2007PSY Bio Psych Week 8

2007PSY Bio Psych Week 8

1. Synaptic Plasticity

   • Long term depression
   • Hippocampal formation
   • Population EPSP
   • Associative Long Term Potential
   • Role of NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) Receptors
     • Ionotropic glutamate receptor on dentritic spines on CA1 pyramidal cells
     • Nonassociative long-term potentiation requires some sort of additive effect
     • Series of pulses delivered at high rate all in one burst will produce long-term potentiation, but same number of pulses given at slow rate will not
     • If stimulation of synapses and depolarization of neuron occurred at different times, no effect was seen
     • Release of neurotransmitter and depolarization of postsynaptic membrane had to occur at same time
   • Role of AMPA (α-amino-3-hydroxy- 5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid) Receptors
     • Another glutamate receptor on dentritic spines on CA1 pyramidal cells
   • LTP
     • Stimulate: perforant path Record: dentate gyrus

2. Memory

   • Declarative Memory
     • Remembering past experiences
     • Learning new words
     • Finding way in new environment
   • Non declarative memory
     • Perpetual: broken drawings, recognising faces, recognising melodies
     • Stimulus-response: Classical conditioning, instrumental choosing
       • Motor: Sequence of button presses
   • Episodic Memory
   • Semantic Memory

3. HM and hippocampus

   • Bilaterally removed to treat epilepsy
   • Reduced seizures but cant form new memories - anterograde amnesia
     • Intact STM and procedural memory
   • Lessons:
     • Multiple memory systems
     • STM must have different neural substrates to from those involved in LTM.
     • Memories are not stored in the hippocampus – HM can recall memories.
     • Consolidation occurs
     • Certain forms of long-term memory do not require the hippocampus – declarative (knowing that) vs non-declarative (knowing how).