The brain decade in debate: I. Neurobiology of learning and memory

This article is a transcription of an electronic symposium in which some active researchers were invited by the Brazilian Society for Neuroscience and Behavior (SBNeC) to discuss the last decade's advances in neurobiology of learning and memory. The way different parts of the brain are recruited during the storage of different kinds of memory (e.g., short-term vs long-term memory, declarative vs procedural memory) and even the property of these divisions were discussed. It was pointed out that the brain does not really store memories, but stores traces of information that are later used to create memories, not always expressing a completely veridical picture of the past experienced reality. To perform this process different parts of the brain act as important nodes of the neural network that encode, store and retrieve the information that will be used to create memories. Some of the brain regions are recognizably active during the activation of short-term working memory (e.g., prefrontal cortex), or the storage of information retrieved as long-term explicit memories (e.g., hippocampus and related cortical areas) or the modulation of the storage of memories related to emotional events (e.g., amygdala). This does not mean that there is a separate neural structure completely supporting the storage of each kind of memory but means that these memories critically depend on the functioning of these neural structures. The current view is that there is no sense in talking about hippocampus-based or amygdala-based memory since this implies that there is a one-to-one correspondence. The present question to be solved is how systems interact in memory. The pertinence of attributing a critical role to cellular processes like synaptic tagging and protein kinase A activation to explain the memory storage processes at the cellular level was also discussed.University of Bristol Department of PsychologyUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Departamento de PsicobiologiaUniversity of California Center for Neurobiology of Learning and Memory Department of Neurobiology and BehaviorUniversity of California Neuropsychiatric InstituteUniversidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul Instituto de Biociências Departamento de BioquímicaUniversity of Edinburgh Department of NeuroscienceUniversity of Arizona Department of PsychologyNorthwestern UniversityUniversidade de São Paulo Instituto de Biociências Departamento de FisiologiaUniversidade Federal do Paraná Departamento de Farmacologia Laboratório de Fisiologia e Farmacologia do Sistema Nervoso CentralUNIFESP, Depto. de PsicobiologiaSciEL

Brain and Spinal Cord Interaction: Protective Effects of Exercise Prior to Spinal Cord Injury

We have investigated the effects of a spinal cord injury on the brain and spinal cord, and whether exercise provided before the injury could organize a protective reaction across the neuroaxis. Animals were exposed to 21 days of voluntary exercise, followed by a full spinal transection (T7–T9) and sacrificed two days later. Here we show that the effects of spinal cord injury go beyond the spinal cord itself and influence the molecular substrates of synaptic plasticity and learning in the brain. The injury reduced BDNF levels in the hippocampus in conjunction with the activated forms of p-synapsin I, p-CREB and p-CaMK II, while exercise prior to injury prevented these reductions. Similar effects of the injury were observed in the lumbar enlargement region of the spinal cord, where exercise prevented the reductions in BDNF, and p-CREB. Furthermore, the response of the hippocampus to the spinal lesion appeared to be coordinated to that of the spinal cord, as evidenced by corresponding injury-related changes in BDNF levels in the brain and spinal cord. These results provide an indication for the increased vulnerability of brain centers after spinal cord injury. These findings also imply that the level of chronic activity prior to a spinal cord injury could determine the level of sensory-motor and cognitive recovery following the injury. In particular, exercise prior to the injury onset appears to foster protective mechanisms in the brain and spinal cord

Administration of the GABAA receptor antagonist picrotoxin into rat supramammillary nucleus induces c-Fos in reward-related brain structures. Supramammillary picrotoxin and c-Fos expression

