Prose Recall Research Articles

Impact of white matter networks on risk for memory decline following resection versus ablation in temporal lobe epilepsy

BackgroundWith expanding neurosurgical options in epilepsy, it is important to characterise each options’ risk for postoperative cognitive decline. Here, we characterise how patients’ preoperative white matter (WM) networks relates to...

Investigation of sex differences in mutation carriers of the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network

AbstractBackgroundStudies suggest distinct differences in the development, presentation and longitudinal progression of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) between women and men. However, most of these sex‐specific differences have been explored in symptomatic stages of sporadic AD. We investigated cross‐sectional sex differences in clinical‐cognitive assessments as well as fluid and imaging biomarkers in the spectrum of dominantly inherited AD (DIAD).Method319 DIAD mutation carriers of the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network‐Observational study (DIAN‐OBS) were included in the analysis and, according to Clinical Dementia Rating® (CDR®) scores, classified as presymptomatic (CDR = 0, 66,1%) or symptomatic (CDR>0). All participants underwent clinical and neuropsychological assessment; lumbar puncture, structural MRI and 11C‐PiB‐PET imaging for amyloid‐β detection were conducted. Mann‐Whitney‐U‐test, Fisher’s Exact and linear mixed models with fixed effects for sex, estimated age of onset (EYO) and their interaction, a random effect for family, and years of education and CDR Sum of Boxes as covariates (where appropriate) were used to explore cross‐sectional sex differences.ResultDemographics showed no significant sex differences in presymptomatic (pMC, 56.4% women, p>0.05) or symptomatic mutation carriers (sMC, 52,7% women, p>0.05). In pMC, men showed a worse performance on the Digit Symbol test (p<0.01, Fig.1) than women, and, in interaction with EYO, a better performance in immediate (p<0.05) and delayed (p<0.05) prose recall. In contrast, sMC men performed better on the Animal Naming test (p<0.05), but, in interaction with EYO, worse on the Digit Span forward (p<0.01). CSF analysis did not indicate sex‐related differences in Aβ42/Aβ40‐Ratio, phosphorylated Tau‐181 or total Tau levels (all p>0.05) in either group. In pMC men, PET imaging revealed significantly less tracer binding in the medial orbitofrontal cortex, the frontal pole and the rostral & caudal anterior cingulate in interaction with EYO (all p<0.05, Fig. 2). Furthermore, MRI volume analysis showed a significant reduction in the amygdala in women compared to men (p<0.01) in sMC.ConclusionWe report preliminary results suggesting cross‐sectional sex differences in presymptomatic and symptomatic DIAD mutation carriers regarding episodic, verbal and working memory; processing speed; as well as differential patterns of PiB‐PET burden within cerebral areas related to emotion, decision making and cognitive flexibility.

Sex differences in the pre and postoperative neuropsychological function of epilepsy surgery candidates

Objective: As programs expand globally, epilepsy surgery is becoming increasingly available as an effective treatment for some people with medically intractable seizures. Prospective candidates require careful neuropsychological evaluation and follow-up. The aim of this study was to examine the sex differences in neuropsychological function in presurgical presentation and postoperative outcomes in people with temporal lobe epilepsy referred for epilepsy surgery. Methods: Three hundred and seventy-two patients (202 Female; 170 Male) with a homogenous underlying pathology (hippocampal sclerosis) underwent a preoperative assessment on tests of intellectual, language, and memory function and were followed up one year after undergoing a unilateral temporal lobe resection; n = 169 Right (RTL), n = 203 Left (LTL). Results: There was no impact of sex or laterality of surgery on seizure outcome; 84% of males and 80% of females were seizure free at follow-up. Before surgery, sex effects were evident on tests of verbal memory with females performing better than males. Declines in verbal memory function following surgery were greater in females than males. Being female had a stronger association with postoperative decline on immediate prose recall (partial eta squared η 2 = 0.029), than side of surgery (η 2 = 0.018) albeit with a small effect size. Conclusions: There are subtle but significant sex differences in the neuropsychological profiles of people with temporal lobe epilepsy, before and following surgery. Whilst females generally perform better than males on tests of verbal memory function before surgery they demonstrate greater post-operative declines on these measures following surgery.

