Reconsolidation of a long-term memory (LTM) in the snail Lymnaea stagnalis can be disrupted by cooling, an RNA synthesis blocker (actinomycin D), and by specifically ablating the soma of a cell we know is a site of LTM consolidation (right pedal dorsal 1, RPeD1). Aerial respiratory behavior was conditioned operantly by applying a gentle tactile stimulus to the pneumostome area (the respiratory ...

Reconsolidation is observed when a consolidated stable memory is recalled, which renders it transiently labile and requires re-stabilization. Motor memory reconsolidation has previously been demonstrated using a three-day design: on day 1 the memory is encoded, on day 2 it is reactivated and experimentally manipulated, and on day 3 memory strength is tested. The aim of the current study is to d...

During fear conditioning, animals learn an association between a previously neutral or conditioned stimulus (CS) and an aversive or unconditioned stimulus (US). Subsequent reexposure to the CS alone triggers two competing processes. Brief reexposure to the CS initiates reconsolidation processes that serve to stabilize or maintain the original CS-US memory. In contrast, more prolonged reexposure...

Reactivation of memories may render them labile and subject to disruption by amnestic drugs thus reducing their impact on future behavior, but whether it is possible with well-established memories is not known. Here we examined the effect of two amnestic agents on reconsolidation of a conditioned place preference (CPP) for morphine when memory strength and memory age were varied. In a three-com...

In reconsolidation studies, memories are typically retrieved by an exposure to a single conditioned stimulus (CS). We have previously demonstrated that reconsolidation processes are CS-selective, suggesting that memories retrieved by the CS exposure are discrete and reconsolidate separately. Here, using a compound stimulus in which two distinct CSs are concomitantly paired with the same aversiv...

Previously consolidated memories have the potential to enter a state of lability upon memory recall, during which time the memory can be altered before undergoing an additional consolidation-like process and being stored again as a long-term memory. Blocking reconsolidation of aberrant memories has been proposed as a potential treatment for psychiatric disorders including addiction. Here we inv...

The temporal dynamics of consolidation and reconsolidation of taste/odor aversion memory are evaluated during rat pup growth at postnatal days 3, 10, and 18. This is assessed through the temporal gradients of efficacy of a protein synthesis inhibitor (anisomycin) in inducing amnesia after either acquisition (consolidation) or reactivation (reconsolidation). The results show a progressive reduct...