Control of learning and memory by insulin in the molluscan brain

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25291074
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Partial Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Animal physiology/Animal behavior
• Research Institution: Tokushima Bunri University
• Principal Investigator: Ito Etsuro 徳島文理大学, 薬学部, 教授 (80203131)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): MATSUO Ryota 福岡女子大学, 国際文理学部, 准教授 (40334338)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: モノアラガイ / 味覚嫌悪学習 / インスリン / 飢餓 / 満腹 / 長期記憶

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The pond snail Lymnaea stagnalis is capable of learning taste aversion and consolidating this learning into long-term memory (LTM) that is called conditioned taste aversion (CTA). Previous studies showed that some molluscan insulin-related peptides (MIPs) were up-regulated in snails exhibiting CTA-LTM. In the present study, when we applied partially purified MIPs to the isolated CNS, we observed a long-term change in synaptic efficacy of the synaptic connection between the CTA-related neurons. Injection of insulin or insulin receptor antibody into the snail also suggested that MIPs trigger CTA-LTM. Finally, we could clarify the relation between the CTA grades and the nutritional states, such as food satiation or food starvation.

Free Research Field

神経生物学