Detecting novelty is critical to consolidate declarative memories, such as spatial contextual recognition memory. It has been shown that stored memories, when retrieved, are susceptible to modification, incorporating new information through an updating process. Catecholamine release in the hippocampal CA1 region consolidates an object location memory (OLM). This work hypothesized that spatial contextual memory updating could be changed by decreasing catecholamine release in the hippocampal CA1 terminals from the locus coeruleus (LC). In a mouse model expressing Cre-recombinase under the control of the tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) promoter, memory updating was impaired by photoinhibition of the CA1 catecholaminergic terminals from the LC (LC-CA1) but not from the ventral tegmental area (VTA-CA1). In vivo microdialysis confirmed that the extracellular concentration of both dopamine (DA) and noradrenaline (NA) decreased after photoinhibition of the LC-CA1 terminals (but not VTA-CA1) during the OLM update session. Furthermore, DA D1/D5 and beta-adrenergic receptor antagonists disrupted behavior, but only the former impaired memory updating. Finally, photoinhibition of LC-CA1 terminals suppressed long-term potentiation (LTP) induction in Schaffer’s collaterals as a plausible mechanism for memory updating. These data will help understand the underpinning mechanisms of DA in spatial contextual memory updating.

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