Lecture Series Freiburg "Seeing memories through the looking glass: hippocampal circuit activity in mice performing spatial and working memory tasks" by Simon Schultz

in the framework of the NEUROSCIENCE & NEUROTECHNOLOGY LECTURE SERIES

Simon schultz

Imperial College London, UK

Seeing memories through the looking glass: hippocampal circuit activity in mice performing spatial and working memory tasks 

Abstract

We have recently demonstrated the use of an air-lifted behavioural platform that is compatible with two-photon microscopy to map place fields, using the CA1 hippocampal network as a rich and effective memory readout (Go et al, Front Cell Neurosci 15:19, 2021). This enables us to examine the spatiotemporal dynamics of neural activity as memories are laid down, and as they are later recalled. One important question I will discuss is how learning a new memory alters the structural representation of things previously learned.

I will then describe how we have employed this system to characterise degradation in memory performance in transgenic mice (5xFAD mice, which over-express mutant human amyloid precursor protein) performing a circular track memory task, allowing us to quantify effects on neural ensemble activity in both memory recall and encoding. In further work, we have used this platform to study changes in network function in 5xFAD mice performing a forced alternation spatial working memory task. We see effects related to amyloidosis in both degradation of spatial information in the hippocampus, and in performance on the alternation task.

Finally, I will discuss the pipeline we have been developing to track the effects of neurodegenerative disease in the same animal through behaviour, in vivo multiphoton imaging from targeted brain regions, and finally ex vivo whole-brain two-photon tomography registered to the Allen Brain Atlas.

Further info: here

Host: Andrew Straw

Oct 19, 2022
from 12:15 PM to 02:00 PM

Zoom meeting - Duration of the talk: Approx. 50 minutes, then general and specialized discussion.

Join Zoom meeting:
https://uni-freiburg.zoom.us/j/68357416837?pwd=K0RWdDBiQ3dLNFNoNklmbThWN2swUT09
Meeting-ID: 683 5741 6837
Code: TWDzPbr29

Contact & Details : here