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Study reveals how practice forms new memory pathways in the brain

by Medical Xpress
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The effects of optogenetic inhibition on WM task performance. a, The experimental set-up. b, The delayed-association WM task trial types; licking was assessed during the 3 s choice period, with early- and late-delays periods noted. c, Learning progress across eight sessions, measured on the basis of the percentage of correct responses. d, Learning session example, with licks marked. e, Photoinhibition effect during different task epochs on the animal’s performance (fourth second of the delay period, P = 0.009; fifth second of the delay period, P = 0.005; second odor, P = 0.0004; first second of choice epoch, P = 0.0001). Statistical analysis was performed using paired t-tests. f, Photoinhibition of the M2 during the last 2 s of the delay period across the first 7 days of training impairs task performance. n = 4 (stGtACR2-expressing) and n = 4 (mCherry-expressing) mice. The P values determined using two-sample t-tests for sessions 1–10 were as follows: P1 = 0.8425, P2 = 0.4610, P3 = 0.6904, P4 = 0.0724, P5 = 0.0463, P6 = 0.0146, P7 = 0.0161, P8 = 0.7065, P9 = 0.6530 and P10 = 0.7955. For c, e and f, data are mean ± s.e.m. NS, not significant; *P ≤ 0.05, **P ≤ 0.01, ***P ≤ 0.001, ****P ≤ 0.0001. Credit: Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07425-w

A new study led by UCLA Health has shown that repetitive practice not only is helpful in improving skills but also leads to profound changes in the brain’s memory pathways.

The research, published in the journal Nature and co-led by Rockefeller University, sought to unravel how the brain’s ability to retain and process information, known as working memory, improves through training.

To test this, researchers tasked with identifying and recalling a sequence of odors over the course of two weeks. Researchers then tracked in the animals as they practiced the task by using a novel, custom-built microscope to image cellular activity in up to 73,000 neurons simultaneously throughout the cortex.

The study revealed a transformation in the working memory circuits located in the secondary motor cortex as the mice repeated the task through time. As the mice were first learning the task, the memory representations were unstable. However, after repeatedly practicing the task, the memory patterns began to solidify or “crystallize,” said corresponding author and UCLA Health neurologist Dr. Peyman Golshani.

“If one imagines that each neuron in the brain is sounding a different note, the melody that the brain is generating when it is doing the task was changing from day to day, but then became more and more refined and similar as animals kept practicing the task,” Golshani said.

These changes give insights into why performance becomes more accurate and automatic following repetitive practice.

“This insight not only advances our understanding of learning and memory but also has implications for addressing -related disorders,” Golshani said.

The work was performed by Dr. Arash Bellafard, project scientist at UCLA in close collaboration with Dr. Alipasha Vaziri’s group at Rockefeller University.

More information:
Arash Bellafard et al, Volatile working memory representations crystallize with practice, Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07425-w

Citation:
The crystallization of memory: Study reveals how practice forms new memory pathways in the brain (2024, May 15)
retrieved 15 May 2024
from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-05-crystallization-memory-reveals-pathways-brain.html

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