Improved Working Memory Performance through Self-Regulation of Dorsal Lateral Prefrontal Cortex Activation Using Real-Time fMRI

Working memory is important for a wide range of high-level cognitive activities. Previous studies have shown that the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) plays a critical role in working memory and that behavioral training of working memory can alter the activity of DLPFC. However, it is unclear whether the activation in the DLPFC can be self-regulated and whether any self-regulation can affect working memory behavior. The recently emerged real-time functional magnetic resonance imaging (rtfMRI) technique enables the individuals to acquire self-control of localized brain activation, potentially inducing desirable behavioral changes. In the present study, we employed the rtfMRI technique to train subjects to up-regulate the activation in the left DLPFC, which is linked to verbal working memory. After two rtfMRI training sessions, activation in the left DLPFC was significantly increased, whereas the control group that received sham feedback did not show any increase in DLPFC activation. Pre- and post-training behavioral tests indicated that performance of the digit span and letter memory task was significantly improved in the experimental group. Between-group comparison of behavioral changes showed that the increase of digit span in the experimental group was significantly greater than that in the control group. These findings provide preliminary evidence that working memory performance can be improved through learned regulation of activation in associated brain regions using rtfMRI.