Download PSYCH339: Reaction Paper 2

Westerberg 1
Jacob Westerberg
Cognitive Neuroscience
Prof. Loebach
Reaction Paper 2
Transient Global Reaction Paper (TGRP)
Our discussion of amnesia and studies of memory related to it led to some interesting
points, but left me with a sense of longing. I would summarize the studies of KC in the following
manner: Our knowledge of episodic memory and its mechanisms have come a long way, but we
still do not know the entire system and it seems to be more complex than what a simple model
can describe. The shorter article on transient global amnesia (TGA) wasn’t juicy enough for my
liking. It only described two case studies and the reasoning they provided for its onset was
scathing at best. I would say that they provided enough information to come to the following
conclusion: TGA exists and does leave physical evidence (seen via fMRI), but it cannot be
predicted and the cause of onset is unknown. Scientific papers always lend to some notion of
future work that needs to be done, but these especially illustrate a neuroscience cliffhanger. In
this response, I would like to take on one of the questions of the paper and describe my train of
thought.
One of my questions in class related to TGA. I was curious as to whether or not people
though this could be a defense mechanism generated by the nervous system. The cases
presented in the paper (although few in number) all centered around a traumatic experience.
The individuals were found in high stress environments that could leave lasting psychological
“inefficiencies”. By this I mean that carrying the memory that the particular trauma happened
would make everyday functioning more difficult and therefore place what could be considered
a unnecessary burden on the person. For example, we know that the loss of a loved one can
Westerberg 2
have a negative impact on the mental health of a person. This loss will be our trauma. Now in
this situation that loss is important information in how the person will operate going forward
because that loss removed a factor from the person’s future. Now the cases presented in the
paper demonstrated experiences that could not be foreseen and without them, normal
functioning would proceed unaltered. Although grim, if we assume, for arguments sake, that
the idea that the loss of the loved one would not impact future behavior, wouldn’t lack of the
trauma memory allow for more normal behavior? It is through this convulsion that I believe
TGA can be considered a defense mechanism. In short, lack of a trauma memory that is
unforeseen and would otherwise impact future behavior only after its incidence is unnecessary
and elimination of it would be beneficial to the organism. Now the mechanism behind this is
beyond my mental meandering, but is exciting to consider, nonetheless. I can think of two
sources of the lesions seen in TGA. Either overstimulation of the network occurs and the
currents kills the neurons or some chemical released ultra-precisely puts the neurons into an
abort state and apoptosis takes effect. My money is on the former. If the synapses hold the
potential memory, then it seems likely that the neurons self-destructed. A secondary
mechanism seems unlikely in considering the focal nature of the lesion. Ethically speaking, I do
not know how a study to prove any hypothesis regarding the mechanism behind TGA could be
designed without serious ignorance of wellbeing or an astronomical amount of luck.
All in all, the papers left me wanting more. Memory is such a romantic area of
neuroscience. The idea that the events that make you, you are stored somewhere in your brain
make it all the more enticing to unravel the mechanisms. I foresee many ethical debates once
we “unlock” memory.