NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
Back to results
Peer reviewed Peer reviewed
Direct linkDirect link
ERIC Number: EJ768157
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2007-Jun
Pages: 5
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1072-0502
EISSN: N/A
Eye-Blink Conditioning Is Associated with Changes in Synaptic Ultrastructure in the Rabbit Interpositus Nuclei
Weeks, Andrew C. W.; Connor, Steve; Hinchcliff, Richard; LeBoutillier, Janelle C.; Thompson, Richard F.; Petit, Ted L.
Learning & Memory, v14 n6 p385-389 Jun 2007
Eye-blink conditioning involves the pairing of a conditioned stimulus (usually a tone) to an unconditioned stimulus (air puff), and it is well established that an intact cerebellum and interpositus nucleus, in particular, are required for this form of classical conditioning. Changes in synaptic number or structure have long been proposed as a mechanism that may underlie learning and memory, but localizing these changes has been difficult. Thus, the current experiment took advantage of the large amount of research conducted on the neural circuitry that supports eye-blink conditioning by examining synaptic changes in the rabbit interpositus nucleus. Synaptic quantifications included total number of synapses per neuron, numbers of excitatory versus inhibitory synapses, synaptic curvature, synaptic perforations, and the maximum length of the synapses. No overall changes in synaptic number, shape, or perforations were observed. There was, however, a significant increase in the length of excitatory synapses in the conditioned animals. This increase in synaptic length was particularly evident in the concave-shaped synapses. These results, together with previous findings, begin to describe a sequence of synaptic change in the interpositus nuclei following eye-blink conditioning that would appear to begin with structural change and end with an increase in synaptic number.
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. 500 Sunnyside Boulevard, Woodbury, NY 11797-2924. Tel: 800-843-4388; 516-367-8800; Fax: 516-422-4097; e-mail: cshpres@cshl.edu; Web site: http://www.learnmem.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A