The ventral hippocampus is activated in olfactory but not auditory threat memory.

Hippocampal networks required for associative memory formation are involved in cue- and context-dependent threat conditioning. The hippocampus is functionally heterogeneous at its dorsal and ventral poles, and recent investigations have focused on the specific roles required from each sub-region for associative conditioning. Cumulative evidence suggests that contextual and emotional information is processed by the dorsal and ventral hippocampus, respectively.

Investigating the NLRP3 inflammasome and its regulator miR-223-3p in multiple sclerosis and experimental demyelination.

Innate immune signaling pathways are essential mediators of inflammation and repair following myelin injury. Inflammasome activation has recently been implicated as a driver of myelin injury in multiple sclerosis (MS) and its animal models, although the regulation and contributions of inflammasome activation in the demyelinated central nervous system (CNS) are not completely understood. Herein, we investigated the NLRP3 (NBD-, LRR- and pyrin domain-containing protein 3) inflammasome and its endogenous regulator microRNA-223-3p within the demyelinated CNS in both MS and an animal model of focal demyelination.

Shared Pheromonal Communication of Specific Fear Between Adult Sprague Dawley Rats.

Rats are highly social animals, and mainly communicate with one another in two ways: through ultrasonic vocalizations and pheromones. Most research on pheromones has been dedicated those regarding sexual behavior, but more recently pheromones which signal danger to conspecifics have been identified in rodents. In fact, rats are capable of communicating information regarding a specific fear to a companion with which they share a cage.

Learning-induced mRNA alterations in olfactory bulb mitral cells in neonatal rats.

In the olfactory bulb, a cAMP/PKA/CREB-dependent form of learning occurs in the first week of life that provides a unique mammalian model for defining the epigenetic role of this evolutionarily ancient plasticity cascade. Odor preference learning in the week-old rat pup is rapidly induced by a 10-min pairing of odor and stroking. Memory is demonstrable at 24 h, but not 48 h, posttraining.

Pheromone-Induced Odor Associative Fear Learning in Rats.

Alarm pheromones alert conspecifics to the presence of danger. Can pheromone communication aid in learning specific cues? Such facilitation has an evident evolutionary advantage. We use two associative learning paradigms to test this hypothesis.

The Role of L-type Calcium Channels in Olfactory Learning and Its Modulation by Norepinephrine.

L type calcium channels (LTCCs) are prevalent in different systems and hold immense importance for maintaining/performing selective functions. In the nervous system, CaV and CaV are emerging as critical modulators of neuronal functions. Although the general role of these calcium channels in modulating synaptic plasticity and memory has been explored, their role in olfactory learning is not well understood.