Arc Expression Identifies the Lateral Amygdala Fear Memory Trace

Overview

Journal Mol Psychiatry

Specialties Molecular Biology
Psychiatry

Date 2015 Mar 25

PMID 25802982

Citations 41

Authors

L A Gouty-Colomer

B Hosseini

I M Marcelo

J Schreiber

D E Slump

S Yamaguchi

A R Houweling

D Jaarsma

Y Elgersma

S A Kushner

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Memories are encoded within sparsely distributed neuronal ensembles. However, the defining cellular properties of neurons within a memory trace remain incompletely understood. Using a fluorescence-based Arc reporter, we were able to visually identify the distinct subset of lateral amygdala (LA) neurons activated during auditory fear conditioning. We found that Arc-expressing neurons have enhanced intrinsic excitability and are preferentially recruited into newly encoded memory traces. Furthermore, synaptic potentiation of thalamic inputs to the LA during fear conditioning is learning-specific, postsynaptically mediated and highly localized to Arc-expressing neurons. Taken together, our findings validate the immediate-early gene Arc as a molecular marker for the LA neuronal ensemble recruited during fear learning. Moreover, these results establish a model of fear memory formation in which intrinsic excitability determines neuronal selection, whereas learning-related encoding is governed by synaptic plasticity.

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