically stem, as in this context, from the excision of part of the medial temporal lobe structures. Although rarely reported, PTSD may be undiagnosed when not selectively detected via multi-disciplinary neurological and psychiatric management, in the preoperative period and the immediate and delayed postoperative period