Remember this: Age moderation of genetic and environmental contributions to verbal episodic memory from midlife through late adulthood

It is well documented that memory is heritable and that older adults tend to have poorer memory performance than younger adults. However, whether the magnitudes of genetic and environmental contributions to late-life verbal episodic memory ability differ from those at earlier ages remains unresolved. Twins from 12 studies participating in the Interplay of Genes and Environment in Multiple Studies (IGEMS) consortium constituted the analytic sample. Verbal episodic memory was assessed with immediate word list recall (N = 35,204 individuals; 21,792 twin pairs) and prose recall (N = 3805 individuals; 2028 twin pairs), with scores harmonized across studies. Average test performance was lower in successively older age groups for both measures. Twin models found significant age moderation for both measures, with total inter-individual variance increasing significantly with age, although it was not possible definitively to attribute the increase specifically to either genetic or environmental sources. Pooled results across all 12 studies were compared to results where we successively dropped each study (leave-one-out) to assure results were not due to an outlier. We conclude the models indicated an overall increase in variance for verbal episodic memory that was driven by a combination of increases in the genetic and nonshared environmental parameters that were not independently statistically significant. In contrast to reported results for other cognitive domains, differences in environmental exposures are comparatively important for verbal episodic memory, especially word list learning.

The acute effects of cannabis with and without cannabidiol in adults and adolescents: A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover experiment.

Long-term harms of cannabis may be exacerbated in adolescence, but little is known about the acute effects of cannabis in adolescents. We aimed to (i) compare the acute effects of cannabis in adolescent and adult cannabis users and (ii) determine if cannabidiol (CBD) acutely modulates the effects of delta-9-tetrahydocannabinol (THC). Randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover experiment. The experiment was registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04851392). Laboratory in London, United Kingdom. Twenty-four adolescents (12 women, 16- to 17-year-olds) and 24 adults (12 women, 26- to 29-year-olds) who used cannabis 0.5-3days/week and were matched on cannabis use frequency (mean = 1.5days/week). We administered three weight-adjusted vaporised cannabis flower preparations: 'THC' (8mg THC for 75 kg person); 'THC + CBD' (8mg THC and 24 mg CBD for 75 kg person); and 'PLA' (matched placebo). Primary outcomes were (i) subjective 'feel drug effect'; (ii) verbal episodicmemory (delayed prose recall); and (iii) psychotomimetic effect (Psychotomimetic States Inventory). Compared with 'PLA', 'THC' and 'THC + CBD' significantly (P < 0.001) increased 'feel drug effect' (mean difference [MD] = 6.3, 95% CI = 5.3-7.2; MD = 6.8, 95% CI = 6.0-7.7), impaired verbalepisodicmemory (MD = -2.7, 95% CI = -4.1 to -1.4; MD = -2.9, 95% CI = -4.1 to -1.7) and increased psychotomimetic effects (MD = 7.8, 95% CI = 2.8-12.7; MD = 10.8, 95% CI = 6.2-15.4). There was no evidence that adolescents differed from adults in their responses to cannabis (interaction P ≥ 0.4). Bayesian analyses supported equivalent effects of cannabis in adolescents and adults (Bayes factor [BF01 ] >3). There was no evidence that CBD significantly modulated the acute effects of THC. Adolescent cannabis users are neither more resilient nor more vulnerable than adult cannabis users to the acute psychotomimetic, verbalmemory-impairing or subjective effects of cannabis. Furthermore, in adolescents and adults, vaporised cannabidiol does not mitigate the acute harms caused by delta-9-tetrahydocannabinol.

Effect of four-week cannabidiol treatment on cognitive function: secondary outcomes from a randomised clinical trial for the treatment of cannabis use disorder

RationaleChronic cannabis use is associated with impaired cognitive function. Evidence indicates cannabidiol (CBD) might be beneficial for treating cannabis use disorder. CBD may also have pro-cognitive effects; however, its effect on cognition in people with cannabis use disorder is currently unclear.ObjectivesWe aimed to assess whether a 4-week CBD treatment impacted cognitive function. We hypothesised that CBD treatment would improve cognition from baseline to week 4, compared to placebo.MethodsCognition was assessed as a secondary outcome in a phase 2a randomised, double-blind, parallel-group and placebo-controlled clinical trial of 4-week daily 200 mg, 400 mg and 800 mg CBD for the treatment of cannabis use disorder. Participants had moderate or severe DSM-5 cannabis use disorder and intended to quit cannabis use. Our pre-registered primary cognitive outcome was delayed prose recall. Secondary cognitive outcomes were immediate prose recall, stop signal reaction time, trail-making task performance, verbal fluency and digit span.ResultsSeventy participants were randomly assigned to placebo (n = 23), 400 mg CBD (n = 24) and 800 mg CBD (n = 23). A 200 mg group was eliminated from the trial because it was an inefficacious dose at interim analysis (n = 12) and was not analysed here. For the primary cognitive outcome, there was no effect of CBD compared to placebo, evidenced by a lack of dose-by-time interaction at 400 mg (0.46, 95%CIs: − 1.41, 2.54) and 800 mg (0.89, 95%CIs: − 0.99, 2.81). There was no effect of CBD compared to placebo on secondary cognitive outcomes, except backwards digit span which increased following 800 mg CBD (0.30, 95%CIs: 0.02, 0.58).ConclusionsIn this clinical trial for cannabis use disorder, CBD did not influence delayed verbal memory. CBD did not have broad cognitive effects but 800 mg daily treatment may improve working memory manipulation.Clinical trial registrationThe trial was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02044809) and the EU Clinical Trials Register (2013–000,361-36).

The CannTeen study: verbal episodic memory, spatial working memory, and response inhibition in adolescent and adult cannabis users and age-matched controls

BackgroundPreclinical and human studies suggest that adolescent cannabis use may be associated with worse cognitive outcomes than adult cannabis use. We investigated the associations between chronic cannabis use and cognitive function in adolescent and adult cannabis users and controls. We hypothesised user-status would be negatively associated with cognitive function and this relationship would be stronger in adolescents than adults.MethodsAs part of the ‘CannTeen’ project, this cross-sectional study assessed cognitive performance in adolescent cannabis users (n = 76; 16–17-year-olds), adolescent controls (n = 63), adult cannabis users (n = 71; 26–29-year-olds) and adult controls (n = 64). Users used cannabis 1–7 days/week. Adolescent and adult cannabis users were matched on cannabis use frequency (4 days/week) and time since last use (2.5 days). Verbal episodic memory (VEM) was assessed using the prose recall task, spatial working memory (SWM) was assessed using the spatial n-back task, and response inhibition was assessed with the stop-signal task. Primary outcome variables were: delayed recall, 3-back discriminability, and stop signal reaction time, respectively.ResultsUsers had worse VEM than controls (F(1,268) = 7.423, p = 0.007). There were no significant differences between user-groups on SWM or response inhibition. Null differences were supported by Bayesian analyses. No significant interactions between age-group and user-group were found for VEM, SWM, or response inhibition.ConclusionsConsistent with previous research, there was an association between chronic cannabis use and poorer VEM, but chronic cannabis use was not associated with SWM or response inhibition. We did not find evidence for heightened adolescent vulnerability to cannabis-related cognitive impairment.

Forgetting rates of gist and peripheral episodic details in prose recall

In a seminal study, Slamecka and McElree showed that the degree of initial learning of verbal material affected the intercepts but not the slopes of forgetting curves. However, more recent work has reported that memories for central events (gist) and memory for secondary details (peripheral) were forgotten at different rates over periods of days, with gist memory retained more consistently over time than details. The present experiments aimed to investigate whether qualitatively different types of memory scoring (gist vs. peripheral) are forgotten at different rates in prose recall. In three experiments, 232 participants listened to two prose narratives and were subsequently asked to freely recall the stories. In the first two experiments participants were tested repeatedly after days and a month, while in the third experiment they were tested only after a month to control for repeated retrieval. Memory for gist was higher than for peripheral details, which were forgotten at a faster rate over a month, with or without the presence of intermediate recall. Moreover, repeated retrieval had a significant benefit on both memory for gist and peripheral details. We conclude that the different nature of gist and peripheral details leads to a differential forgetting in prose free recall, while repeated retrieval does not have a differential effect on the retention of these different episodic details.

Association Between Microstructural Asymmetry of Temporal Lobe White Matter and Memory Decline After Anterior Temporal Lobectomy.

