Functional neuroimaging correlates of functional amnesia

Especially in the field of memory encoding and retrieval, the results of fu nctional neuroimaging have provided new insights in anatomico-functional in teractions. In particular this holds true for the role of the prefrontal co rtex in mnestic information processing, for the contribution and participat ion of the two hemispheres in various processes of information transmission , and for views on disturbed information processing after organically obvio us and so-called psychogenic forms of memory impairments. This report parti cularly stresses the insights obtained by functional neuroimaging for proba bly environmentally triggered deficiencies in memory processing and discuss es possible subtle neuroanatomical correlates of functional amnesias. It is especially emphasised that stress conditions and depressive states may mod ify the release of steroids (glucocorticoids) and transmitter agonists at t he brain level with the consequence of selective memory disturbances which may manifest as a "mnestic block syndrome".