Dopamine: the chemical gatekeeper of your working memory

In a previous blog, we discussed the concept of working memory gating: the brain’s mechanism for deciding which information enters or exits our mental workspace. As described there, a deep part of our brain, called the basal ganglia, and the front part, called the prefrontal cortex (PFC), work together to open and close these gates, deciding which information is useful for guiding our behavior. But how exactly does this work?

Studies show that dopamine, a chemical messenger in the brain, helps to open and close the gates to working memory. 

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Post by Helena Olraun at Donders Wonders

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