研究課題
We have been investigating mechanisms involved in age-related memory impairment and forgetting using Drosophila as a model organism. We previously found that aging causes a defect in long-term memory (LTM), and proposed that this defect may be caused by an inability of old glial cells to inhibit neuronal activity during memory consolidation. To test this idea, we inhibited activity of various neuron types in the Drosophila brain and found that reducing activity of dopaminergic neurons improves memory consolidation in old flies. We confirmed these results by demonstrating that pharmacological inhibition of dopaminergic neurons during consolidation, but not during learning, improves long-term memory. We also measured neuronal activity of dopaminergic neurons during memory consolidation in young and old flies and found evidence indicating that specific dopaminergic neurons are more active during consolidation in old flies compared to consolidation in young flies. Previous studies have suggested that these dopaminergic neurons are associated with forgetting. Thus our results indicate that activity of dopaminergic neurons involved in forgetting are inhibited during memory consolidation. Old flies forget more than young flies because they are unable to inhibit activity of these dopaminergic neurons due to defects in glial activity.
すべて 2018 2017
すべて 雑誌論文 (3件) (うち査読あり 3件、 オープンアクセス 1件)
Cell Reports
巻: 22 ページ: 2346-2358
10.1016/j.celrep.2018.02.012.
Scientific Reports
巻: 7 ページ: 17725-17735
10.1038/s41598-017-17955-1.
Elife
巻: 24 ページ: 21076-21094
10.7554/eLife.21076.
