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Cerebral Cortex Advance Access published online on July 6, 2004
Cerebral Cortex, doi:10.1093/cercor/bhh115
© 2004 by Oxford University Press
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Article

Time Modulated Prefrontal and Parietal Activity during the Maintenance of Integrated Information as Revealed by Magnetoencephalography

Pablo Campo 1, Fernando Maestú 2, Tomás Ortiz 3*, Almudena Capilla 2, Marta Santiuste 1, Alberto Fernández 3, Carlos Amo 1

1 Centro de Magnetoencefalografía Dr Pérez-Modrego, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
2 Centro de Magnetoencefalografía Dr Pérez-Modrego, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain; Departamento de Psicología Básica II (Procesos Cognitivos), Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
3 Centro de Magnetoencefalografía Dr Pérez-Modrego, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain; Departamento de Psiquiatría, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: cmeg{at}rect.ucm.es.


  Abstract

Using magnetoencephalography, we investigated the spatiotemporal patterns of brain magnetic activity responsible for maintaining verbal and spatial information in either an integrated or an unintegrated fashion. Considering time dimension, we noted a greater activation of a fronto-parietal network in early latencies during the maintenance of integrated information, and a different pattern during the maintenance of unintegrated material, showing a greater activation in a fronto-posterior network in late latencies. The greater activation found in certain areas which are traditionally reported as being engaged in spatial working memory (i.e. superior frontal gyri, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, superior and inferior parietal lobes) when subjects maintained integrated information could be explained by a greater weight of the spatial dimension. It is as if words somehow acquired a spatial attribute, thus exerting a greater load in a neural network specialized in spatial working memory. Alternatively, and not mutually exclusive, we also propose that during the maintenance of integrated information the allocation of cognitive resources is less interfering than during the maintenance of unintegrated information, making it easier.

Keywords: fronto-parietal circuits; functional brain imaging; neural networks; spatial working memory; verbal working memory.
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