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Contextual Pavlovian conditioning in the crab Chasmagnathus

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Abstract

In contextual conditioning, a complex pattern of information is processed to associate the characteristics of a particular place with incentive or aversive reinforcements. This type of learning has been widely studied in mammals, but studies of other taxa are scarce. The context-signal memory (CSM) paradigm of the crab Chasmagnathus has been extensively used as a model of learning and memory. Although initially interpreted as habituation, some characteristics of contextual conditioning have been described. However, no anticipatory response has been detected for animals exposed to the training context. Thus, CSM could be interpreted either as an associative habituation or as contextual conditioning that occurs without a context-evoked anticipatory response. Here, we describe a training protocol developed for contextual Pavlovian conditioning (CPC). For each training trial, the context (conditioned stimulus, CS) was discretely presented and finished together with the unconditioned stimulus (US). In agreement with the CSM paradigm, a robust freezing response was acquired during the 15 training trials, and clear retention was found when tested with the US presentation after short (2 and 4 h) and long (1–4 days) delays. This CPC memory showed forward but not simultaneous presentation conditioning and was context specific and protein synthesis dependent. Additionally, a weak CPC memory was enhanced during consolidation. One day after training, CPC was extinguished by repeated CS presentation, while one presentation induced a memory labilisation–reconsolidation process. Finally, we found an anticipatory conditioned response (CR) during the CS presentation for both short-term (4 h) and long-term memory (24 h). These findings support the conditioning nature of the new paradigm.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by FONCYT (grant PICT-1492; grant PICT2006-01161), CONICET (grant PIP-11220100100169) and UBACYT (grant X-198). We thank Dr. Liliana Orelli for language correction and Angel Vidal for technical assistance.

Ethical standards

Experimental procedures are in compliance with the National Institutes of Health Guide for Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (USA), and the Argentinean guidelines on the ethical use of animals. All the experiments performed in this work were planned minimising the number of animals used and their suffering.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratorio de Neurobiología de la Memoria, Departamento de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Celular, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires IFIByNE, CONICET. Ciudad Universitaria, Pab. II, 2do piso (C1428EHA), Buenos Aires, Argentina

    María Sol Fustiñana, Martín Carbó Tano, Arturo Romano & María Eugenia Pedreira

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  1. María Sol Fustiñana
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  2. Martín Carbó Tano
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  3. Arturo Romano
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  4. María Eugenia Pedreira
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to María Eugenia Pedreira.

Additional information

María Sol Fustiñana and Martín Carbó Tano contributed equally to this paper.

Arturo Romano and María Eugenia Pedreira contributed equally to this paper.

In memoriam to our science mentor Héctor Maldonado. A true scientist who inspired us with his illimitable creativity.

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Fustiñana, M.S., Carbó Tano, M., Romano, A. et al. Contextual Pavlovian conditioning in the crab Chasmagnathus . Anim Cogn 16, 255–272 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-012-0570-2

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