Hernandez Pepe J, Abel Ted
Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania, 433 S. University Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Neurobiol Learn Mem. 2008 Mar;89(3):293-311. doi: 10.1016/j.nlm.2007.09.010. Epub 2007 Nov 28.
A major component of consolidation theory holds that protein synthesis is required to produce the synaptic modification needed for long-term memory storage. Protein synthesis inhibitors have played a pivotal role in the development of this theory. However, these commonly used drugs have unintended effects that have prompted some to reevaluate the role of protein synthesis in memory consolidation. Here we review the role of protein synthesis in memory formation as proposed by consolidation theory calling special attention to the controversy involving the non-specific effects of a group of protein synthesis inhibitors commonly used to study memory formation in vivo. We argue that molecular and genetic approaches that were subsequently applied to the problem of memory formation confirm the results of less selective pharmacological studies. Thus, to a certain extent, the debate over the role of protein synthesis in memory based on interpretational difficulties inherent to the use of protein synthesis inhibitors may be somewhat moot. We conclude by presenting avenues of research we believe will best provide answers to both long-standing and more recent questions facing field of learning and memory.
巩固理论的一个主要观点认为，蛋白质合成是产生长期记忆存储所需的突触修饰所必需的。蛋白质合成抑制剂在该理论的发展中发挥了关键作用。然而，这些常用药物具有意想不到的效果，促使一些人重新评估蛋白质合成在记忆巩固中的作用。在这里，我们回顾巩固理论提出的蛋白质合成在记忆形成中的作用，特别关注涉及一组常用于体内研究记忆形成的蛋白质合成抑制剂的非特异性效应的争议。我们认为，随后应用于记忆形成问题的分子和遗传方法证实了选择性较低的药理学研究结果。因此，基于使用蛋白质合成抑制剂所固有的解释困难，关于蛋白质合成在记忆中的作用的争论在一定程度上可能有些无意义。我们最后提出了一些研究途径，我们认为这些途径将最有助于回答学习和记忆领域长期存在的以及最近出现的问题。
