Molecular mechanisms associated with non-spatial pattern separation

PEDRO BEKINSCHTEIN; LISA M. SAKSIDA; TIMOTHY J. BUSSEY

Washington DC

Congreso; Society for neuroscience annual meeting 2011; 2011

Society for Neuroscience

To allow similar episodes to be distinguished in memory, the brain must form distinct representations of these events. The computational process for making representations for similar input patterns more orthogonal to and distinct from each other has been referred to as ‘pattern separation’. It is largely unknown however, what mechanisms and molecules underlie pattern separation. We have recently developed a spatial task that allowed us to dissect the stages of memory during which pattern separation occurs and found that it takes place during the encoding/consolidation stage, but not during retrieval (1). We have now developed an analogue non-spatial object -based behavioural task in which similarity between stimuli can also be manipulated during the encoding phase. Using this new task, we analyzed the role of candidate plasticity molecules in relevant brain regions required for non-spatial pattern separation.