A1 Journal article (refereed)
GABAergic inhibition shapes behavior and neural dynamics in human visual working memory (2024)

Kujala, J., Ciumas, C., Jung, J., Bouvard, S., Lecaignard, F., Lothe, A., Bouet, R., Ryvlin, P., & Jerbi, K. (2024). GABAergic inhibition shapes behavior and neural dynamics in human visual working memory. Cerebral Cortex, 34(2), Article bhad522. https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhad522

JYU authors or editors

Publication details

All authors or editors: Kujala, Jan; Ciumas, Carolina; Jung, Julien; Bouvard, Sandrine; Lecaignard, Françoise; Lothe, Amélie; Bouet, Romain; Ryvlin, Philippe; Jerbi, Karim

Journal or series: Cerebral Cortex

ISSN: 1047-3211

eISSN: 1460-2199

Publication year: 2024

Publication date: 06/01/2024

Volume: 34

Issue number: 2

Article number: bhad522

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Publication country: United Kingdom

Publication language: English

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhad522

Publication open access: Openly available

Publication channel open access: Partially open access channel

Publication is parallel published (JYX): https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/92855

Abstract

Neuronal inhibition, primarily mediated by GABAergic neurotransmission, is crucial for brain development and healthy cognition. Gamma-aminobutyric acid concentration levels in sensory areas have been shown to correlate with hemodynamic and oscillatory neuronal responses. How these measures relate to one another during working memory, a higher-order cognitive process, is still poorly understood. We address this gap by collecting magnetoencephalography, functional magnetic resonance imaging, and Flumazenil positron emission tomography data within the same subject cohort using an n-back working-memory paradigm. By probing the relationship between GABAA receptor distribution, neural oscillations, and Blood Oxygen Level Dependent (BOLD) modulations, we found that GABAA receptor density in higher-order cortical areas predicted the reaction times on the working-memory task and correlated positively with the peak frequency of gamma power modulations and negatively with BOLD amplitude. These findings support and extend theories linking gamma oscillations and hemodynamic responses to gamma-aminobutyric acid neurotransmission and to the excitation-inhibition balance and cognitive performance in humans. Considering the small sample size of the study, future studies should test whether these findings also hold for other, larger cohorts as well as to examine in detail how the GABAergic system and neural fluctuations jointly support working-memory task performance.

Keywords: visual memory; working memory; synapses; inhibitors; functional magnetic resonance imaging; MEG; positron emission tomography

Free keywords: functional magnetic resonance imaging; magnetoencephalography; n-back; neurotransmission; positron emission tomography

Contributing organizations

Ministry reporting: Yes

VIRTA submission year: 2024

Preliminary JUFO rating: 3