Aversive memories can be weakened during human sleep via the reactivation of positive interfering memories

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Xia, Tao; Chen, Danni; Zeng, Shengzi; Yao, Ziqing; Liu, Jing; Qin, Shaozheng; Paller, Ken A.; Platas, S. Gabriela Torres; Antony, James W.; Hu, Xiaoqing
• 署名单位: University of Hong Kong; Harvard University; Harvard University Medical Affiliates; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center; Harvard University; Harvard Medical School; Hong Kong Polytechnic University; Beijing Normal University; Beijing Normal University; Northwestern University; California State University System; California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo; The University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Institute of Research & Innovation; University of Hong Kong
• 刊物名称: PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0027-12339
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2400678121
• 发表日期: 2024-07-30
• 关键词: slow-wave sleep; diffusion decision-model; targeted memory; semantic similarity; unwanted memories; fear extinction; rem-sleep; consolidation; brain; metaanalysis

摘要

Recollecting painful or traumatic experiences can be deeply troubling. Sleep may offer an opportunity to reduce such suffering. We developed a procedure to weaken older aversive memories by reactivating newer positive memories during sleep. Participants viewed 48 nonsense words each paired with a unique aversive image, followed by an overnight sleep. In the next evening, participants learned associations between half of the words and additional positive images, creating interference. During the following Upon waking, presenting cues associated with both aversive and positive images during sleep, as opposed to not presenting cues, weakened aversive memory recall while increasing positive memory intrusions. Substantiating these memory benefits, computational modeling revealed that cueing facilitated evidence accumulation toward positive affect predicted the recall of positive memories. A noninvasive sleep intervention can thus modify aversive recollection and affective responses.