A Memory Prosthesis Could Restore Memory in People with Damaged Brains

upstart writes:

Brain electrodes designed to mimic the hippocampus appear to boost the encoding of memories-and are twice as effective in people with poor memory:

A unique form of brain stimulation appears to boost people's ability to remember new information-by mimicking the way our brains create memories.

The "memory prosthesis," which involves inserting an electrode deep into the brain, also seems to work in people with memory disorders-and is even more effective in people who had poor memory to begin with, according to new research. In the future, more advanced versions of the memory prosthesis could help people with memory loss due to brain injuries or as a result of aging or degenerative diseases like Alzheimer's, say the researchers behind the work.

It works by copying what happens in the hippocampus-a seahorse-shaped region deep in the brain that plays a crucial role in memory. The brain structure not only helps us form short-term memories but also appears to direct memories to other regions for long-term storage.

[...] Song, Hampson, and their colleagues, who published their findings in the journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience in July, hope that their memory prosthesis could one day be widely used to restore memory in people with memory disorders.

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