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CHASING MEMORY: THIRD OF FOUR PARTS

Memory: a glossary of terms

An idea

Mark Boster / LAT

The work in Gary Lynch’s lab has been driven by a single overriding hypothesis Lynch first published in 1980: that the fundamental act by which a memory is encoded involves a nearly instantaneous physical restructuring of portions of brain cells called neurons.

August 21, 2007

» Discuss Article    (105 Comments)

Adenosine: A molecule that exists throughout mammalian biology. In the brain, it appears to perform a specific function in the memory process -- erasure.

Ampakines: A class of drugs designed to enhance communication between brain cells. The drugs, still in development, are envisioned to enhance almost all cognitive activities.

 
Axon: A fiber that extends from a neuron and sends signals to other fibers called dendrites. Axons and dendrites meet at the synapse.

Dendrite: A fiber that extends in bunches from a neuron. Dendrites receive signals from another sort of fiber called an axon. Dendrites and axons meet at the synapse.

Dentate gyrus: Part of the hippocampus; Lynch Lab found that sharp waves, an electrical rhythm, originated here. The lab hypothesized that the waves were a means by which the brain erased things it did not want to put into long-term memory.

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Books
• "This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession," by Daniel J. Levitin (Dutton, 2006)
• "In Search of Memory: The Emergence of a New Science of Mind," by Eric R. Kandel (Norton, 2006)
• Synaptic Self : How Our Brains Become Who We Are," by Joseph LeDoux (Penguin, 2002)
• "Memory: The Key to Consciousness," by Richard F. Thompson and Stephen A. Madigan (Joseph Henry Press, 2005)
• "The Seven Sins of Memory: How the Mind Forgets and Remembers," by Daniel L. Schacter (Houghton Mifflin, 2001)
• "Searching for Memory: The Brain, the Mind, and the Past," by Daniel L. Schacter (Basic Books, 1997)
• "Decoding Darkness: The Search for the Genetic Causes of Alzheimer's Disease," by Rudolph Tanzi and Ann B. Parson (Perseus, 2000)
• "The Forgetting: Alzheimer's: Portrait of an Epidemic," by David Shenk (Doubleday, 2001)
Websites
Integrin: One of the most common types of molecules in mammalian biology, integrins tie things into place. For example, they cause blood cells to clot, allowing wounds to heal. Lynch Lab hypothesized that integrins solidified LTP, locking molecular changes into place.

LTP, or long-term potentiation: The strengthening of connections between brain cells that occurs once they have communicated, making subsequent communication more efficient. The communication consists of electrochemical exchanges between two neurons at the synapse, which is where they meet.

Neuron: The most common type of cell in the brain (numbering in the hundreds of millions); LTP occurs between two neurons.

Sharp waves: A naturally occurring brain rhythm that originates in the hippocampus and seems to erase LTP -- or to cause forgetting.

Spine: The point on a dendrite where it contacts an axon.

Synapse: The point at which two neurons communicate in the brain. It is actually not a structure but a gap of about 20 nanometers (20-billionths of a meter) across which one neuron sends chemical signals to the other. The chemicals set off cascades of events inside the receiving neuron. There are estimated to be 100 trillion to 10 quadrillion synapses in a human brain, allowing for immense memory capacity.




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Discussion

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1. Mr. McDermott, thank you so much for a this series on Dr. Lynch's research! I had been planning a wedding and honeymoon the week your series came out. I could not wait to get back home from Europe to read your final installment on this subject. Dr. Lynch may not be the easiest person to relate to but, you made him such a fascinating and great man. I hope for and trust Dr. Lynch will have cont. success in his field of research. He is doing such fantastic and important work. His focus and fortitude make my struggles look insignificant. I look forward to reading more of your work also!
Submitted by: Michael Wynia
11:05 AM PDT, Sep 5, 2007
 
2. This is a personal note to Dr. Lynch about his balance issues. A University of Wisconsin researcher developed "Brain Port", a device that has helped some people regain their sense of balance. See the web site http://www.wicab.us/ In the Nov. 23, 2004 NY Times Science section, there was an article on the device. With luck, it might help Dr. Lynch. The LAT series was excellent.
Submitted by: Jan Morse
8:36 PM PDT, Sep 2, 2007
 
3. Correction to previously posted note: Lynch was the inspiration by not the mentor my nephew wrote about when he forwarded the articles. That these many independent, brilliant young men and women go forth to do their work is the important thing.
Submitted by: Barbara Baer
1:41 PM PDT, Sep 2, 2007
 
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