Activation of a Locus Coeruleus to Dorsal Hippocampus Noradrenergic Circuit Facilitates Associative Learning.

ABSTRACT: Processing of contextual information during a new episodic event is crucial for learning and memory. Neuromodulation in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex plays an important role in the formation of associations between environmental cues and an aversive experience. Noradrenergic neurons in the locus coeruleus send dense projections to both regions, but their contribution to contextual associative learning has not been established. Here, we utilize selective optogenetic and pharmacological manipulations to control noradrenergic transmission in the hippocampus during the encoding of a contextual fear memory. We find that boosting noradrenergic terminal release in the dorsal CA1 enhances the acquisition of contextual associative learning and that this effect requires local activation of β

SUBMITTER: Tsetsenis T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9051520 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature