Humans routinely use past experience with complexity to deal with novel, challenging circumstances. This fundamental aspect of real-world behavior has received surprisingly little attention in animal studies, and the underlying brain mechanisms are unknown. The present experiments tested for transfer from past experience in rats and then used…

To obtain evidence linking long-term potentiation (LTP) and memory, we examined whether LTP induction modifies functional relationship among neurons in the rat hippocampus. In contrast to neurons in low-frequency stimulated or AP5-treated slices, LTP induction altered "functional connectivity," as defined by the degree of synchronous firing, among…

Memory deficits produced by marijuana arise partly via interaction of the psychoactive component, [Deta][superscript 9]-tetrahydrocannabinol ([Deta][superscript 9]-THC), with cannabinoid receptors in the hippocampus. Although cannabinoids acutely reduce glutamate release and block hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP), a potential substrate for…

Repetitive, unilateral stimulation of "Aplysia" induces long-term sensitization (LTS) of ipsilaterally elicited siphon-withdrawal responses. Whereas some morphological effects of training appear only on ipsilateral sensory neurons, others appear bilaterally. We tested the possibility that contralateral morphological modifications may have…

Deletions, translocations, or point mutations in the CREB-binding protein (CBP) gene have been associated with Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome; a human developmental disorder characterized by retarded growth and reduced mental function. To examine the role of CBP in memory, transgenic mice were generated in which the CaMKII[alpha] promoter drives…

We investigated the influence of the protein synthesis blocker anisomycin on contextual memory in the terrestrial snail "Helix." Prior to the training session, the behavioral responses in two contexts were similar. Two days after a session of electric shocks (5 d) in one context only, the context conditioning was observed as the significant…

Several studies support that stored memories undergo a new period of consolidation after retrieval. It is not known whether this process, termed reconsolidation, requires the same transcriptional mechanisms involved in consolidation. Increasing evidence supports the participation of the transcription factor NF-[Kappa]B in memory. This was…