Project description
Unravelling the mechanisms of stress modulation of episodic memory
Episodic memory is the conscious recollection of a personal experience including what happened and when. Stress modulates the storage and retrieval of information but stress effects on memory have never been linked to time perception during a stressful experience. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the TIME project will develop the first model of stress effects on memory of events and time perception. An experimental approach including functional magnetic resonance imaging (measuring brain activity during a task by detecting changes associated with blood flow), pharmacological manipulation and virtual reality will shed light on the mechanisms of encoding, consolidation and retrieval of the ‘what’ and ‘when’ of stressful experiences.
Objective
Recent European data shows that stress shortens life expectancy by 2.8 years. Critically, it also affects the way we sense and remember everyday life. TIME presents a novel approach to a fundamental question in neuroscience: how stress affects our memory and perception of experience over time? Previous research disregarded the role of specific neuromodulators, studied stress effects selectively for a certain memory stage and used isolated stimuli rather than complex events in naturalistic contexts. Moreover, stress effects on memory have never been linked to time perception during a stressful experience. TIME addresses these critical gaps with an innovative combination of functional magnetic resonance (fMRI), a pharmacological manipulation and a novel experimental paradigm in virtual reality (VR). The project aims at building the first comprehensive model of stress effects on memory of events and perception of time. First, we hypothesize that a stress hormone cortisol released across all memory stages (encoding, consolidation, retrieval) affects our ability to separate overlapping episodes and segment our experience into events (WP1,WP2). Second, we hypothesize that a higher sampling rate of sensory input may result in a distorted sense of time and influence subsequent temporal memory (WP3). Involved mechanisms will be measured and verified at the behavioural, physiological (WP1,WP2,WP3), neural (WP2) and perceptual (WP3) level. I will carry out the research at CISA, Geneva (outgoing phase, supervised by prof. Rimmele, prof. Vuilleumier) and SISSA, Trieste (return phase, supervised by prof. Bueti), with short visits at Columbia University, NYC (prof. Davachi). Together, these world-leading centers offer a unique environment to make the project realistically achievable by bridging the gaps between neuropharmacology, neuroscience, psychophysics and psychophysiology. TIME will move basic and applied science forward, boost my academic or non-academic career prospects.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences neurobiology cognitive neuroscience
- natural sciences computer and information sciences software software applications virtual reality
You need to log in or register to use this function
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
-
HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
See all projects funded under this programme
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-GF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
See all projects funded under this funding scheme
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2021-PF-01
See all projects funded under this callCoordinator
Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
34136 Trieste
Italy
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.