科学家们发现，在学习过程中，大脑中与情感和学习相关的区域实际上有相当多的协同作用，这种相互间协同作用增强了记忆过程中的神经细胞间的联系。新成果发表在日前在线出版的《自然—神经学》期刊上。
Denis Pare和同事测量了大脑中与奖赏性学习相关的多个活跃区域的信号。他们将主要目标放在大脑中负责情绪调控的扁桃体结构区域，以及大脑中与学习相关的纹状区域。他们发现，当一种声音和一种奖赏分别单独呈现时，大脑两个区域的活动节奏在声音响起时的活动并不协调。然而，当动物们知道声音的响起预示着即将来临的奖赏时，扁桃体区和纹状区的活动就变得更加协同。这种协同性对两个区域来说都很特别，而且目前的科学文献中没有记载过其他的大脑区域有这种协同性。
以前的研究显示，当两种神经元的点火同时发生时，这两种神经元间的联络被强化了，因此，这种强化的联系应该是记忆力提高的机理所在。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推荐原始出处：
Nature Neuroscience 10 May 2009 | doi:10.1038/nn.2305
Coherent gamma oscillations couple the amygdala and striatum during learning
Andrei T Popescu1, Daniela Popa1 & Denis Paré1
The basolateral amygdala (BLA) mediates the facilitating effects of emotions on memory. The BLA's enhancing influence extends to various types of memories, including striatal-dependent habit formation. To shed light on the underlying mechanisms, we carried out unit and local field potential (LFP) recordings in BLA, striatum, auditory cortex and intralaminar thalamus in cats trained on a stimulus-response task in which the presentation of one of two tones predicted reward delivery. The coherence of BLA, but not of cortical or thalamic, LFPs was highest with striatal gamma activity, and intra-BLA muscimol infusions selectively reduced striatal gamma power. Moreover, coupling of BLA-striatal unit activity increased when LFP gamma power was augmented. Early in training, the rewarded and unrewarded tones elicited a modest increase in coherent BLA-striatal gamma. As learning progressed, this gamma coupling selectively increased in relation to the rewarded tone. Thus, coherent gamma oscillations coordinate amygdalostriatal interactions during learning and might facilitate synaptic plasticity.
1 Center for Molecular & Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers State University, Newark, New Jersey, USA.
