Affiliation:
1. Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, Department of Imaging Neuroscience, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London
2. Institute of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf
Abstract
Conduction velocity is the speed at which electrical signals travel along axons and is a crucial determinant of neural communication. Inferences about conduction velocity can now be made in vivo in humans using a measure called the magnetic resonance (MR) g-ratio. This is the ratio of the inner axon diameter relative to that of the axon plus the myelin sheath that encases it. Here, in the first application to cognition, we found that variations in MR g-ratio, and by inference conduction velocity, of the parahippocampal cingulum bundle were associated with autobiographical memory recall ability in 217 healthy adults. This tract connects the hippocampus with a range of other brain areas. We further observed that the association seemed to be with inner axon diameter rather than myelin content. The extent to which neurites were coherently organised within the parahippocampal cingulum bundle was also linked with autobiographical memory recall ability. Moreover, these findings were specific to autobiographical memory recall and were not apparent for laboratory-based memory tests. Our results offer a new perspective on individual differences in autobiographical memory recall ability, highlighting the possible influence of specific white matter microstructure features on conduction velocity when recalling detailed memories of real-life past experiences.
Funder
Wellcome Trust
ERA-NET NEURON
Federal Ministry of Education and Research
German Research Foundation
Forschungszentrums Medizintechnik Hamburg
MRC and Spinal Research Charity
Publisher
eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd
Subject
General Immunology and Microbiology,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology,General Medicine,General Neuroscience
Cited by
9 articles.
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