Contextual fear memory retrieval by correlated ensembles of ventral CA1 neurons.

ABSTRACT: Ventral hippocampal CA1 (vCA1) projections to the amygdala are necessary for contextual fear memory. Here we used in vivo Ca²⁺ imaging in mice to assess the temporal dynamics by which ensembles of vCA1 neurons mediate encoding and retrieval of contextual fear memories. We found that a subset of vCA1 neurons were responsive to the aversive shock during context conditioning, their activity was necessary for memory encoding, and these shock-responsive neurons were enriched in the vCA1 projection to the amygdala. During memory retrieval, a population of vCA1 neurons became correlated with shock-encoding neurons, and the magnitude of synchronized activity within this population was proportional to memory strength. The emergence of these correlated networks was disrupted by inhibiting

SUBMITTER: Jimenez JC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7359370 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature