Zif and the Survival of Memory

摘要

Neurobiologists have a firm understanding of how new memories are formed, but the mechanisms that render new memories permanent are still poorly understood. It is becoming clear that new memories first require a time-dependent consolidation process to ensure their permanence, and that recalled remote memories are labile, sometimes necessitating a reconsolidation process to reestablish their permanence. Two reports in this issue provide fresh insights into the mechanisms of memory consolidation and reconsolidation in the brains of rodents subjected to contextual fear conditioning. In this process, rodents form an association between a particular environment and an aversive event (usually a footshock) and when placed back in that context show a range of conditioned fear responses including freezing of movement.