Risk for memory decline is a substantial concern in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) undergoing anterior temporal lobectomy (ATL). Although prior studies have identified associations between memory and integrity of white matter (WM) networks within the medial temporal lobe (MTL) preoperatively, we contribute a study examining whether microstructural asymmetry of deep and superficial WM networks within the MTL predicts postoperative memory decline. Patients with drug-resistant TLE were recruited from 2 epilepsy centers in a prospective longitudinal study. All patients completed preoperative T1 and diffusion-weighted MRI (DWI) as well as preoperative and postoperative neuropsychological testing. Preoperative fractional anisotropy (FA) of the WM directly beneath the neocortex (i.e., superficial WM [SWM]) and of deep WM tracts associated with memory were calculated. Asymmetry was calculated for hippocampal volume and FA of each WM tract or region and examined in linear and logistic regressions with preoperative to postoperative memory change as the primary outcome. Data were analyzed from 42 patients with TLE (19 left TLE [LTLE], 23 right TLE [RTLE]) who underwent ATL. Leftward FA asymmetry of the entorhinal SWM was associated with decline on prose and associative recall in LTLE, whereas leftward FA asymmetry of the uncinate fasciculus (UNC) was associated with decline on prose recall only. After controlling for preoperative memory score and hippocampal volume, leftward FA asymmetry of the entorhinal SWM uniquely contributed to decline in both prose and associative recall (β = -0.46; SE 0.14 and β = -0.68; SE 0.22, respectively) and leftward FA asymmetry of the UNC uniquely contributed to decline in prose recall (β = -0.31; SE 0.14). A model combining asymmetry of hippocampal volume and entorhinal FA correctly classified memory outcomes in 79% of patients with LTLE for prose (area under the curve [AUC] 0.89; sensitivity 82%; specificity 75%) and 81% of patients for associative (AUC 0.79; sensitivity 83%; specificity 80%) recall. Entorhinal SWM asymmetry was the strongest predictor in both models. Preoperative asymmetry of deep WM and SWM integrity within the MTL is a strong predictor of postoperative memory decline in TLE, suggesting that surgical decision-making may benefit from considering each patient's WM network adequacy and reserve in addition to hippocampal integrity. This study provides Class II evidence that preoperative asymmetry of deep WM and SWM integrity within the MTL is a predictor of postoperative memory decline.

Fractionating the episodic buffer

The episodic buffer is a putative component of working memory proposed to account for several short-term memory functions, including unexpectedly preserved immediate prose recall by amnesic patients. Over the course of time, this component has increasingly become associated with binding functions. Considering recent findings regarding the performance of both memory-impaired and healthy individuals on the range of tasks purported to require the contribution of the episodic buffer, we suggest that it should be fractionated into two functional systems. One is a schematic store instantiated in brain areas responsible for conceptual and schema representations, which is likely to be hippocampus-independent, and preserved in the face of amnesia. In contrast, short-term maintenance of novel associative binding is likely to require the contribution of the hippocampus and may therefore not be functionally dissociable from long-term memory.

The effects of acute cannabidiol on cerebral blood flow and its relationship to memory: An arterial spin labelling magnetic resonance imaging study.

Background:Cannabidiol (CBD) is being investigated as a potential treatment for several medical indications, many of which are characterised by altered memory processing. However, the mechanisms underlying these effects are unclear.Aims:Our primary aim was to investigate how CBD influences cerebral blood flow (CBF) in regions involved in memory processing. Our secondary aim was to determine if the effects of CBD on CBF were associated with differences in working and episodic memory task performance.Methods:We used a randomised, crossover, double-blind design in which 15 healthy participants were administered 600 mg oral CBD or placebo on separate days. We measured regional CBF at rest using arterial spin labelling 3 h after drug ingestion. We assessed working memory with the digit span (forward, backward) and n-back (0-back, 1-back, 2-back) tasks, and we used a prose recall task (immediate and delayed) to assess episodic memory.Results:CBD increased CBF in the hippocampus (mean (95% confidence intervals) = 15.00 (5.78–24.21) mL/100 g/min, t14 = 3.489, Cohen’s d = 0.75, p = 0.004). There were no differences in memory task performance, but there was a significant correlation whereby greater CBD-induced increases in orbitofrontal CBF were associated with reduced reaction time on the 2-back working memory task ( r= −0.73, p = 0.005).Conclusions:These findings suggest that CBD increases CBF to key regions involved in memory processing, particularly the hippocampus. These results identify potential mechanisms of CBD for a range of conditions associated with altered memory processing, including Alzheimer’s disease, schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder and cannabis-use disorders.

Standardization of an Arabic-Language Neuropsychological Battery for Epilepsy Surgical Evaluations.

This study provides a standardized Arabic language neuropsychological test battery and tests its ability to distinguish patients with left and right hemisphere epileptic foci who are candidates for surgical resection. An Arabic language battery of 15 tests was developed based on the neuropsychological test battery used at the Johns Hopkins Hospital for surgical evaluation of patients undergoing temporal lobe resection. With modifications where culturally required, 11 tests were translated to Arabic by the principal investigator and back-translated by two bilingual health professionals; four tests were available in Arabic and added to the battery. The battery was administered to 21 Arabic-speaking patients with left temporal epileptic foci, 21 with right temporal epileptic foci, and 46 neurologically and psychiatrically healthy adults. Nearly all the Arabic test versions were capable of differentiating healthy controls and the temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) groups. Tests known to distinguish left and right temporal lobectomy candidates, such as wordlist memory and prose recall, were able to do so as accurately as the English versions. Also, a roughly "culturally free" task (the Baltimore Board) and a newly developed version of the Boston Naming Test demonstrated some sensitivity to left temporal lobe involvement. Arabic-language neuropsychological tests for epilepsy surgical evaluations are made available, demonstrate cultural sensitivity and clinical validity, and require further psychometric property and normative research. (JINS, 2019, 25, 761-771).

Individual and combined effects of acute delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol on psychotomimetic symptoms and memory function

The main active ingredient in cannabis, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), can acutely induce psychotic symptoms and impair episodic and working memory. Another major constituent, cannabidiol (CBD), may attenuate these effects. This study aimed to determine the effects of THC and CBD, both alone and in combination on psychotic symptoms and memory function. A randomised, double-blind crossover design compared the effects of (i) placebo, (ii) THC 8 mg, (iii) CBD 16 mg and (iv) THC 8 mg + CBD 16 mg administered by inhalation through a vaporiser. Using an experimental medicine approach to predict treatment sensitivity, we selected 48 cannabis users from the community on the basis of (1) schizotypal personality questionnaire scores (low, high) and (2) frequency of cannabis use (light, heavy). The Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), Psychotomimetic States Inventory (PSI), immediate and delayed prose recall (episodic memory), 1- and 2-back (working memory) were assessed on each day. Results indicated that THC increased overall scores on the PSI, negative symptoms on BPRS, and robustly impaired episodic and working memory. Co-administration of CBD did not attenuate these effects. CBD alone reduced PSI scores in light users only. At a ratio of 2:1, CBD does not attenuate the acute psychotic and memory impairing effects of vaporised THC. Frequent cannabis users may show a blunted anti- psychotic response to CBD, which is of concern due to the high rates of cannabis use disorders in patients with schizophrenia.

The effects of cannabidiol on impulsivity and memory during abstinence in cigarette dependent smokers

Acute nicotine abstinence in cigarette smokers results in deficits in performance on specific cognitive processes, including working memory and impulsivity which are important in relapse. Cannabidiol (CBD), the non-intoxicating cannabinoid found in cannabis, has shown pro-cognitive effects and preliminary evidence has indicated it can reduce the number of cigarettes smoked in dependent smokers. However, the effects of CBD on cognition have never been tested during acute nicotine withdrawal. The present study therefore aimed to investigate if CBD can improve memory and reduce impulsivity during acute tobacco abstinence. Thirty, non-treatment seeking, dependent, cigarette smokers attended two laboratory-based sessions after overnight abstinence, in which they received either 800 mg oral CBD or placebo (PBO), in a randomised order. Abstinence was biologically verified. Participants were assessed on go/no-go, delay discounting, prose recall and N-back (0-back, 1-back, 2-back) tasks. The effects of CBD on delay discounting, prose recall and the N-back (correct responses, maintenance or manipulation) were null, confirmed by a Bayesian analysis, which found evidence for the null hypothesis. Contrary to our predictions, CBD increased commission errors on the go/no-go task. In conclusion, a single 800 mg dose of CBD does not improve verbal or spatial working memory, or impulsivity during tobacco abstinence.

Non-Dependent and Dependent Daily Cannabis Users Differ in Mental Health but Not Prospective Memory Ability.

Research suggests that daily cannabis users have impaired memory for past events, but it is not clear whether they are also impaired in prospective memory (PM) for future events. The present study examined PM in daily cannabis users who were either dependent (n = 18) or non-dependent (n = 18), and compared them with non-using controls (n = 18). The effect of future event simulation (FES) on PM performance was also examined. Participants were matched across groups on age, gender, and highest level of education. The virtual week (VW) was used to objectively assess PM abilities, both at baseline and following FES. Other measures used were: cannabis use variables, immediate and delayed prose recall, phonemic and category fluency, spot-the-word test (premorbid intelligence), Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, and a measure of schizotypy (Oxford-Liverpool Inventory of Feelings and Experiences: unusual experiences subscale). No group differences were found in PM performance on the VW, and FES did not improve PM performance in any group. Dependent cannabis users scored higher on depression, anxiety, and schizotypy than both other groups with non-dependent cannabis users scoring at a similar level to controls. There were no group differences in alcohol use. Findings suggest that when carefully matched on baseline variables, and not differing in premorbid IQ or alcohol use, young, near-daily cannabis users do not differ from non-using controls in PM performance.

Conscious attention defect and inhibitory control deficit in Parkinson's Disease-Mild Cognitive Impairment: A comparison study with Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment multiple domain.

Frontal/executive dysfunction commonly occurs in Parkinso's disease - Mild Cognitive Impairment (PD-MCI patients). However, to date, the number of studies comparing PD-MCI and MCI patients of other etiologies are too small. The present study aims at clarifying the attention/working memory and executive dysfunction of PD-MCI patients in comparison to amnestic MCI multiple domain patients with first extended then abbreviated structural brain changes suggesting preclinical Alzheimer's Disease. 40 PD-MCI patients and 40 amnestic MCI multiple domain (aMCI+) patients were diagnosed according to the International guidelines. 22 healthy subjects were also recruited as control group. The groups were assessed by a wide neuropsychological battery, including measures of attention/working memory (Digit Span and Stroop Test), executive functions (Tower of London-Drexel Version -TOLDX- and Brixton Test), language (Boston Naming Test and Category Fluency), memory (Prose Recall and Pairs Associates Learning), and visuospatial function (Street's Completion Test and Constructive Apraxia Test). Performances were compared by non parametric tests. Spearman correlations were performed to explore association between neuropsychological measures of attention/working memory and executive functions in PD-MCI group. The PD-MCI patients performed worse on Digit Span and Stroop Interference/Error than aMCI+ and controls. AMCI+ patients, in turn, showed a greater deficit on TOLDX Initiation Time and on Violation Time than PD-MCI and controls. Both PD-MCI and aMCI+ patients reported lower scores on Stroop Interference/Time than controls. Moreover, aMCI+ patients performed worse then controls on Brixton Test. Positive correlations between Digit Span and Stroop Interference/Error, Stroop Interference/Error and TOLDX Execution Time, Total Time and Violation Time, Stroop Interference Time and TOLDX Move Score and Total Time were found in PD-MCI group. PD-MCI patients mainly present a conscious attention defect and an inhibitory control deficit than aMCI+. PD-MCI patients with deficits in attention/working memory domain should undergo specific cognitive trainings in order to improve cognitive abilities and prevent Parkinson's Disease Dementia onset.

Acute memory and psychotomimetic effects of cannabis and tobacco both 'joint' and individually: a placebo-controlled trial.

Cannabis and tobacco have contrasting cognitive effects. Smoking cannabis with tobacco is prevalent in many countries and although this may well influence cognitive and mental health outcomes, the possibility has rarely been investigated in human experimental psychopharmacological research. The individual and interactive effects of cannabis and tobacco were evaluated in 24 non-dependent cannabis and tobacco smokers in a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, 2 (cannabis, placebo) × 2 (tobacco, placebo) crossover design. Verbal memory (prose recall), working memory (WM) performance including maintenance, manipulation and attention (N-back), psychotomimetic, subjective and cardiovascular measures were recorded on each of four sessions. Cannabis alone impaired verbal memory. A priori contrasts indicated that tobacco offset the effects of cannabis on delayed recall. However, this was not supported by linear mixed model analysis. Cannabis load-dependently impaired WM. By contrast, tobacco improved WM across all load levels. The acute psychotomimetic effects and ratings of 'stoned' and 'dizzy' induced by cannabis were not altered by tobacco. Cannabis and tobacco had independent effects on increasing heart rate and interacting effects on increasing diastolic blood pressure. Relative to placebo, acute cannabis impaired verbal memory and WM. Tobacco enhanced performance on WM, independently of cannabis. Moreover, we found some preliminary evidence that tobacco may offset the effects of cannabis on delayed, but not immediate, verbal recall. In contrast, the psychotomimetic and subjective effects of cannabis were unaffected by tobacco co-administration. By reducing the cognitive impairment from cannabis, tobacco co-administration may perpetuate use despite adverse health consequences.

Declarative long-term memory and the mesial temporal lobe: Insights from a 5-year postsurgery follow-up study on refractory temporal lobe epilepsy.

It is largely recognized that the mesial temporal lobe and its substructure support declarative long-term memory (LTM). So far, different theories have been suggested, and the organization of declarative verbal LTM in the brain is still a matter of debate. In the current study, we retrospectively selected 151 right-handed patients with temporal lobe epilepsy with and without hippocampal sclerosis, with a homogeneous (seizure-free) clinical outcome. We analyzed verbal memory performance within a normalized scores context, by means of prose recall and word paired-associate learning tasks. Patients were tested at presurgical baseline, 6months, 2 and 5years after anteromesial temporal lobe surgery, using parallel versions of the neuropsychological tests. Our main finding revealed a key involvement of the left temporal lobe and, in particular, of the left hippocampus in prose recall rather than word paired-associate task. We also confirmed that shorter duration of epilepsy, younger age, and withdrawal of antiepileptic drugs would predict a better memory outcome. When individual memory performance was taken into account, data showed that females affected by left temporal lobe epilepsy for longer duration were more at risk of presenting a clinically pathologic LTM at 5years after surgery. Taken together, these findings shed new light on verbal declarative memory in the mesial temporal lobe and on the behavioral signature of the functional reorganization after the surgical treatment of temporal lobe epilepsy.

Interpreters – experts in careful listening and efficient encoding? Findings of a prose recall test

Research Questions: The purpose of the present experiment was to study interpreters’ recall of spoken prose. Design: The prose recall of simultaneous and consecutive interpreters was compared to that of foreign language teachers and non-linguistic experts. The professional experience of participants (21–24 participants in each group) was 10 years as a aminimum. The auditory presentation of the prose passage to be recalled, divided into eleven speech sequences, resembled the working conditions of interpreters. Data: Transcripted prose recall recordings were analysed quantitatively through an idea unit measure and qualitatively through meaning-based expressions. Findings: The foreign language expert groups outperformed the non-linguistic experts in both quantitative and qualitative measures. Additionally, compared to foreign language teachers, interpreters indicated a better recall of time expressions and topic sentences, as well as of complicated emotional and causal expressions. The explanation for these findings could indicate expertise-dependent tendencies: possibly a continuous practising of careful listening and the demand for a quick comprehension of the source text under the extreme time pressure of interpreters’ work leads to better results in prose recall. However, the findings can only be generalized to a limited extent because the prose passage used contained only one or two expressions of each type studied in the qualitative analysis. Originality: The study differs from previous studies in that the memory of interpreters, and especially of consecutive interpreters, was studied for the first time with a prose recall measure. Significance: The prose recall test revealed that the abilities of careful listening and effective comprehension of coherence and causality seem to play a significant role in explaining memory functions of simultaneous and consecutive interpreters compared to those of foreign language teachers and non-linguistic experts.

Survivors of cardiac arrest with good neurological outcome show considerable impairments of memory functioning

BackgroundDeficits in cognitive function are a well-known dysfunction in survivors of cardiac arrest. However, data concerning memory function in this neurological vulnerable patient collective remain scarce and inconclusive. Therefore, we aimed to assess multiple aspects of retrospective and prospective memory performance in patients after cardiac arrest. MethodsWe prospectively enrolled 33 survivors of cardiac arrest, with cerebral performance categories (CPC) 1 and 2 and a control-group (n=33) matched in sex, age and educational-level. To assess retrospective and prospective memory performance we administrated 4 weeks after cardiac arrest the “Rey Adult Learning Test” (RAVLT), the “Digit-Span-Backwards Test”, the “Logic-Memory Test” and the “Red-Pencil Test”. ResultsResults indicate an impairment in immediate and delayed free recall, but not in recognition. However, the overall impairment in immediate recall was qualified by analyzing RAVLT performance, showing that patients were only impaired in trials 4 and 5 of the learning sequence. Moreover, working and prospective memory as well as prose recall were worse in cardiac arrest survivors. Cranial computed tomography was available in 61% of all patients (n=20) but there was no specific neurological damage detectable that could be linked to this cognitive impairment. ConclusionEpisodic long-term memory functioning appears to be particularly impaired after cardiac arrest. In contrast, short-term memory storage, even tested via free-call, seems not to be affected. Based on cranial computed tomography we suggest that global brain ischemia rather than focal brain lesions appear to underlie these effects.