Alison R Preston
Professor — Ph.D., Stanford University
Dr. A. Wilson Nolle and Sir Raghunath P. Mahendroo Professor | Interim Vice President for Research

Contact
- E-mail: apreston@utexas.edu
- Phone: (512) 475-7255
- Office: NHB 3.352
- Campus Mail Code: C7000
Interests
Cognitive neuroscience of memory, memory development in children and adolescence, functional neuroimaging
Biography
Our memories are the essence of who we are. The skills we have acquired, the knowledge we have amassed, and the personal experiences we have had define us as individuals. The overarching goal of work in the Preston Lab is to understand and manipulate the neural mechanisms that support learning and memory in the human brain. Our research focuses primarily on how interactions between the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex promote formation of new knowledge. In addition to exploring how hippocampal—prefrontal networks function in adulthood, we are interested in how development of these structures through childhood and adolescence supports not only gains in memory, but also underlies improvements in problem solving, creativity, reasoning, and planning abilities during development. To address the core questions of our research program, the lab employs a number of techniques on the leading edge of human neuroscience, including high-resolution functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), neurostimulation, intracranial recordings in human patients, and computational modeling. These techniques provide unprecedented leverage to determine not only where particular cognitive processes are instantiated in the brain, but also the precise nature of the representations and computations that give rise to them.
Courses
PSY 394U • Grant Wrtg Behavior/Bio Sci
43385 • Fall 2017
Meets W 1:00PM-4:00PM SEA 1.332
PSY 394U • Grant Wrtg Behavior/Bio Sci
43405 • Fall 2016
Meets W 1:00PM-4:00PM SEA 1.332
PSY 394U • Curr Tpcs In Cognitiv Neurosci
42535 • Fall 2015
Meets F 12:00PM-3:00PM SEA 4.244
PSY 341K • Cognitive Neuroscience
44050 • Spring 2014
Meets TTH 12:30PM-2:00PM SEA 2.108
Wr
PSY 341K • Cognitive Neuroscience
43400 • Spring 2013
Meets TTH 12:30PM-2:00PM SEA 2.108
Wr
PSY 341K • Cognitive Neuroscience
43236 • Spring 2012
Meets TTH 12:30PM-2:00PM SEA 2.108
Wr
PSY 341K • Cognitive Neuroscience
43750 • Spring 2011
Meets TTH 12:30PM-2:00PM SEA 2.108
Wr
C2
PSY 341K • Cognitive Neuroscience-W
43905 • Spring 2010
Meets TTH 12:30PM-2:00PM SEA 2.108
C2
PSY 341K • Cognitive Neuroscience-W
43175 • Spring 2009
Meets TTH 12:30PM-2:00PM SEA 2.108
C2
Publications
Representative publications
Mack, M.L., Preston, A.R., & Love, B.C. (2020). Ventromedial prefrontal cortex compression during concept learning. Nature Communications, 11, 46.
Pudhiyidath, A., Roome, H.E., Coughlin, C., Nguyen, K.V., & Preston, A.R. (2020). Developmental differences in temporal schema acquisition impact reasoning decisions. Cognitive Neuropsychology.
Schlichting, M.L., Mack, M.L., Guarino, K.F., & Preston, A.R. (2019). Comparison of semi-automated hippocampal subfield segmentation methods in a pediatric sample. Neuroimage, 191, 49-67.
Mack, M.L., Love, B.C., & Preston, A.R. (2018). Building concepts one episode at a time: The hippocampus and concept formation. Neuroscience Letters, 680, 31-38.
Morton, N.W., Sherrill, K.R., & Preston, A.R. (2017). Memory integration constructs maps of space, time, and concepts. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 17, 161-168.
Schlichting, M.L., Guarino, K.F., Schapiro, A.C., Turk-Browne, N.B., & Preston, A.R. (2017). Hippocampal structure predicts statistical learning and associative inference abilities during development. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 29(1): 37-51.
Zeithamova, D., & Preston, A.R. (2017). Temporal proximity promotes integration of overlapping events. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 29(8), 1311-1323.
Mack, M.L., Love, B.C., & Preston, A.R. (2016). Dynamic updating of hippocampal conceptual representations through interactions with prefrontal cortex. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, 113(46), 13203-13208.
Schlichting, M.L., & Preston, A.R. (2016). Hippocampal-medial prefrontal circuit supports memory updating during learning and post-encoding rest. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 134, 91-106.
Schlichting, M.L., Mumford, J.A., & Preston, A.R. (2015). Learning-related representational changes reveal dissociable integration and separation signatures in hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. Nature Communications, 6, 8151.
Schlichting, M.L., & Preston, A.R. (2015). Memory integration: Neural mechanisms and implications for behavior. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 1, 1-8.
Schlichting, M.L., & Preston, A.R. (2014). Memory reactivation during rest supports upcoming learning of related content. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, 111(44), 15845-50.
Mack, M.L., Preston, A.R., & Love, B.C. (2013). Decoding the brain’s algorithm for categorization from its neural implementation. Current Biology, 23(20), 2023-7.
Preston, A.R., & Eichenbaum, H. (2013). Interplay of the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex in memory. Current Biology, 23(17), R764-R773.
Zeithamova, D., Dominick, A.L., & Preston, A.R. (2012). Hippocampal and ventral medial prefrontal activation during retrieval-mediated learning supports novel inference. Neuron, 75(1), 168-179.