HippAchoMod · Deciphering the cholinergic modulation of the hippocampal place code.

Deciphering the cholinergic modulation of the hippocampal place code.

A central component of the brain’s episodic memory circuit, where complex representations of the environment emerge, is the hippocampal formation. Place cells of the hippocampus exhibit location-specific firing and they are part of an internal map of the environment that guides the behavior of the organism. Activity of place cells also carries information about non-spatial components of the environment. Our initial goal was to uncover how the medial septum, the master clock of the navigation circuit key for synchronizing information flow among its components, contribute to the formation of the place code. However, we observed the high prevalence of so-called context-selective activity of place cells. Hippocampal memory processes are key for assisting the planning of actions and decision making. Context-selective activity emerges in tasks in which the animal has to decide which way to go when alternating between two sides of a maze. Some hippocampal place cells fire only when the animal turn to one of the sides. Context-dependent activity (here, context corresponds to left / right routes), by coding the future choice of the animal, may help the decision circuit choose the correct path to follow. Alternatively, these neurons have a code for the left and another code for the right trajectory. Episodic memory traces are composed of a multiple types of information and the interconnected meshwork of memories forms the foundation of our personality. Thus, uncovering what kind of information the hippocampus codes is fundamental for understanding the brain mechanisms that determine who we are. As life expectancy is increasing, so is the neuropsychiatric diseases that lead to the deterioration of our capability of living a meaningful life. The hipppocampus-centered memory system of our brain is especially vulnerable. Therefore, understanding the components and formation of the hippocampal code is pivotal for identifying processes we can manipulate in order to prevent the break-down of our mental capacities. We have thus now an additional goal: besides revealing a key mechanism of the formation of the place code (medial septal modulation), we aim to characterize the non-spatial information possibly contributing to planning and decision making.

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз