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An unexpected determinant of memory: Hippocampal activity prior to encoding predicts subsequent memory

Encoding activity in the medial temporal lobe (post-onset activity), supposedly evoked by the presentation of stimuli, is known to predict subsequent memory. Here, we investigated the role of activity that occurs before stimulus presentation (pre-onset activity). Pre-onset spiking activity in the hippocampus, recorded from epilepsy patients as they completed a continuous recognition task, predicted subsequent memory. Post-onset spiking activity was similarly predictive but was simply a continuation of pre-onset activity. Importantly, hippocampal pre-onset and post-onset activity predicted only subsequent memory; activity around the onset of novel words and around the onset of repeated words did not predict whether memory performance would be correct on that trial. Moreover, the predictive effect was stronger in the hippocampus than in other brain areas. Our findings weigh against a general attention/arousal interpretation and instead suggest an “attention-to-encoding” phenomenon, one that is especially prominent in the hippocampus.

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