Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id IAA12895 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Tue, 8 Aug 2000 08:16:45 +0100 Message-ID: <A4400389479FD3118C9400508B0FF230040EAC@DELTA> From: "Gatherer, D. (Derek)" <D.Gatherer@organon.nhe.akzonobel.nl> To: "'memetics@mmu.ac.uk'" <memetics@mmu.ac.uk> Subject: RE: Simple neural models Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 09:12:52 +0200 X-Mailer: Internet Mail Service (5.5.2650.21) Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
Scott:
I've heard stuff here and there about something called CREB with regard to
molecular memory components. Have you heard anything on this?
Derek:
That's cyclic AMP response element binding protein, which is a transcription
factor that binds to promotor regions and activates them as part of signal
transduction pathways having cAMP somewhere upstream. Genes which are
likely CREB targets, and therefore likely targets of cAMP-modulated
signalling cascades, can sometimes be identified ad hoc by the presence of
the cAMP response element (CRE) in their promotor regions. There's also a
protein called CREB binding protein (CBP) which binds to and modifies the
activity of the CREB.
CREB function seems to be required for long-, but not short-, term memory:
Kogan JH, Frankland PW, Silva AJ (2000) Long-term memory underlying
hippocampus-dependent social recognition in mice. Hippocampus
2000;10(1):47-56
There was a good review article in TIGS last year:
Mayford M and Kandel ER
Genetic approaches to memory storage. Trends in Genetics 1999, 15:463-470
http://reviews.bmn.com/browse/areas/record?uid=TIG.etd00160_01689525_v0015i1
1_00001846&rendertype=text (You might not be able to get straight through to
this, but if you can't, a BioMedNEt password is free, and then you'll be
able to get straight in)
There has also been some recent interesting stuff on cAMP and drug
dependency. Mice given PCP (angel dust) have 'place preference', a
behavioural phenomenon. This causes an increase in cAMP in the striatum
over a period of about a month. Mice that are heterozygous for CBP, ie.
have only one functional copy of the CBP gene, have no place preference, ie
they are to a certain extent not getting the full effects of the PCP. You
can also zap the place preference behaviour by giving the mice dopaminergic
antagonists and/or dopaminergic neurotoxins.
Noda Y, Nabeshima T (2000) Role of catecholaminergic and cyclic AMP systems
in psychological dependence on phencyclidine: a study in mutant mice. Jpn J
Pharmacol 2000 Jun;83(2):89-94.
For real details, you can follow the entire pathway from GABA-B
neurotransmitter receptor down to CREB.
http://www.jbc.org/cgi/reprint/M002727200v1
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