Event-Specific Enhancement of Memory via Brief Electrical Stimulation to the Basolateral Complex of the Amygdala in Rats

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: David I. Bass, Emory University; Kristin N. Partain, Emory University; Joseph Manns, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2012-02
• Publisher: American Psychological Association
• Publication Version: Author Accepted Manuscript (After Peer Review)
• Copyright Statement: (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Behavioral Neuroscience
• ISSN: 0735-7044
• Volume: 126
• Issue: 1
• Start Page: 204
• End Page: 208
• Grant/Funding Information: This research was supported by NIH Grant MH079564 and NSF Grant 0824199.
• Keywords: rat; electrical stimulation; basolateral amygdala; object recognition memory; memory enhancement
• Research Categories: Psychology, Behavioral

Abstract

The basolateral complex of the amygdala (BLA) modulates memory for emotional events, and direct activation of the BLA following a learning session can enhance subsequent memory. Yet optimal enhancement of episodic memory during emotional events would likely require that BLA activation occur close in time to the event and to be brief enough to target specific memories if some events are to be remembered better than others. In the present study, rats were given a novel object recognition memory task in which initial encounters with some of the objects were immediately followed by brief electrical stimulation of the BLA, and these objects were remembered better one day later as compared to objects for which the initial encounter was not followed by stimulation. The results indicated that BLA stimulation can enhance memory for individual events, a necessary ability for the BLA to modulate episodic memory effectively.