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Emotional resilience in humans as an effect of hippocampal pattern separation
University of Skövde, School of Bioscience.
2021 (English)Independent thesis Basic level (degree of Bachelor), 15 credits / 22,5 HE creditsStudent thesis
Abstract [en]

Pattern separation is the means by which the brain discriminates similar experiences. It enables retrieval of individuated memories without confusing them with other memories. It is the reason one remembers where one parked the car today and does not mix it up with where one parked it previously. Adult neurogenesis refers to the ongoing production of neurons in the mature brain. One of the likely roles of adult neurogenesis in the hippocampus is facilitating pattern separation. Induced reduction of adult neurogenesis in non-human animals is associated with depression- and anxiety-like behaviors. One possible explanation is that reduced neurogenesis leads to reduced pattern separation, further leading to overgeneralization of threat situations. Instead of perceiving threats where it should, the animal risks perceiving threats everywhere. Emotional resilience is the ability to recover from adversity with a minimum of lingering negative effects such as depression or anxiety. This thesis investigates whether pattern separation in the human hippocampus supports emotional resilience. I performed a systematic review of studies that used the Mnemonic Similarity Task – a memory task commonly used to measure human pattern separation – to investigate the relationship between pattern separation and anxiety. The results are inconclusive but suggest a possible interaction effect whereby pattern separation and high-arousal states like stress predict anxiety. Together with the evidence from the non-human animal studies, this suggests that reduced pattern separation as caused by reduced neurogenesis could make one vulnerable to developing anxiety disorders.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2021. , p. 39
Keywords [en]
Pattern separation, adult neurogenesis, mnemonic similarity task, anxiety, fear generalization
National Category
Neurosciences
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:his:diva-19925OAI: oai:DiVA.org:his-19925DiVA, id: diva2:1569719
Subject / course
Cognitive Neuroscience
Educational program
Cognitive Neuroscience - Applied Positive Psychology
Supervisors
Examiners
Available from: 2021-06-21 Created: 2021-06-21 Last updated: 2025-09-29Bibliographically approved

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CiteExportLink to record
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  • apa
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