There is a legend that hundreds of years ago, long before the advent of printing presses, computers or telephones, people used a special method to remember important events, such as land transfers, important agreements or weddings. According to legend, a child was selected to witness the incident and was immediately thrown into the river. It is believed that this extreme combination of events ensures that children will never forget that particular event.
But why is this method effective? Although this historical approach may seem extreme, our ancestors may have discovered something crucial: When an event is combined with a strong emotional response, it becomes easier to remember.
Researchers have long been able to provide specific explanations for why some events are stored in our long-term memory while others are not. However, learning and memory may not be as simple as previously thought. New research from DANDRITE shows that experiences that are not directly related to memory can still affect the strength of memory, paving the way for the development of new memory-centered learning tools.
New study expands dominant memory model
Traditionally, the formation of learning and memory has been explained through the Hebb model, which shows that synapses in the brain are strengthened through repeated simultaneous activation of neurons. This means that when two neurons are repeatedly activated, the connection between them becomes stronger-what we call “synaptic plasticity.” According to Hebb’s rule (“Neurons fire together, connect together”), this process is strictly input specific and depends on the simultaneous activation of two neurons.
However, new research from DANDRITE Sadegh Nabavi’s laboratory shows that learning and memory are not that simple.
Synaptic plasticity is not necessarily limited to the simultaneous activation of specific synapses. Synaptic changes may occur at nearby synapses that were not directly activated during the original experience, a process called “heterogeneous synaptic plasticity.”
In a recent article published in the journal eLife, DANDRITE researchers demonstrated that if subsequent, unrelated experiences can trigger strong reactions, memories can also be strengthened. This means that the process of turning a brief experience into a lasting memory is not limited to the time the experience occurred or the specific synapses that were activated. Instead, the process may be influenced by past and future events, delayed by up to a day.
This is in sharp contrast to the Hebb model, which focuses on simultaneous activation of neurons as the primary mechanism of learning and memory formation.
Paving the way for new learning techniques
These new insights give us a deeper understanding of how to address cognitive function and memory-related disorders. By understanding more accurately how to enhance weak memories, innovative therapies can be developed to enhance the memory and learning abilities of individuals with cognitive impairment.
If we review this legend from the beginning, we will find that our ancestors were ahead of their time in understanding memory. Their approach, while extreme, reflects early understanding of how intense experiences enhance memory-something we are now beginning to understand on a more scientific level.
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Original text:https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-08-memory-unrelated.html
More information: Islam Faress et al., Non-Hebbian plasticity transforms transient experiences into lasting memories, eLife (2024). DOI：10.7554/eLife.91421.3
Journal information: eLife
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