PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Darby M. Losey
AU  - Jay A. Hennig
AU  - Emily R. Oby
AU  - Matthew D. Golub
AU  - Patrick T. Sadtler
AU  - Kristin M. Quick
AU  - Stephen I. Ryu
AU  - Elizabeth C. Tyler-Kabara
AU  - Aaron P. Batista
AU  - Byron M. Yu
AU  - Steven M. Chase
TI  - Learning alters neural activity to simultaneously support memory and action
AID  - 10.1101/2022.07.05.498856
DP  - 2022 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 2022.07.05.498856
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2022/07/06/2022.07.05.498856.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2022/07/06/2022.07.05.498856.full
AB  - How are we able to learn new behaviors without disrupting previously learned ones? To understand how the brain achieves this, we used a brain-computer interface (BCI) learning paradigm, which enables us to detect the presence of a memory of one behavior while performing another. We found that learning to use a new BCI map altered the neural activity that monkeys produced when they returned to using a familiar BCI map, in a way that was specific to the learning experience. That is, learning left a “memory trace.” This memory trace co-existed with proficient performance under the familiar map, primarily by altering dimensions of neural activity that did not impact behavior. Such a memory trace could provide the neural underpinning for the joint learning of multiple motor behaviors without interference.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.