Differences in learning rates for item and associative memories between amnestic mild cognitive impairment and healthy controls

Behavioral and Brain Functions

Pengyun Wang¹  Juan Li³  Huijie Li³  Shouzi Zhang² 

[1] Graduate School, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China

[2] Beijing Geriatric Hospital, Beijing, China

[3] Center on Aging Psychology, Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 16 Lincui Road, Beijing, 100101, China

关键词: Learning rate;    Item memory;    Associative memory;    Mild cognitive impairment;   

Others  :  793355
DOI  :  10.1186/1744-9081-9-29

 received in 2012-12-20, accepted in 2013-07-19,  发布年份 2013

【 摘 要 】

Background

It has been established that the overall performance of associative memory was disproportionately impaired in contrast to item memory in aMCI (Amnestic mild cognitive impairment) patients, but little is known about the specific aspects of the memory process that show differences between aMCI and healthy controls. By comparing an item-item associative learning test with an individual item learning test, the present study investigated whether the rate of learning was slower in associative memory than in item memory in aMCI. Furthermore, we examined whether deficits in intertrial acquisition and consolidation contributed to the potential disproportionate impairments in the learning rate of associative memory for aMCI patients. In addition, we further explored whether the aMCI-discriminative power of the associative memory test increases more than that of the item memory test when the number of learning-test trials increases.

Methods

A group of 40 aMCI patients and 40 matched control participants were administered a standardized item memory test (Auditory Verbal Learning Test, AVLT) and a standardized associative memory test (Paired Associative Learning Test, PALT), as well as other neuropsychological tests and clinical assessments.

Results

The results indicated that the learning rate deficits in aMCI patients were more obvious for associative memory than for item memory and that the deficits resulted from impairments in both intertrial acquisition and consolidation. In addition, the receiver operating characteristic curve and logistical regression analysis revealed that the discriminative power of the associative memory test for aMCI was larger than that of the item memory test, especially with more than one learning-test trials.

Conclusions

Due to more deficits in learning rate of associative memory than that of item memory, the discriminative power for aMCI tended to be larger in associative memory than in item memory when the number of learning-test trials increased. It is suggested that associative memory tests with multiple trials may be particularly useful for early detection of aMCI.

【 授权许可】

   
2013 Wang et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

【 图 表 】

Figure 1.

Figure 2.

Figure 3.

Figure 4.

