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  4. A Spatiotemporal Examination Of The Mechanisms Involved In Long-Term Memory For Incrementally Acquired Information

A Spatiotemporal Examination Of The Mechanisms Involved In Long-Term Memory For Incrementally Acquired Information

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tt389.pdf (5.3 MB)
Permanent Link(s)
https://hdl.handle.net/1813/43719
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Cornell Theses and Dissertations
Author
Tong, Tianyi
Abstract

The existing literature examining the activity of plasticity-related molecular mechanisms suggests that early, post-learning activity of these mechanisms plays a role in later long-term memory (LTM) behavior. However, much of what we know comes from studies using one-trial learning paradigms. This dissertation has two main focuses. First, it examines the role of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in olfactory memories as a means of characterizing the effects of post-learning, molecular mechanisms on LTM for multi-trial learning. Second, it aims to provide a more comprehensive temporal profile for several plasticity-related proteins, across several brain regions for the same multi-trial learning event. In the first study, we showed that blockade of neurotrophin receptors in olfactory bulb (OB), including the BDNF receptor, TrkB, prevents LTM, but not short-term memory (STM) for a multi-trial learning task. In the second study, we found that acute blockade of the BDNF-TrkB pathway did not prevent the formation of specific, short-term odor representations, suggesting that the role of this pathway in the post-learning period is exclusively LTM consolidation. However, its exact role in the specificity of LTM representations remains to be explored. Finally, using high-throughput, quantitative RTPCR, we explored the timecourse of learning-induced transcription for several plasticity-related proteins across multiple brain regions. This study created a "spatiotemporal map" of the activity of several molecular mechanisms involved in LTM and lends temporal specificity to future studies of these mechanisms.

Date Issued
2016-02-01
Keywords
Olfaction
•
Memory
Committee Chair
Cleland,Thomas A.
Committee Member
Finlay,Barbara L.
Lee,Francis S
Field,David James
Degree Discipline
Psychology
Degree Name
Ph. D., Psychology
Degree Level
Doctor of Philosophy
Type
dissertation or thesis

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