The past, the future and the biology of memory storage

Abstract

We here briefly review a century of accomplishments in studying memory storage and delineate the two major questions that have dominated thinking in this area: the systems question of memory, which concerns where in the brain storage occurs; and the molecular question of memory, which concerns the mechanisms whereby memories are stored and maintained. We go on to consider the themes that memory research may be able to address in the 21st century. Finally, we reflect on the clinical and societal import of our increasing understanding of the mechanisms of memory, discussing possible therapeutic approaches to diseases that manifest with disruptions of learning and possible ethical implication of the ability, which is on the horizon, to ameliorate or even enhance human memory.

Intermediate and long-term memories of associative learning are differentially affected by transcriptionversustranslation blockers inLymnaea

“…ITM endures for only a few hours, while LTM survives for at least 1 day. The cellular, biochemical and molecular differences underlying these two forms of long-lasting memory are not completely understood (Squire and Kandel, 1999;Kandel and Pittenger, 1999). Most of the recent studies on formation and persistence of memory have focused on neural analogues of STM and LTM (Lechner et al, 1999;Martin et al, 2000).…”

Memory and the Experience of Time: Considerations of a Neurophysiologist

“…The CREB target genes, whose transcription is regulated during consolidation, include a set of immediate-early genes (such as C/EBP or zif268) that affect transcription of downstream genes. This results in changes, either increases or decreases, in the expression of an array of proteins involved in protein synthesis, axon growth, synaptic structure and function [7,14,15]. When synaptic strength has to be permanently potentiated (long-term potentiation, LTP), ribosomal proteins, neurotrophins, Ca 2+ -binding proteins, proteins involved in the exo-endocytic cycle of synaptic vesicles and neurotransmitter receptors become upregulated, whereas cell adhesion molecules that usually maintain synaptic stability become downregulated.…”

“…learning to ride a bike, takes time and many attempts to build up, while explicit memory, such as learning a page of history or a telephone number, is more immediate and implies a smaller effort. However, while explicit memory fades relatively rapidly in the absence of recall and refreshing, implicit memory is much more robust and may last for all our life even in the absence of further practice [7,16].…”

“…Thus, memory consolidation is abolished by blocking the synthesis of mRNAs and proteins. Consolidation is not a high fidelity process: stored memories gradually change and fade with time and only the most relevant and useful aspects are retained [7,8]. Several molecular actors and biochemical processes underlie short-term memory processes.…”

Mental causation via neuroprosthetics? A critical analysis

“…e.g. Kandel and Pittenger 1999;Squire and Knowlton 1994;Schacter 1996;Thompson and Kim 1996). In consequence it is widely agreed in the neurosciences that there is no single, unitary phenomenon of memory; the notion of "memory" might be pragmatically useful to us, but in reality it encompasses a diversity of natural phenomena each with own distinct neural characteristics.…”