Analysis of brain activity during configuration learning using magnetoencephalography

Context and relevance. This study investigates the brain encoding of complex stimuli during configurational associative learning in humans. Behavior based on the perception of complex signals provides high adaptability of human activity. Yet, knowledge about the involvement of the cerebral cortex in binding stimulus elements into a perceived holistic configuration remains incomplete and contradictory. Methods and materials. We used four elemental stimuli of different modalities (two visual and two auditory), and two complex multimodal stimuli composed of the same elemental stimuli. Two stimuli (one complex and one elemental stimulus) were paired with negative reinforcement (electrocutaneous stimulation). The task of the subject was to press a button if they anticipated an electrocutaneous stimulation after the presentation of each stimulus: the stimuli were presented in a pseudo-random order. Twenty-nine volunteers took part in the study. Results. The results of the study showed that reinforcement of a complex stimulus was accompanied by a significant increase in the power of theta oscillations in response to that stimulus. In addition, it was found that encoding configural association engaged theta oscillations to a greater extent compared to elemental association. These effects were found in localizations over prefrontal cortex, left dorsolateral frontal regions, right temporal regions, and posterior parieto-occipital regions. Conclusions. We hypothesize that this phenomenon is not only a consequence of the involvement of the hippocampus in the encoding of a complex stimulus, but also indicates an active interaction between the hippocampus and associative areas of the neocortex during learning.

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