Targeting targeted memory reactivation: characteristics of cued reactivation in sleep

Abstract

Targeted memory reactivation (TMR) is a technique in which sensory cues associated with memories during wake are used to trigger memory reactivation during subsequent sleep. The characteristics of such cued reactivation, and the optimal placement of TMR cues, remain to be determined. We built an EEG classification pipeline that discriminated reactivation of right- and left-handed movements and found that cues which fall on the up-going transition of the slow oscillation (SO) are more likely to elicit a classifiable reactivation. We also used a novel machine learning pipeline to predict the likelihood of eliciting a classifiable reactivation after each TMR cue using the presence of spindles and features of SOs. Finally, we found that reactivations occurred either immediately after the cue or one second later. These findings greatly extend our understanding of memory reactivation and pave the way for development of wearable technologies to efficiently enhance memory through cueing in sleep.

Memory reactivation in slow wave sleep enhances relational learning

“…Similar negative correlations have been reported before, e.g. between classification performance and behavioural metrics (Abdellahi et al, 2021) and between EEG-microstates and behaviour (Murphy et al, 2018). One possible hypothesis, it is “good” performers try to fit the control sound into the previously-learned hierarchy.…”

“…Similar negative correlations have been reported before, e.g. between classification performance and behavioural metrics 38 and between EEG-microstates and behaviour 39 .One possible hypothesis, it is these “good” performers try to fit the control sound into the previously-learned hierarchy. That is, when they hear the control sound they may replay the cued hierarchy again, making it more difficult for the classifiers to differentiate between control from learned sounds.…”

Shaping overnight consolidation via slow-oscillation closed-loop targeted memory reactivation

“…This pattern is reminiscent of two previous TMR studies demonstrating that (mnemonic) processing of TMR cues tends to oscillate at ∼1 Hz ( 27 , 51 ). Moreover, a recent study on motor learning found that TMR-induced reactivation of learning patterns occurs either immediately or with a delay of 1 s ( 52 ). There is of course some variability across studies in the exact effect timing with respect to the TMR onset/offset (perhaps related to the complexity of the TMR cue and/or its associated information), but the cyclic pattern strongly points to a pacemaker role of SOs in coordinating memory processes during sleep.…”

Reap while you sleep: consolidation of memories differs by how they were sown

“…Measuring spontaneous reactivation in humans, despite promising and impressive in-roads (Deuker et al, 2013;Schonauer et al, 2017;Schreiner et al, 2021), is coarse (often limited to the level of categories like places or objects, though see Deuker et al, 2013) and commonly yields low decoding accuracies. Moreover, unlike targeted reactivations, which have post-cue periods in which reactivation events are expected (Abdellahi et al, 2021;Belal et al, 2018;Cairney et al, 2018;Ngo & Staresina, 2022;Schechtman et al, 2022b;Wang et al, 2019), spontaneous reactivation occurs unpredictably, which makes identifying clear moments as reactivation events challenging. One potential avenue to resolve this issue would be to use data at the level of the neural ensemble in non-human rodents (Bendor & Wilson, 2012;Rothschild et al, 2017) or intracranial experiments in humans (Creery et al, 2022).…”