title: Ketamine affects memory consolidation: differential effects in T-maze and passive avoidance paradigms in mice.
abstract: The effects of ketamine, an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) antagonist, on memory in animals have been limited to the sub-anesthetic dose given prior to training in previous studies. We evaluated the effects of post-training anesthetic doses of ketamine to selectively manipulate memory consolidation, and the effect of pre-retention sub-anesthetic doses of ketamine on memory retrieval in passive avoidance and T-maze tasks in mice. Repeated post-training anesthetic doses of ketamine impaired the consolidation of memory in the T-maze but not in passive avoidance paradigms. This impairment was not permanent but diminished 1-2 days after ketamine withdrawal. Sub-anesthetic post-training doses of ketamine (5 mg/kg) had no effect on memory consolidation, and larger doses (10, 20 and 50 mg/kg) did not influence the retrieval of memory in the T-maze. The data suggest that repeated anesthetic doses of ketamine block NMDA receptors and affect memory consolidation. Moreover, NMDA mechanisms antagonized by ketamine appear to be selectively involved in spatial (T-maze) memory mechanisms but may not be necessary for non-spatial (passive avoidance) memory consolidation.
authors.affiliation: Section of Cognitive Brain Research and Key Laboratory of Animal Models and Human Disease Mechanisms, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan 650223, PR China.
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.forename: F A W
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.forename: Y Y
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Ma
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005260:Female; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D007649:Ketamine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D008568:Memory / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology; D051379:Mice; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism; D013028:Space Perception / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D013375:Substance Withdrawal Syndrome / Q000503:physiopathology; D009435:Synaptic Transmission / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate; D007649:Ketamine