Reactivation-Dependent Amnesia for Contextual Fear Memories: Evidence for Publication Bias

Schroyens, Natalie; Sigwald, Eric L.; Noortgate, Wim Van den; Beckers, Tom; Luyten, Laura

doi:10.1523/eneuro.0108-20.2020

Cited by 16 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 58 publications

(74 reference statements)

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“…Although we found that intra-hippocampal rapamycin impaired reconsolidation of a covertly retrieved context memory, it is possible that this reflects a retrieval deficit, as opposed to memory erasure. Indeed, recent reports have challenged the idea that contextual and auditory fear memories in rats undergo protein synthesis-dependent reconsolidation 33 , 34 . Indeed, we observed spared freezing in rapamycin-treated rats during the early portions of the context test in the current study ( Fig.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Covert capture and attenuation of a hippocampus-dependent fear memory

et al. 2021

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Reconsolidation may be a viable therapeutic target to inhibit pathological fear memories. In the clinic, incidental or imaginal reminders are used to safely retrieve traumatic memories of experiences that occurred elsewhere. However, it is unknown whether indirectly retrieved traumatic memories are sensitive to disruption. Here we used a backward conditioning procedure to indirectly retrieve and manipulate a hippocampus-dependent contextual fear engram in male rats. We show that conditioned freezing to a backward conditioned stimulus is mediated by fear to the conditioning context, activates hippocampal ensembles that can be covertly captured and chemogenetically activated to drive fear, and is impaired by post-retrieval protein synthesis inhibition. These results reveal that indirectly retrieved contextual fear memories reactivate hippocampal ensembles and undergo protein synthesis-dependent reconsolidation. Clinical interventions that rely on indirect retrieval of traumatic memories, such as imaginal exposure, may open a window for editing or erasing neural representations that drive pathological fear.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Covert capture and attenuation of a hippocampus-dependent fear memory

et al. 2021

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“…The reporting of null findings is important and helps avoid publication bias (cf. Chalkia, Van Oudenhove, & Beckers, 2020 ; Schroyens, Sigwald, Van den Noortgate, Beckers, & Luyten, 2021 , in the context of the literature on fear and reconsolidation in humans). In so doing it is also important is to spell out minor but potentially important differences in procedure between this and the original study, as we have done here.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating the frequency of intrusive memories after 24 hours using a visuospatial interference intervention: a follow-up and extension

Brennen

Blix

Nissen

et al. 2021

European Journal of Psychotraumatology

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Background There is a need for effective, low-cost, readily available measures for reducing trauma symptoms so that people exposed to potentially traumatic events can receive help more quickly. A previous study reported that performing an intervention including a visuospatial task shortly after a reminder of a series of unpleasant film clips seen 24 hours earlier reduced the number of intrusive memories over the following week. Objective This study reports a follow-up and extension of the earlier promising finding. The prediction was that participants performing the visuospatial task immediately after the reminder would report fewer intrusions compared to three other groups who 1) performed no task, and novel conditions who 2) performed the task before the reminder, and 3) performed the task 90 minutes after the reminder. Method A trauma-analogue method was used, where students ( N = 200) watched a series of short films with unpleasant material. Over the following week, they were asked to write down any intrusive memories they experienced in a diary. On the second day they returned to the lab and saw static reminders of the films. They were then randomly allocated to condition, recorded intrusive memories over the following days and returned to the lab for final testing on Day 8. Results A total of 49 participants did not report any intrusions and were excluded from the analyses. Two more participants were excluded as outliers, leaving a final sample of n = 149. Despite using largely the same materials as the original study there were no significant differences in the number of intrusive memories between the four groups post intervention. Conclusions Possible explanations include the effect not being as robust as expected, a low number of intrusions across groups, baseline differences in attention, and minor but potentially important differences in procedure between this and the original study.

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“…The vast majority of studies on memory reconsolidation in animal models have been conducted on Pavlovian fear conditioning memories, where a context or a cue (typically a tone or a light) is paired with a foot shock, and subsequently the memory is retrieved by the presentation of the context/cue alone [9,10]. Despite this relatively standard and simple classical conditioning paradigm, methodological variability might account for inconsistent findings in the fear-memories reconsolidation field, e.g., [61,89,90]. In drug-related studies on memory reconsolidation, methodological variability is potentially even greater, due to the mosaic nature of these studies.…”

Section: Methodological Standardization and Replicability Of Effectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This pattern is another reason for the inconsistency and high methodological variability. Critically, it might also reflect a publication bias, where negative results are not published, as suggested for reconsolidation studies in other types of memories [90].…”

Section: Standardization Of Protocols and Parametersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Targeting the Reconsolidation of Licit Drug Memories to Prevent Relapse: Focus on Alcohol and Nicotine

Barak

Goltseker

2021

IJMS

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Alcohol and nicotine are widely abused legal substances worldwide. Relapse to alcohol or tobacco seeking and consumption after abstinence is a major clinical challenge, and is often evoked by cue-induced craving. Therefore, disruption of the memory for the cue–drug association is expected to suppress relapse. Memories have been postulated to become labile shortly after their retrieval, during a “memory reconsolidation” process. Interference with the reconsolidation of drug-associated memories has been suggested as a possible strategy to reduce or even prevent cue-induced craving and relapse. Here, we surveyed the growing body of studies in animal models and in humans assessing the effectiveness of pharmacological or behavioral manipulations in reducing relapse by interfering with the reconsolidation of alcohol and nicotine/tobacco memories. Our review points to the potential of targeting the reconsolidation of these memories as a strategy to suppress relapse to alcohol drinking and tobacco smoking. However, we discuss several critical limitations and boundary conditions, which should be considered to improve the consistency and replicability in the field, and for development of an efficient reconsolidation-based relapse-prevention therapy.

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Reactivation-Dependent Amnesia for Contextual Fear Memories: Evidence for Publication Bias

Cited by 16 publications

References 58 publications

Covert capture and attenuation of a hippocampus-dependent fear memory

Covert capture and attenuation of a hippocampus-dependent fear memory

Investigating the frequency of intrusive memories after 24 hours using a visuospatial interference intervention: a follow-up and extension

Targeting the Reconsolidation of Licit Drug Memories to Prevent Relapse: Focus on Alcohol and Nicotine

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