The effect of strengthening decides the fate of a human declarative memory.

FERNÁNDEZ RODRIGO S; FORCATO CECILIA; PEDREIRA MARIA EUGENIA

Cordoba

Congreso; XXVII Congreso Anual de la Sociedad Argentina de Neurociencias; 2012

Sociedad Argentina de Neurociencias

It has been demonstrated that once consolidated, a memory could be rendered labile again and susceptible to disruption or facilitation upon its reactivation. Such vulnerability diminishes with the progress of time and implies a re-stabilization phase, a process known as reconsolidation. Using a list of five pairs of non-sense syllables (a cue-syllable associated with a response-syllable), we have demonstrated that a previously consolidated declarative memory could be labilized by the presentation of a specific reminder and its re-stabilization impaired by a second training. In turn, we have previous demonstrated that repeated presentations of the proper cue-reminder strengthened the memory tested 24 h after. Here we explore a) The possibility of interfering a strengthened memory with a second task b) The strengthening effect on long term persistence and c) The possibility to strengthen an older memory. We found that a) A strengthened memory by the repeated presentations of the reminder, is less susceptible to interference. b) The strengthening effect improves the persistence of memory. Finally c) Successive reactivations of an older memory do not strengthen its trace.