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Rapid Turnover of Glycogen in Memory Formation

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Abstract

The influence of noradrenaline acting at α2-AR and β2-ARs on the turnover of glycogen after learning has been investigated. The role of glycogen turnover in memory formation was examined using weakly-reinforced, single trial bead discrimination training in day-old domestic chickens. This study follows our previous work that focused on the need for glycogen breakdown (glycogenolysis) during learning. Inhibition of glycogenolysis by 1,4-dideoxy-1,4-imino-d-arabinitol (DAB) prevented the consolidation of strongly-reinforced learning and inhibited memory. The action of DAB could be prevented by stimulating glycogenolysis with the selective β2-AR agonist, zinterol. Stimulation of α2-ARs has been shown to lead to an increase in the turnover and synthesis of glycogen. In the present study, we examined the effect of inhibition of α2-AR stimulated glycogen turnover (measured as14C-glucose incorporation into glycogen) on the ability of zinterol to promote the consolidation of weakly reinforced memory. In astrocytes, the selective α2-AR agonist clonidine stimulated 14C-glucose incorporation into glycogen in chick astrocytes and this was inhibited by the selective α2-AR antagonist, ARC239. The critical importance of the timing of ARC239 injection relative to training and intracerebral administration of zinterol was examined. It is concluded that our data provides evidence for a readily accessible labile pool of glycogen in brain astrocytes. If glycogen synthesis is inhibited, the can be depleted within 10 min, thus preventing zinterol from promoting consolidation.

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Acknowledgment

Dr Dana Hutchinson is supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Career Development Award (545952).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia

    Marie E. Gibbs & Dana S. Hutchinson

  2. Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, 3800, Australia

    Marie E. Gibbs

  3. Department of Pharmacology, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, 3800, Australia

    Dana S. Hutchinson

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  1. Marie E. Gibbs
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  2. Dana S. Hutchinson
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Correspondence to Marie E. Gibbs.

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Gibbs, M.E., Hutchinson, D.S. Rapid Turnover of Glycogen in Memory Formation. Neurochem Res 37, 2456–2463 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11064-012-0805-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11064-012-0805-2

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