Serotonin levels influence patterns of repetition priming. |
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Authors: | Burgund, E. Darcy Marsolek, Chad J. Luciana, Monica |
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Abstract: | Repetition priming in a word-stem completion task was examined in a group of control subjects and in a group of experimental subjects under conditions of acute tryptophan depletion (T-) and tryptophan augmentation (T+). Experimental subjects ingested amino acid compounds that depleted or loaded the body with tryptophan, and word-stem completion priming performance was measured. Results indicate differential effects of T- and T+ manipulations on word-stem completion priming. In the control group, both specific-visual and amodal priming were observed. Conversely, in the T+ condition, specific-visual priming, but no amodal priming, was observed, whereas in the T- condition, amodal priming, but no specific-visual priming, was observed. The authors conclude that serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine) plays a critical role in repetition priming by helping to modulate which neural systems contribute to priming effects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
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Keywords: | serotonin levels word-stem completion task repetition priming neural systems tryptophan |
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