Developmental changes in brain-wide fear memory networks.

ABSTRACT: Memory retrieval involves coordinated activity across multiple brain regions. Yet how the organization of memory networks evolves throughout development remains poorly understood. In this study, we compared whole-brain functional networks that are active during contextual fear memory recall in infant, juvenile, and adult mice. Our analyses revealed that long-term memory networks change significantly across postnatal development. Infant fear memory networks are dense and heterogeneous, whereas adult networks are sparse and have a small-world topology. While hippocampal subregions were highly connected nodes at all ages, the cortex gained many functional connections across development. Different functional connections matured at different rates, but their developmental timing fell into three

SUBMITTER: Jin B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12866929 | biostudies-literature | 2025 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature