Dopamine modulations of reward‐driven music memory consolidation

Abstract

Music listening provides one of the most significant abstract rewards for humans because hearing music activates the dopaminergic mesolimbic system. Given the strong link between reward, dopamine, and memory, we aimed here to investigate the hypothesis that dopamine‐dependent musical reward can drive memory improvements. Twenty‐nine healthy participants of both sexes provided reward ratings of unfamiliar musical excerpts that had to be remembered following a consolidation period under three separate conditions: after the ingestion of a dopaminergic antagonist, a dopaminergic precursor, or a placebo. Linear mixed modeling of the intervention data showed that the effect of reward on memory—i.e., the greater the reward experienced while listening to the musical excerpts, the better the memory recollection performance—was modulated by both dopaminergic signaling and individual differences in reward processing. Greater pleasure was consistently associated with better memory outcomes in participants with high sensitivity to musical reward, but this effect was lost when dopaminergic signaling was disrupted in participants with average or low musical hedonia. Our work highlights the flexibility of the human dopaminergic system, which can enhance memory formation not only through explicit and/or primary reinforcers but also via abstract and aesthetic rewards such as music.

The forgotten role of absorption in music reward

“…Other studies have also reported improvements in cognitive function, as well as quality of life and depressive symptoms in patients with dementia and Alzheimer's disease 108,109 . Crucially, several studies have shown that musical reward and its different facets can predict music‐related benefits on cognition and well‐being 110–114 . A better characterization of subjects’ relationship with music by means of the eBMRQ might help, therefore, to predict the effectiveness of music‐based treatments at an individual level.…”

Memory modulations through musical pleasure

“…In study 2, 22 we investigated the neurochemical brain mechanisms underpinning such music‐pleasure‐driven effect on memory. By employing the same paradigm and material of study 1, we conducted a double‐blind, within‐subject pharmacological intervention.…”

“…of R responses probability), confirmed under placebo (gray solid line) and maintained under levodopa (green dashed line), was disrupted under risperidone (red dotted line). Panel adapted from Ref 22…”

Interbrain emotional connection during music performances is driven by physical proximity and individual traits

“…The overall score represents the general sensitivity to musical reward. [58][59][60][61] The study met the local ethical rules as laid out in French law concerning noninvasive protocols involving healthy participants and was classified as an observational study outside the scope of the Jardé law (Article R1121-1 of the French Law Code of Public Health amended by decree n°2017-884 of May 2017). It was submitted to the Ethics Committee CPP Est II, which exempted the study from the full ethics review process.…”