Inactivation of the interpositus nucleus blocks the conditioned response acquired by a somatosensory conditioned stimulus in rabbit eyeblink conditioning.
1. Earlier studies suggest that the memory trace for the conditioned eyeblink reflex is formed and maintained in the interpositus nucleus (IPN) in the deep cerebellar nuclei when either an auditory or visual stimulus is used as a conditioned stimulus (CS). 2. In the present study, the eyeblink reflex of the rabbit was conditioned to a somatosensory CS (an airpuff onto the back). 3. In well-trained animals, the IPN was reversibly inactivated by local cooling and the existence of the learned responses to the CS was then tested. 4. The reversible IPN inactivation blocked the memory trace the somatosensory CS. The finding further supports the view that IPN-mediated memory trace formation is not dependent on the modality of the CS.
Wikgren
J
J
Department of Psychology, University of Jyväskylä, Finland.
Korhonen
T
T
D000818:Animals; D001767:Blinking / Q000502:physiology*; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000502:physiology*; D003214:Conditioning, Classical; D005073:Evoked Potentials, Somatosensory; D008568:Memory; D011817:Rabbits