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Picrotoxin blocks GABA_Areceptors, whose activation typically inhibits neuronal firing activity. We recently found that rats learn to selectively self-administer picrotoxin or bicuculline, another GABA_Areceptor antagonist, into the supramammillary nucleus (SuM), a posterior hypothalamic structure localized anterior to the ventral tegmental area. Other drugs such as nicotine or the excitatory amino acid AMPA are also self-administered into the SuM. The SuM appears to be functionally linked with the mesolimbic dopamine system and is closely connected with other brain structures that are implicated in motivational processes, including the prefrontal cortex, septal area, preoptic area, lateral hypothalamic area and dorsal raphe nucleus. Here, we hypothesized that these brain structures are activated by picrotoxin injections into the SuM.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Picrotoxin administration into the SuM markedly facilitated locomotion and rearing. Further, it increased c-Fos expression in this region, suggesting blockade of tonic inhibition and thus the disinhibition of local neurons. This manipulation also increased c-Fos expression in structures including the ventral tegmental area, medial shell of the nucleus accumbens, medial prefrontal cortex, septal area, preoptic area, lateral hypothalamic area and dorsal raphe nucleus.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Picrotoxin administration into the SuM appears to disinhibit local neurons and recruits activation of brain structures associated with motivational processes, including the mesolimbic dopamine system, prefrontal cortex, septal area, preoptic area, lateral hypothalamic area and dorsal raphe nucleus. These regions may be involved in mediating positive motivational effects triggered by intra-SuM picrotoxin.</p

The impact of hyperactivity and leptin on recovery from anorexia nervosa

In anorexia nervosa (AN), hyperactivity is observed in about 80% of patients and has been associated with low leptin levels in the acute stage of AN and in anorexia animal models. To further understand the importance of this correlation in AN, we investigated the relationship between hypoleptinaemia and hyperactivity in AN patients longitudinally and assessed their predictive value for recovery

Experience-Dependent Plasticity and Modulation of Growth Regulatory Molecules at Central Synapses

Structural remodeling or repair of neural circuits depends on the balance between intrinsic neuronal properties and regulatory cues present in the surrounding microenvironment. These processes are also influenced by experience, but it is still unclear how external stimuli modulate growth-regulatory mechanisms in the central nervous system. We asked whether environmental stimulation promotes neuronal plasticity by modifying the expression of growth-inhibitory molecules, specifically those of the extracellular matrix. We examined the effects of an enriched environment on neuritic remodeling and modulation of perineuronal nets in the deep cerebellar nuclei of adult mice. Perineuronal nets are meshworks of extracellular matrix that enwrap the neuronal perikaryon and restrict plasticity in the adult CNS. We found that exposure to an enriched environment induces significant morphological changes of Purkinje and precerebellar axon terminals in the cerebellar nuclei, accompanied by a conspicuous reduction of perineuronal nets. In the animals reared in an enriched environment, cerebellar nuclear neurons show decreased expression of mRNAs coding for key matrix components (as shown by real time PCR experiments), and enhanced activity of matrix degrading enzymes (matrix metalloproteinases 2 and 9), which was assessed by in situ zymography. Accordingly, we found that in mutant mice lacking a crucial perineuronal net component, cartilage link protein 1, perineuronal nets around cerebellar neurons are disrupted and plasticity of Purkinje cell terminal is enhanced. Moreover, all the effects of environmental stimulation are amplified if the afferent Purkinje axons are endowed with enhanced intrinsic growth capabilities, induced by overexpression of GAP-43. Our observations show that the maintenance and growth-inhibitory function of perineuronal nets are regulated by a dynamic interplay between pre- and postsynaptic neurons. External stimuli act on this interaction and shift the balance between synthesis and removal of matrix components in order to facilitate neuritic growth by locally dampening the activity of inhibitory cues

Heterosynaptic plasticity in the neocortex

Ongoing learning continuously shapes the distribution of neurons’ synaptic weights in a system with plastic synapses. Plasticity may change the weights of synapses that were active during the induction—homosynaptic changes, but also may change synapses not active during the induction—heterosynaptic changes. Here we will argue, that heterosynaptic and homosynaptic plasticity are complementary processes, and that heterosynaptic plasticity might accompany homosynaptic plasticity induced by typical pairing protocols. Synapses are not uniform in their susceptibility for plastic changes, but have predispositions to undergo potentiation or depression, or not to change. Predisposition is one of the factors determining the direction and magnitude of homo- and heterosynaptic changes. Heterosynaptic changes which take place according to predispositions for plasticity may provide a useful mechanism(s) for homeostasis of neurons’ synaptic weights and extending the lifetime of memory traces during ongoing learning in neuronal networks

