New neurons cause declivity of instant fear memories
Owing to the colossal endeavors of a group of eminent researchers, it has come to the knowledge that new neurons sprouted in the hippocampus (a brain region related to learning and memory) bring about the declivity of instant fear memories in that brain region, devoid of an overall memory loss. However, it must be stated that the study does render a little of the first evidences.
Commenting on this feat Kaoru Inokuchi of The University of Toyama in Japan, lead author of the study, in conjunction with colleagues elucidates that the discovery brings to the fore a more important role in contrast to many would have anticipated for the removal of memories. In accordance with them, birth of new neurons encourages the continuing loss of memory traces from the hippocampus for the reason that those memories are transferred to a different place in the brain for permanent storage.
What is more, even though they did make the examination of this process just in the context of fear memory, Inokuchi has no hesitancy in saying that he "thinks all memories that are initially stored in the hippocampus are influenced by this process." To all intents and purposes, the new results put forward that failure of neurogenesis will set in motion problems since the brain’s short-term memory is factually jam-packed. On the word of Kaoru Inokuchi, the group of researchers may perhaps experience difficulties in acquiring new information for the reason that the storage capacity of the hippocampus is "occupied by un-erased old memories." Of course, Inokuchi added, "our finding does not necessary deny the important role of neurogenesis in memory acquisition." As said by him, hippocampal neurogenesis could have a dual role, in both erasing old memories and acquiring new ones.
There is hardly any doubt that the study is a major breakthrough.
