Synaptic plasticity in learning and memory: stress effects in the hippocampus.
Synaptic plasticity has often been argued to play an important role in learning and memory. The discovery of long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD), the two most widely cited cellular models of synaptic plasticity, significantly spurred research in this field. Although correlative evidence suggesting a role for synaptic changes such as those seen in LTP and LTD in learning and memory has been gained in a number of studies, definitive demonstrations of a specific role for either LTP or LTD in learning and memory are lacking. In this review, we discuss a number of recent advancements in the understanding of the mechanisms that mediate LTP and LTD in the rodent hippocampus and focus on the use of subunit-specific N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor antagonists and interference peptides as potential tools to study the role of synaptic plasticity in learning and memory. By using the modulation of synaptic plasticity and hippocampal-dependent learning and memory by acute stress as an example, we review a large body of convincing evidence indicating that alterations in synaptic plasticity underlie the changes in learning and memory produced by acute stress.
Howland
John G
JG
Neural Systems and Plasticity Research Group, Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5A5, Canada.
Wang
Yu Tian
YT
D000818:Animals; D004705:Endocytosis / Q000502:physiology; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000166:cytology*; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000502:physiology*; D017470:Receptors, Glutamate / Q000502:physiology; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000503:physiopathology*; D013569:Synapses / Q000502:physiology*
D017470:Receptors, Glutamate