Impaired Sprouting and Axonal Atrophy in Cerebellar Climbing Fibres following In Vivo Silencing of the Growth-Associated Protein GAP-43

The adult mammalian central nervous system has a limited ability to establish new connections and to recover from traumatic or degenerative events. The olivo-cerebellar network represents an excellent model to investigate neuroprotection and repair in the brain during adulthood, due to its high plasticity and ordered synaptic organization. To shed light on the molecular mechanisms involved in these events, we focused on the growth-associated protein GAP-43 (also known as B-50 or neuromodulin). During development, this protein plays a crucial role in growth and in branch formation of neurites, while in the adult it is only expressed in a few brain regions, including the inferior olive (IO) where climbing fibres (CFs) originate. Following axotomy GAP-43 is usually up-regulated in association with regeneration. Here we describe an in vivo lentiviral-mediated gene silencing approach, used for the first time in the olivo-cerebellar system, to efficiently and specifically downregulate GAP-43 in rodents CFs. We show that lack of GAP-43 causes an atrophy of the CF in non-traumatic conditions, consisting in a decrease of its length, branching and number of synaptic boutons. We also investigated CF regenerative ability by inducing a subtotal lesion of the IO. Noteworthy, surviving CFs lacking GAP-43 were largely unable to sprout on surrounding Purkinje cells. Collectively, our results demonstrate that GAP-43 is essential both to maintain CFs structure in non-traumatic condition and to promote sprouting after partial lesion of the IO

Proteolysis of proBDNF Is a Key Regulator in the Formation of Memory

It is essential to understand the molecular processes underlying long-term memory to provide therapeutic targets of aberrant memory that produce pathological behaviour in humans. Under conditions of recall, fully-consolidated memories can undergo reconsolidation or extinction. These retrieval-mediated memory processes may rely on distinct molecular processes. The cellular mechanisms initiating the signature molecular events are not known. Using infusions of protein synthesis inhibitors, antisense oligonucleotide targeting brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) mRNA or tPA-STOP (an inhibitor of the proteolysis of BDNF protein) into the hippocampus of the awake rat, we show that acquisition and extinction of contextual fear memory depended on the increased and decreased proteolysis of proBDNF (precursor BDNF) in the hippocampus, respectively. Conditions of retrieval that are known to initiate the reconsolidation of contextual fear memory, a BDNF-independent memory process, were not correlated with altered proBDNF cleavage. Thus, the processing of BDNF was associated with the acquisition of new information and the updating of information about a salient stimulus. Furthermore, the differential requirement for the processing of proBDNF by tPA in distinct memory processes suggest that the molecular events actively engaged to support the storage and/or the successful retrieval of memory depends on the integration of ongoing experience with past learning

Optogenetic Mimicry of the Transient Activation of Dopamine Neurons by Natural Reward Is Sufficient for Operant Reinforcement

Activation of dopamine receptors in forebrain regions, for minutes or longer, is known to be sufficient for positive reinforcement of stimuli and actions. However, the firing rate of dopamine neurons is increased for only about 200 milliseconds following natural reward events that are better than expected, a response which has been described as a “reward prediction error” (RPE). Although RPE drives reinforcement learning (RL) in computational models, it has not been possible to directly test whether the transient dopamine signal actually drives RL. Here we have performed optical stimulation of genetically targeted ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopamine neurons expressing Channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) in mice. We mimicked the transient activation of dopamine neurons that occurs in response to natural reward by applying a light pulse of 200 ms in VTA. When a single light pulse followed each self-initiated nose poke, it was sufficient in itself to cause operant reinforcement. Furthermore, when optical stimulation was delivered in separate sessions according to a predetermined pattern, it increased locomotion and contralateral rotations, behaviors that are known to result from activation of dopamine neurons. All three of the optically induced operant and locomotor behaviors were tightly correlated with the number of VTA dopamine neurons that expressed ChR2, providing additional evidence that the behavioral responses were caused by activation of dopamine neurons. These results provide strong evidence that the transient activation of dopamine neurons provides a functional reward signal that drives learning, in support of RL theories of dopamine function