Our everyday activities require the maintenance and continuous updating of information in working memory (WM). To control this dynamic, WM gating mechanisms have been suggested to be in place, but the neurophysiological mechanisms behind these processes are far from being understood. This is especially the case when it comes to the role of oscillatory neural activity. In the current study we combined EEG recordings, and anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (atDCS) and pupil diameter recordings to triangulate neurophysiology, functional neuroanatomy and neurobiology. The results revealed that atDCS, compared to sham stimulation, affected the WM gate opening mechanism, but not the WM gate closing mechanism. The altered behavioral performance was associated with specific changes in alpha band activities (reflected by alpha desynchronization), indicating a role for inhibitory control during WM gate opening. Functionally, the left superior and inferior parietal cortices, were associated with these processes. The findings are the first to show a causal relevance of alpha desynchronization processes in WM gating processes. Notably, pupil diameter recordings as an indirect index of the norepinephrine (NE) system activity revealed that individuals with stronger inhibitory control (as indexed through alpha desynchronization) showed less pupil dilation, suggesting they needed less NE activity to support WM gate opening. However, when atDCS was applied, this connection disappeared. The study suggests a close link between inhibitory controlled WM gating in parietal cortices, alpha band dynamics and the NE system.

中文翻译：

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WM 大门开启的抑制控制：atDCS 刺激下的 α 去同步化和去甲肾上腺素活性的见解

我们的日常活动需要维护和不断更新工作记忆（WM）中的信息。为了控制这种动态，人们建议采用 WM 门控机制，但这些过程背后的神经生理学机制还远未被了解。当涉及到振荡神经活动的作用时尤其如此。在当前的研究中，我们结合了脑电图记录、阳极经颅直流电刺激（atDCS）和瞳孔直径记录来三角测量神经生理学、功能神经解剖学和神经生物学。结果表明，与假刺激相比，atDCS 影响 WM 门打开机制，但不影响 WM 门关闭机制。行为表现的改变与 α 带活动的特定变化（通过 α 去同步化反映）相关，表明 WM 门打开期间抑制控制的作用。从功能上讲，左上顶叶皮质和左下顶叶皮质与这些过程相关。该研究结果首次显示了 WM 门控过程中 alpha 去同步过程的因果关系。值得注意的是，作为去甲肾上腺素 (NE) 系统活动间接指标的瞳孔直径记录显示，具有较强抑制控制（通过 α 去同步化进行索引）的个体表现出较少的瞳孔扩张，表明他们需要较少的 NE 活动来支持 WM 门打开。然而，当应用atDCS时，这种连接就消失了。该研究表明顶叶皮质中抑制控制的 WM 门控、α 带动态和 NE 系统之间存在密切联系。