Sleep loss disrupts the neural signature of successful learning

Guttesen, Anna á Váli; Gaskell, M. Gareth; Madden, Emily V.; Appleby, Gabrielle; Cross, Zachariah R.; Cairney, Scott A.

doi:10.1101/2021.11.16.468870

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 106 publications

(132 reference statements)

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“…Memory retention is improved by post-learning sleep [5][6][7][8][9][10][11], suggesting that sleep supports the consolidation of newly learned information. Contemporary models of sleep-associated memory processing propose that memories are reactivated during sleep, and thereby integrated into long-term storage [5,[12][13][14][15][16].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sleep bolsters schematically incongruent memories

2022

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Our ability to recall memories is improved when sleep follows learning, suggesting that sleep facilitates memory consolidation. A number of factors are thought to influence the impact of sleep on newly learned information, such as whether or not we rehearse that information (e.g. via restudy or retrieval practice), or the extent to which the information is consistent with our pre-existing schematic knowledge. In this pre-registered, online study, we examined the effects of both rehearsal and schematic congruency on overnight consolidation. Participants learned noun-colour pairings (e.g. elephant-red) and rated each pairing as plausible or implausible before completing a baseline memory assessment. Afterwards, participants engaged in a period of restudy or retrieval practice for the pairings, and then entered a 12 h retention interval of overnight sleep or daytime wakefulness. Follow-up assessments were completed immediately after sleep or wake, and again 24 h after learning. Our data indicated that overnight consolidation was amplified for restudied relative to retested noun-colour pairings, but only when sleep occurred soon after learning. Furthermore, whereas plausible (i.e. schematically congruent) pairings were generally better remembered than implausible (i.e. schematically incongruent) pairings, the benefits of sleep were stronger for implausible relative to plausible memories. These findings challenge the notion that schema-conformant memories are preferentially strengthened during post-learning sleep.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sleep bolsters schematically incongruent memories

2022

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Delineating memory reactivation in sleep with verbal and non-verbal retrieval cues

Guttesen

Gaskell

Cairney

2023

Preprint

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Sleep supports memory consolidation via the reactivation of newly formed memory traces. One way to investigate memory reactivation in sleep is by exposing the sleeping brain to auditory retrieval cues; a paradigm known as targeted memory reactivation (TMR). To what extent to acoustic properties of memory cues influence the effectiveness of TMR, however, has received limited attention. We addressed this question by exploring how verbal and non-verbal memory cues affect oscillatory activity linked to memory reactivation in slow-wave sleep. Fifty-one healthy adult males learned to associate visual stimuli with spoken words (verbal cues) and environmental sounds (non-verbal cues). Subsets of the verbal and non-verbal cues were then replayed during sleep, alongside previously unheard control cues. For a subset of the participants, the voice of the verbal cues was mismatched between sleep and learning. Memory cues (relative to control cues) prompted an increase in theta/alpha and spindle power, which have been heavily implicated in sleep-associated memory processing. Moreover, verbal memory cues were associated with a stronger increase in spindle power than non-verbal memory cues. There were no significant differences between the matched and mismatched conditions when analysing verbal memory cues in isolation. Our findings suggest that verbal memory cues may be more effective than non-verbal memory cues for triggering memory reactivation in sleep, as indicated by an amplified spindle response.

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Sleep loss disrupts the neural signature of successful learning

Cited by 2 publications

References 106 publications

Sleep bolsters schematically incongruent memories

Sleep bolsters schematically incongruent memories

Delineating memory reactivation in sleep with verbal and non-verbal retrieval cues

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