New frontiers in the study of memory mechanisms
Braz. J. Psychiatry (São Paulo, 1999, Impr.)
;
35(2): 173-177, April-June 2013.
Article
in English
| LILACS
| ID: lil-680893
ABSTRACT
We review recent work on three major lines of memory research: a) the possible role of the protein kinase M-zeta (PKMzeta) in memory persistence; b) the processes of “synaptic tagging and capture” in memory formation; c) the modulation of extinction learning, widely used in the psychotherapy of fear memories under the name of “exposure therapy”. PKMzeta is a form of protein kinase C (PKC) that apparently remains stimulated for months after the consolidation of a given memory. Synaptic tagging is a mechanism whereby the weak activation of one synapse can tag it with a protein so other synapses in the same cell can reactivate it by producing other proteins that bind to the tag. Extinction, once mistakenly labeled as a form of forgetting, is by itself a form of learning; through it animals can learn to inhibit a response. We now know it can be modulated by neurotransmitters or by synaptic tagging, which should enable better control of its clinical use.
Full text:
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Index:
LILACS (Americas)
Main subject:
Synapses
/
Protein Kinase C
/
Memory
Limits:
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
Braz. J. Psychiatry (São Paulo, 1999, Impr.)
Journal subject:
Psychiatry
Year:
2013
Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Brazil
Institution/Affiliation country:
Pontificia Universidade Catolica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS)/BR
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