Abstract
Learning can lead to changes in the intrinsic excitability of neurons. However, the extent to which these changes persist and the role they have in the expression of memory remain unclear. We found that in vitro analogs of operant conditioning produced a long-term (24 h) increase in the excitability of an identified neuron (B51) that is critical for the expression of feeding in Aplysia. This increase in excitability, which was cAMP dependent, contributed to the associative modification of the feeding circuitry, providing a mechanism for long-term memory.
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This work was supported by National Institute of Mental Health grant MH 58321.
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Mozzachiodi, R., Lorenzetti, F., Baxter, D. et al. Changes in neuronal excitability serve as a mechanism of long-term memory for operant conditioning. Nat Neurosci 11, 1146–1148 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.2184
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.2184
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