Unwanted Memories Might Be Erasable Without Harming Other Brain Functions

Researchers have found a molecule that stores complex, high-quality memories, in a discovery that may one day lead to the ability to erase debilitating painful memories and addictions from the brain.
The brain acts as a computer to both store information and process that information. In a computer, separate devices perform these roles; while a hard disk stores information, the central processing unit (CPU) does the processing. But the brain is thought to perform both these functions in the same cells – neurons – leading researchers to ask if distinct molecules within the brain cells serve these different functions.
In a discovery that may one day lead to the ability to erase debilitating painful memories and addictions from the brain, researchers at SUNY Downstate Medical Center have found that a molecule known to preserve memories – PKMzeta – specifically stores complex, high-quality memories that provide detailed information about an animal's location, fears, and actions, but does not control the ability to process or express this information. This finding suggests that PKMzeta erasure that is designed to target specific debilitating memories could be effective against the offending memory while sparing the computational function of brain.   Read more...

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