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Scientists now have a better understanding of how precise memoriesare formed thanks to research led by Prof. Jean-Claude Lacaille ofthe University of Montreal's Department of Physiology. "In terms ofhuman applications, these findings could help us to betterunderstand memory impairments in neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease ," Lacaille said. The study looks at the cells in our brains, orneurons, and how they work together as a group to form memories.Chemical receptors at neuron interconnections called synapsesenable these cells to form electrical networks that encodememories, and neurons are classified into two groups according tothe type of chemical they produce: excitatory, who producechemicals that increase communication between neurons, andinhibitory, who have the opposite effect, decreasing communication."Scientists knew that inhibitory cells enable us to refine ourmemories, to make them specific to a precise set of information,"Lacaille explained. "Our findings explain for the first time howthis happens at the molecular and cell levels." Many studies have been undertaken on excitatory neurons, but verylittle research has been done on inhibitory neurons, partly becausethey are very difficult to study. The scientists found that afactor called "CREB" plays a key role in adjusting gene expressionand the strength of synapses in inhibitory neurons. Proteins arebiochemical compounds encoded in our genes that enable cells toperform their various functions, and new proteins are necessary formemory formation. "We were able to study how synapses of inhibitoryneurons taken from rats are modified in the 24 hours following theformation of a memory," Lacaille said. "In the laboratory, wesimulated the formation of a new memory by using chemicals. We thenmeasured the electrical activity within the network of cells. Incells where we had removed CREB, we saw that the strength of theelectrical connections was much weaker. Conversely, when weincreased the presence of CREB, the connections were stronger." This new understanding of the chemical functioning of the brain mayone day lead to new treatments for disorders like Alzheimer's, asresearchers will be able to look at these synaptic mechanisms anddesign drugs that target the chemicals involved. "We knew thatproblems with synapse modifications are amongst the roots of thecognitive symptoms suffered by the victims of neurodegenerativediseases," Lacaille said. "These findings shine light on theneurobiological basis of their memory problems. However, we areunfortunately many years away from developing new treatments fromthis information." Additional References Citations. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as Multi Function Workstation , RF Beauty Equipment, and more. For more , please visit Co2 Fractional Laser Machine today!
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