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Thursday March 20, 2025
The study funded by NIH uses advanced imaging techniques to reconstruct the underlying characteristics and memory in the brain of the mouse.
What
In a study supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the researchers revealed the structural foundations of memory formation through a large network of neurons in the brain of the mouse. This work highlights the fundamentally flexible nature of the way in which memories are made, detailing changes linked to learning at cellular and subcellular levels with unprecedented resolution. Understanding this flexibility can help explain why memory and learning processes are sometimes bad.
The results, published in Sciencehas shown that the neurons attributed to a trace of memory reorganized their connections to other neurons via an atypical type of connection called Multi-Synaptic button. In a multi-synaptic button, the neuron axone relaying the signal with information contacts several neurons that receive the signal. According to the researchers, multi-synaptic buttons can allow cellular flexibility in the coding of information observed in previous research.
Researchers also found that the neurons involved in memory training were not preferentially linked to each other. This observation calls into question the idea that “the neurons that draw together have cuddled together”, as predicted by a traditional theory of learning.
In addition, the researchers observed that neurons were allocated to a trace of reorganized memory, certain intracellular structures which provide energy and support communication and plasticity in neural connections. These neurons also had improved interactions with support cells called astrocytes.
Using a combination of advanced genetic tools, 3D electron microscopy and artificial intelligence, scientists of the researchers Scripps Marco Uytiepo, Anton Maximov, Ph.D., and colleagues have rebuilt a wiring diagram of the neurons involved in learning and identified structural changes to these neurons and their connections to cell levels and Sous-cellular.
To examine the structural characteristics associated with learning, the researchers exposed mice to a packaging task and examined the region of the brain hippocampus about 1 week later. They selected this moment because it happens after memories are first coded, but before being reorganized for long -term storage. Using advanced genetic techniques, researchers permanently marked subsets of hippocampal neurons activated during learning, which allowed reliable identification. They then used 3D electron microscopy and artificial intelligence algorithms to produce reconstructions at the nanometric scale of excitative neural networks involved in learning.
This study offers a complete view of the structural characteristics of memory formation in a brain region. He also raises new questions for further exploration. Future studies will be crucial to determine whether similar mechanisms work on different moments and neural circuits. In addition, a more in-depth study on the molecular composition of multi-synaptic butons is necessary to determine their specific role in memory and other cognitive processes.
Research was supported by the funding of the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Cerebral Vascular Accidents and NIH Brain research by making innovative neurotechnologies progress® Initiative or The Brain Initiative®.
WHO
Jamie Driscoll, National Institute of Mental Health and Dr. Eunyoung Kim, National Institute of Mental Health
Study
UytiePo, M., Zhu, Y., Bushhong, E., Chou, K., Polli, FS, Zhao, E., Kim, K.-Y., Luu, D., Chang, L., Yang, D., MA, TC, Kim, My,… Maximov, A. (2025). Synaptic architecture of a memory of memory in the hippocampus of the mouse. Science. http://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/Science.Ado8316
Brain research by progressing innovative neurotechnologies® and the Brain Initiative® are recorded brands of HHS.
About the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH): the NIMH mission is to transform the understanding and treatment of mental illnesses through basic and clinical research, paving the way for prevention, recovery and healing. For more information, visit the Nimh website.
On the National Institutes of Health (NIH):The NIH, the country’s medical research agency, includes 27 institutes and centers and is a component of the American department of health and social services. NIH is the main federal agency that leads and supports basic, clinical and translational medical research, and studies the causes, treatments and remedies for common and rare diseases. For more information on NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.
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