Cofilin overactivation improves hippocampus-dependent short-term memory

Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience

Neuroscience

Ieva Rybakovaite¹  Martha F. Olthuis¹  Frank Raven¹  Elroy L. Meijer¹  Peter Meerlo¹  Eddy A. Van der Zee¹  Iris W. Riemersma¹  Robbert Havekes² 

[1] Neurobiology Expertise Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands;null;

关键词: cofilin;    hippocampus;    memory;    synaptic plasticity;    AMPA receptor;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fnbeh.2023.1243524

 received in 2023-06-20, accepted in 2023-07-28,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Many living organisms of the animal kingdom have the fundamental ability to form and retrieve memories. Most information is initially stored as short-term memory, which is then converted to a more stable long-term memory through a process called memory consolidation. At the neuronal level, synaptic plasticity is crucial for memory storage. It includes the formation of new spines, as well as the modification of existing spines, thereby tuning and shaping synaptic efficacy. Cofilin critically contributes to memory processes as upon activation, it regulates the shape of dendritic spines by targeting actin filaments. We previously found that prolonged activation of cofilin in hippocampal neurons attenuated the formation of long-term object-location memories. Because the modification of spine shape and structure is also essential for short-term memory formation, we determined whether overactivation of hippocampal cofilin also influences the formation of short-term memories. To this end, mice were either injected with an adeno-associated virus expressing catalytically active cofilin, or an eGFP control, in the hippocampus. We show for the first time that cofilin overactivation improves short-term memory formation in the object-location memory task, without affecting anxiety-like behavior. Surprisingly, we found no effect of cofilin overactivation on AMPA receptor expression levels. Altogether, while cofilin overactivation might negatively impact the formation of long-lasting memories, it may benefit short-term plasticity.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
Copyright © 2023 Raven, Riemersma, Olthuis, Rybakovaite, Meijer, Meerlo, Van der Zee and Havekes.