Department of Psychobiology, Centre for Biomedical Research, Institute of Neuroscience, University of Granada Granada, Spain.
Front Syst Neurosci. 2011 Nov 8;5:91. doi: 10.3389/fnsys.2011.00091. eCollection 2011.
Taste aversion learning exhibits advantages for research on memory brain systems and its reorganization throughout life. A review of the effects of aging on taste memory abilities offers a complex picture showing preserved, impaired, and enhanced functions. Some of the age-related changes in taste memory seem to be associated with an altered temporal processing. Longer taste-illness delays can be introduced for acquisition of conditioned taste aversions and the modulation of taste learning by the temporal context is absent in naïve old rats. It is suggested that an altered hippocampal function is involved in the peculiar performance of these rats. Evidence is also presented which suggests that hippocampal-dependent taste memory can be reactivated by previous learning experiences in old rats. Results obtained after reversible inactivation of the dorsal Hippocampus by tetrodotoxin (TTX) in old rats support such a view. Therefore, the interaction between the previous experience and acute brain interventions should be taken into account when studying the effect of aging on taste memory.
味觉厌恶学习在研究记忆脑系统及其在整个生命周期中的重组方面具有优势。对衰老对味觉记忆能力影响的综述显示出保留、受损和增强的功能。味觉记忆的一些与时间处理改变相关的年龄相关变化。对于条件性味觉厌恶的获得，可以引入更长的味觉疾病延迟，并且在天真的老年大鼠中不存在时间背景对味觉学习的调节。有人认为，海马功能的改变与这些大鼠的特殊表现有关。还有证据表明，海马依赖的味觉记忆可以通过老年大鼠以前的学习经验重新激活。在老年大鼠中用河豚毒素（TTX）可逆性失活背侧海马后获得的结果支持这种观点。因此，在研究衰老对味觉记忆的影响时，应该考虑先前经验和急性大脑干预之间的相互作用。