【 参考文献 】

• [1]Petersen RCDR, Kurz A, Mohs RC, Morris JC, Rabins PV, Ritchie K, Rossor M, Thal L, Winblad B: Mild cognitive impairment as a diagnostic entity current concepts in mild cognitive impairment. J Intern Med 2004, 256:183-194.
• [2]Petersen RC, Doody R, Kurz A, Mohs RC, Morris JC, Rabins PV, Ritchie K, Rossor M, Thal L, Winblad B: Current concepts in mild cognitive impairment. Arch Neurol 2001, 58:1985-1992.
• [3]Mitchell AJ, Shiri‒Feshki M: Rate of progression of mild cognitive impairment to dementia–meta‒analysis of 41 robust inception cohort studies. Acta Psychiatr Scand 2009, 119:252-265.
• [4]Rabin LA, Pare N, Saykin AJ, Brown MJ, Wishart HA, Flashman LA, Santulli RB: Differential memory test sensitivity for diagnosing amnestic mild cognitive impairment and predicting conversion to Alzheimer’s disease. Neuropsychol Dev Cogn B Aging Neuropsychol Cogn 2009, 16:357-376.
• [5]Baek MJ, Kim HJ, Kim S: Comparison between the Story Recall Test and the Word-List Learning Test in Korean patients with mild cognitive impairment and early stage of Alzheimer’s disease. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2012, 34:396-404.
• [6]Blacker D, Lee H, Muzikansky A, Martin EC, Tanzi R, McArdle JJ, Moss M, Albert M: Neuropsychological measures in normal individuals that predict subsequent cognitive decline. Arch Neurol 2007, 64:862-871.
• [7]Kave G, Heinik J: Neuropsychological evaluation of mild cognitive impairment: three case reports. Clin Neuropsychol 2004, 18:362-372.
• [8]De Jager CA, Hogervorst E, Combrinck M, Budge MM: Sensitivity and specificity of neuropsychological tests for mild cognitive impairment, vascular cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. Psychol Med 2003, 33:1039-1050.
• [9]Karrasch M, Sinerva E, Gronholm P, Rinne J, Laine M: CERAD test performances in amnestic mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. Acta Neurol Scand 2005, 111:172-179.
• [10]Chang YL, Bondi MW, Fennema-Notestine C, McEvoy LK, Hagler DJ Jr, Jacobson MW, Dale AM, Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging I: Brain substrates of learning and retention in mild cognitive impairment diagnosis and progression to Alzheimer’s disease. Neuropsychologia 2010, 48:1237-1247.
• [11]Christensen H, Kopelman MD, Stanhope N, Lorentz L, Owen P: Rates of forgetting in Alzheimer dementia. Neuropsychologia 1998, 36:547-557.
• [12]Moulin CJ, James N, Freeman JE, Jones RW: Deficient acquisition and consolidation: intertrial free recall performance in Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2004, 26:1-10.
• [13]Ranganath C: Binding items and contexts: the cognitive neuroscience of episodic memory. Curr Dir Psychol Sci 2010, 19:131-137.
• [14]Troyer AK, Murphy KJ, Anderson ND, Hayman-Abello BA, Craik FI, Moscovitch M: Item and associative memory in amnestic mild cognitive impairment: performance on standardized memory tests. Neuropsychology 2008, 22:10-16.
• [15]Hanseeuw B, Dricot L, Kavec M, Grandin C, Seron X, Ivanoiu A: Associative encoding deficits in amnestic mild cognitive impairment: a volumetric and functional MRI study. NeuroImage 2011, 56:1743-1748.
• [16]Cooperative CMS: The Manual of Clinical Memory Test (Rev. ed.). Beijing: Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; 1996.
• [17]Maj M, Satz P, Janssen R, Zaudig M, Starace F, D’Elia L, Sughondhabirom B, Mussa M, Naber D, Ndetei D, et al.: WHO Neuropsychiatric AIDS study, cross-sectional phase II. Neuropsychological and neurological findings. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1994, 51:51-61.
• [18]Xiao S, Yao P, Li X, Zhang M: Neuropsychological testing profiles of patients with Alzheimer’s Disease and mild cognitive impairment: a case–control study. Hong Kong J of Psyciatry 2002, 12:2-5.
• [19]Lezak MD: Neuropsychological Assessment 4e. USA: Oxford University Press; 2004.
• [20]Almond NM, Morrison CM, Moulin CJ: Episodic intertrial learning of younger and older adults: effects of word frequency. Neuropsychol Dev Cogn B Aging Neuropsychol Cogn 2013, 20:174-194.
• [21]Luria AR: The working brain: An introduction to neuropsychology. New York: Basic Books; 1976.
• [22]Woodard JL, Dunlosky JA, Salthouse TA: Task decomposition analysis of intertrial free recall performance on the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test in normal aging and Alzheimer’s disease. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 1999, 21:666-676.
• [23]Chen NC, Lin YI, Chang CC, Lin KN, Chuang YC, Chen C, Tu MC, Wang PN: Learning and error patterns in the Chinese Verbal Learning Test in subjects with mild cognitive impairment and normal elderly. Acta Neurol Taiwan 2011, 20:114-124.
