Short-term memory errors are strongly associated with a drift in neural activity in the posterior parietal cortex

This dataset and analysis provide a comprehensive examination of the neural mechanisms that contribute to short-term memory (STM) errors, with a focus on the posterior parietal cortex (PPC). Understanding these errors is critical for advancing our knowledge of cognitive processes and for developing interventions for neuropsychiatric disorders characterized by memory deficits.In this study, we utilized 2-photon calcium imaging to monitor neural activity in the PPC of mice during a delayed match-to-sample task. Our findings reveal that STM errors are not primarily caused by mis-encoding sensory information during the initial sample phase. Instead, these errors are more closely associated with a drift in neural activity during the delay period, which leads to incorrect behavioral responses. This drift highlights the importance of maintaining stable neural representations in the PPC for accurate STM performance.Our data suggest that interventions aimed at stabilizing PPC activity during delay periods may help mitigate cognitive impairments in disorders such as schizophrenia, where STM deficits are prevalent. This dataset is a valuable resource for researchers investigating the neural basis of memory and the potential therapeutic targets for cognitive enhancement.