7T high-resolution fMRI of the human hippocampal-entorhinal circuitry

The hippocampus and the entorhinal cortex build a neural circuitry within the medial temporal lobe that is critical for the formation of long-term memory. Dysfunction of specific hippocampal and entorhinal subregions has been implicated in cognitive aging and early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. The current work aimed to investigate the functional anatomy and exercise-related plasticity of the human hippocampal-entorhinal circuitry by means of 7 Tesla ultra-high field functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The current work highlights the potential of 7T high-resolution imaging for studying memory function of the human medial temporal lobe but also points to the challenges that high-field MRI poses.