Memory Traces of Pain in Human Cortex

摘要: Distinct brain regions process sensory discriminative and affective components of pain; however, the role these areas in pain memory is unknown. This event-related study investigated short-term for features cutaneous heat using a delayed-discrimination paradigm functional magnetic resonance imaging. During trials, subjects discriminated location intensity two painful stimuli presented sequentially to right hand. Control trials comprised same sequence motor responses but required no delayed discrimination. Stimulus-evoked activity control was generally indistinguishable within network normally responsive experimental [i.e., primary somatosensory cortex/posterior parietal cortex (SI/PPC), secondary (SII), anterior insular (aIC)]; data confirm nature similar levels attention stimulus encoding engaged during randomly trial types. Memory-specific activity, assessed by contrasting interstimulus interval observed SI/PPC aIC not SII. We propose that plays retention spatial aspects noxious activation consistent with integration cognitive (attention, awareness, salience, memory) perception. The absence memory-specific cingulate activation, associated unpleasantness, suggests remembering performance task.