Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Kansas City, MO 64110, USA.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010 Jun 29;107(26):11987-92. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1004433107. Epub 2010 Jun 14.
In the study of long-term memory, how memory persists is a fundamental and unresolved question. What are the molecular components of the long-lasting memory trace? Previous studies in Aplysia and Drosophila have found that a neuronal variant of a RNA-binding protein with a self-perpetuating prion-like property, cytoplasmic polyadenylation element binding protein, is required for the persistence of long-term synaptic facilitation in the snail and long-term memory in the fly. In this study, we have identified the mRNA targets of the Drosophila neuronal cytoplasmic polyadenylation element binding protein, Orb2. These Orb2 targets include genes involved in neuronal growth, synapse formation, and intriguingly, protein turnover. These targets suggest that the persistent form of the memory trace might be comprised of molecules that maintain a sustained, permissive environment for synaptic growth in an activated synapse.
在长期记忆的研究中，记忆如何持续是一个基本的、尚未解决的问题。持久记忆痕迹的分子组成部分是什么？以前在海兔和果蝇中的研究发现，一种具有自我维持的类朊病毒特性的 RNA 结合蛋白的神经元变体，细胞质多聚腺苷酸化元件结合蛋白，是蜗牛中长时程突触易化和果蝇中长时记忆持久所必需的。在这项研究中，我们鉴定了果蝇神经元细胞质多聚腺苷酸化元件结合蛋白 Orb2 的 mRNA 靶标。这些 Orb2 靶标包括参与神经元生长、突触形成的基因，以及令人好奇的是，蛋白质周转。这些靶标表明，记忆痕迹的持久形式可能由维持激活突触中突触生长的持续、许可环境的分子组成。
