Computational Neuroscience
Maryam Moghadam,; Farzad Towhidkhah; Golnaz Baghdadi
Volume 15, Issue 2 , August 2021, , Pages 111-125
Abstract
In cognition physiology and neuroscience, spatial memory is responsible for the maintenance and recall of information related to environmental details, orientation, and spatial navigation. The brain’s cognitive functions including navigation are executed through correlated and sequential activities ...
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In cognition physiology and neuroscience, spatial memory is responsible for the maintenance and recall of information related to environmental details, orientation, and spatial navigation. The brain’s cognitive functions including navigation are executed through correlated and sequential activities of different regions. According to previous research, navigation is largely related to the activities of the Hippocampus (HPC) and the Medial Temporal Lobe (MTL), and retrieval of spatial memories from these regions is controlled by the frontal region and specifically medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). In this paper we attempt to provide a navigation cognitive model based on computational concepts focusing on bidirectional interaction between HPC and mPFC. This model is provided considering 1. The lack of a comprehensive cognitive model of navigation on a previously learned path and ambiguities regarding the information transferring between the regions, and 2. Disagreement between available models and the currently known actual information flow occurring within the brain. The model is inclusive of the active brain regions engaged in navigation using the cognitive map. Furthermore, we propose a computational model based on van-der-pol neuron pools and controlling rule-base, which is naturally related to the actual brain activity through the synchrony mechanism for information transfer and the mPFC rule-based control of the medial temporal lobe. Finally, by analyzing and presenting evidence, we have shown that the model can be beneficial and practical for describing cognitive and functional disorders in navigation, also for design and prediction of the outcomes of therapeutic and rehabilitation protocols in diseases related to spatial navigation, such as the Alzheimer’s disease.