• [24]O’Donnell J, Pietrzak RH, Ellis KC, Snyder PJ, Maruff P: Understanding failure of visual paired associate learning in amnestic mild cognitive impairment. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2011, 33:1069-1078.
• [25]Benedict R: Brief visuospatial memory test-revised. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources; 1997.
• [26]Dunlosky J, Salthouse TA: A decomposition of age-related differences in multitrial free recall. Aging Neuropsychol Cognition 1996, 3:2-14.
• [27]Yu J, Li J, Huang X: The Beijing version of the montreal cognitive assessment as a brief screening tool for mild cognitive impairment: a community-based study. BMC Psychiatry 2012, 12:156. BioMed Central Full Text
• [28]Organization WH: World Health Organization-Battery of Cognitive Assessment Instrument for Elderly. Geneva: World Health Organization; 1996.
• [29]Troyer AK, Murphy KJ: Memory for intentions in amnestic mild cognitive impairment: time- and event-based prospective memory. J Int Neuropsychol Soc 2007, 13:365-369.
• [30]Crowell TA, Luis CA, Vanderploeg RD, Schinka JA, Mullan M: Memory patterns and executive functioning in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. Aging Neuropsychol Cognition 2002, 9:288-297.
• [31]Gong YX, Jiang D, Deng JL, Dai ZS, Zhou QZ, Xie GY, Li Y, Hua XX: Manual of Wechsler Memory Scale—Chinese Version. Changsha: Hunan Medical College Press; 1989.
• [32]Gong YX: Manual of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Chinese version. Changsha: Chinese Map Press; 1992.
• [33]Spreen OSE: A compendium of neuropsychological tests: Administration, norms, and commentary. USA: Oxford University Press; 1998.
• [34]Cohen J: Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences. 2nd edition. Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates; 1988.
• [35]Wagenmakers EJ, Krypotos AM, Criss AH, Iverson G: On the interpretation of removable interactions: a survey of the field 33 years after Loftus. Mem Cognition 2012, 40:145-160.
• [36]Loftus GR: On interpretation of interactions. Mem Cognition 1978, 6:312-319.
• [37]Krch D, Sumowski JF, DeLuca J, Chiaravalloti N: Subjective memory in multiple sclerosis is associated with initial-trial learning performance. J Int Neuropsychol Soc 2011, 17:557-561.
• [38]Bowler DM, Gaigg SB, Gardiner JM: Subjective organisation in the free recall learning of adults with Asperger’s syndrome. J Autism Dev Disord 2008, 38:104-113.
• [39]Wilbur R, Silver R, Parente R: Subjective organization and positive transfer of performance with traumatically brain-injured adults. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2007, 29:682-689.
• [40]Davis HP, Klebe KJ, Guinther PM, Schroder KB, Cornwell RE, James LE: Subjective Organization, Verbal Learning, and Forgetting Across the Life Span: From 5 to 89. Exp Aging Res 2013, 39:1-26.
• [41]Atienza M, Atalaia-Silva KC, Gonzalez-Escamilla G, Gil-Neciga E, Suarez-Gonzalez A, Cantero JL: Associative memory deficits in mild cognitive impairment: the role of hippocampal formation. NeuroImage 2011, 57:1331-1342.
• [42]Masdeu JC, Zubieta JL, Arbizu J: Neuroimaging as a marker of the onset and progression of Alzheimer’s disease. J Neurol Sci 2005, 236:55-64.
• [43]Chetelat G, Villemagne VL, Bourgeat P, Pike KE, Jones G, Ames D, Ellis KA, Szoeke C, Martins RN, O’Keefe GJ, et al.: Relationship between Atrophy and beta-Amyloid Deposition in Alzheimer Disease. Ann Neurol 2010, 67:317-324.
• [44]Petersen R, Smith G, Ivnik R, Kokmen E, Tangalos E: Memory function in very early Alzheimer’s disease. Neurology 1994, 44:867-867.
• [45]Doi T, Shimada H, Makizako H, Yoshida D, Shimokata H, Ito K, Washimi Y, Endo H, Suzuki T: Characteristics of cognitive function in early and late stages of amnestic mild cognitive impairment. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2013, 13:83-89.
• [46]Lifshitz M, Dwolatzky T, Press Y: Validation of the Hebrew Version of the MoCA Test as a Screening Instrument for the Early Detection of Mild Cognitive Impairment in Elderly Individuals. J Geriatric Psychiatry Neurol 2012, 25:155-161.
• [47]Murayama N, Iseki E, Fujishiro H, Yamamoto R, Ota K, Suzuki M, Nagashima K, Arai H, Sato K: Detection of early amnestic mild cognitive impairment without significantly objective memory impairment: a case-controlled study. Psychogeriatrics 2010, 10:62-68.
• [48]de Rover MM-ZS, Sahakian BJ: Early detection of mild cognitive impairment and alzheimer’s disease: an example using the CANTAB PAL. The United Kingdom: The Government Office for Science; 2008.
• [49]Liu YLY, Wang DJ, Zhang DY, Yang TY, Jie CY, Sun W: Dictionary of usage frequency of modern Chinese words. Beijing: Yu Hang in press; 1990.
• [50]Gilhooly KJ, Logie RH: Age-of-acquisition, imagery, concreteness, familiarity, and ambiguity measures for 1,944 words. Behavior Res Methods & Instrum 1980, 12:395-427.