title: Patterns across multiple memories are identified over time.
abstract: Memories are not static but continue to be processed after encoding. This is thought to allow the integration of related episodes via the identification of patterns. Although this idea lies at the heart of contemporary theories of systems consolidation, it has yet to be demonstrated experimentally. Using a modified water-maze paradigm in which platforms are drawn stochastically from a spatial distribution, we found that mice were better at matching platform distributions 30 d compared to 1 d after training. Post-training time-dependent improvements in pattern matching were associated with increased sensitivity to new platforms that conflicted with the pattern. Increased sensitivity to pattern conflict was reduced by pharmacogenetic inhibition of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). These results indicate that pattern identification occurs over time, which can lead to conflicts between new information and existing knowledge that must be resolved, in part, by computations carried out in the mPFC.
authors.affiliation: 1] Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [2] Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [3] Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [4] Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [5] Department of Biological Sciences, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [6] Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Blake A
authors.identifier: 0000000196622151
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Richards
authors.affiliation: 1] Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [2] Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Frances
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.affiliation: 1] Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [2] Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Santoro
authors.affiliation: 1] Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [2] Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [3] Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [4] Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Jana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Husse
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Melanie A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Woodin
authors.affiliation: 1] Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [2] Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [3] Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [4] Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Sheena A
authors.identifier: 000000015451489X
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Josselyn
authors.affiliation: 1] Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [2] Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [3] Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. [4] Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Paul W
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Frankland
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D000818:Animals; D003220:Conflict, Psychological; D000229:Dependovirus / Q000235:genetics; D055724:Electrophysiological Phenomena; D019277:Entropy; D005260:Female; D005822:Genetic Vectors; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000502:physiology; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008959:Models, Neurological; D015233:Models, Statistical; D010597:Pharmacogenetics; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000502:physiology; D013269:Stochastic Processes