Arousal Increases Neural Gain Via the Locus Coeruleus-norepinephrine System in Younger Adults but Not in Older Adults

Overview

Journal Nat Hum Behav

Specialties Psychology
Social Sciences

Date 2018 Oct 16

PMID 30320223

Citations 56

Authors

Tae-Ho Lee

Steven G Greening

Taiji Ueno

David Clewett

Allison Ponzio

Michiko Sakaki

Mara Mather

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

In younger adults, arousal amplifies attentional focus to the most salient or goal-relevant information while suppressing other information. A computational model of how the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine (LC-NE) system can implement this increased selectivity under arousal and an fMRI study comparing how arousal affects younger and older adults' processing indicate that the amplification of salient stimuli and the suppression of non-salient stimuli are separate processes, with aging affecting suppression without impacting amplification under arousal. In the fMRI study, arousal increased processing of salient stimuli and decreased processing of non-salient stimuli for younger adults. In contrast, for older adults, arousal increased processing of both low and high salience stimuli, generally increasing excitatory responses to visual stimuli. Older adults also showed decline in LC functional connectivity with frontoparietal networks that coordinate attentional selectivity. Thus, among older adults, arousal increases the potential for distraction from non-salient stimuli.

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