Odor cueing during slow-wave sleep benefits memory independently of low cholinergic tone

• Published in: Psychopharmacology Vol. 235; no. 1; pp. 291 - 299
• Main Authors: Klinzing, Jens G., Kugler, Sabine, Soekadar, Surjo R., Rasch, Björn, Born, Jan, Diekelmann, Susanne
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.01.2018; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Acetylcholinesterase; Adult; Analysis of Variance; Association Learning - drug effects; Association Learning - physiology; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Chemical stimuli; Cholinesterase Inhibitors - pharmacology; Cortex; Cues; Esterase; Health aspects; Hippocampus - drug effects; Humans; Learning; Male; Memory; Memory - physiology; Memory Consolidation - drug effects; Memory Consolidation - physiology; Mental task performance; Neocortex; Neurosciences; Odorants; Odors; Original Investigation; Pharmacology/Toxicology; Physical Stimulation - methods; Physostigmine; Physostigmine - pharmacology; Psychiatry; Psychological aspects; Sleep; Sleep, Slow-Wave - physiology; Spatial discrimination; Spatial memory; Young Adult; Memory consolidation; Acetylcholine; Physostigmine; Sleep; Odor reactivation
• ISSN: 0033-3158; 1432-2072; 1432-2072
• DOI: 10.1007/s00213-017-4768-5

Rationale Sleep-dependent memory consolidation depends on the concerted reactivation of memories in the hippocampo-neocortical system. The communication of reactivated information from the hippocampus to the neocortex is assumed to be enabled by low levels of acetylcholine, particularly during slow-wave sleep (SWS). Recent studies suggest that the reactivation of memories does not only occur spontaneously but can also be externally triggered by re-presenting learning-associated cues during sleep. Objectives Here we investigated whether the beneficial effect of cued memory reactivation during sleep depends on similar mechanisms as spontaneous reactivation, and specifically on low cholinergic tone. Methods In two experimental nights, healthy volunteers learned a visuo-spatial memory task in the presence of an odor before going to sleep for 40 min. In one night, subjects were presented with the odor again during SWS, whereas in the other night they received an odorless vehicle. In half of the subjects, the availability of acetylcholine during sleep was increased by administering the acetylcholine-esterase inhibitor physostigmine. Results Contrary to our hypothesis, increased cholinergic tone during sleep did not abolish the beneficial effect of odor cueing: memory performance was better after odor cueing compared to odorless vehicle, independent of physostigmine or placebo administration. Conclusions This finding challenges the assumption that odor-cued and spontaneous memory reactivation rely on the same neuropharmacological mechanisms.