Modifications in chromatin structure have been widely implicated in memory and cognition, most notably using hippocampal-dependent memory paradigms including object recognition, spatial memory, and contextual fear memory. Relatively little is known, however, about the role of chromatin-modifying enzymes in amygdala-dependent memory formation. Here, we use a combination of biochemical, behaviora...

The reactivation of a memory through retrieval can render it subject to disruption or modification through the process of memory reconsolidation. In both humans and rodents, briefly reactivating a fear memory results in effective erasure by subsequent extinction training. Here we show that a similar strategy is equally effective in the disruption of appetitive pavlovian cue-food memories. Howev...

Consolidated memories return to a labile state after the presentation of cues (reminders) associated with acquisition, followed by a period of stabilization (reconsolidation). However not all cues are equally effective in initiating the process, unpredictable cues triggered it, predictable cues do not. We hypothesize that the different effects observed by the different reminder types on memory ...

The retrieval of a memory places it into a plastic state, as a result of which the memory can be disrupted or even enhanced by experimental treatment. This phenomenon has been conceptualised within a framework of memories being reactivated and then reconsolidated in repeated rounds of cellular processing. The reconsolidation phase has been seized upon as critical for the understanding of memory...

Memory of a traumatic event becomes consolidated within hours. Intrusive memories can then flash back repeatedly into the mind's eye and cause distress. We investigated whether reconsolidation-the process during which memories become malleable when recalled-can be blocked using a cognitive task and whether such an approach can reduce these unbidden intrusions. We predicted that reconsolidation ...

Incentive learning is the process via which animals update changes in the value of rewards. Current evidence suggests that, for food rewards in rats, this learning process involves the amygdala. However, it remains unclear whether this learning undergoes protein synthesis-dependent consolidation and “reconsolidation” processes in the lateral and basal nuclei of amygdala. Accordingly, we examine...

In this article, we will review some behavioral, pharmacological and neurochemical studies from our laboratory on mice, which might contribute to our understanding of the complex processes of memory consolidation and reconsolidation. We discuss the post-training (memory consolidation) and post-reactivation (memory reconsolidation) effects of icv infusions of hemicholinium, a central inhibitor o...

Long-lasting vulnerability to drug cue-induced relapse to a drug-taking habit is a major challenge to the treatment of drug addiction. Here we show that blockade of drug memory reconsolidation, through infusion of Zif268 antisense oligodeoxynucleotides into the basolateral amygdala shortly before reexposure to a cocaine-associated stimulus but not simply to the training context, severely impair...

Mixed results with the synthetic β-adrenergic receptor blocker, propranolol, have been reported in human populations with regards to its therapeutic efficacy for PTSD treatments targeting the memory reconsolidation process. Stress alters the ability to form and maintain memory, but whether the causal neuronal mechanisms underling memory formation in PTSD are similar to normal memory is not clea...

In the mammalian brain newly acquired memories are dependent on the hippocampus for maintenance and recall, but over time these functions are taken over by the neocortex through a process called memory consolidation. Thus, whereas recent memories are likely to be disrupted in the event of hippocampal damage, older memories are less vulnerable. However, if a consolidated memory is reactivated by...