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Updated: May 9, 2026

Brain Imaging Investigation of the Memory-Enhancing Effect of Emotion
Published on: May 4, 2011
New frontiers in the study of memory mechanisms
Cristiane R G Furini1, Jociane C Myskiw, Fernando Benetti
1Memory Center, Brain Institute, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Abstract:
We review recent work on three major lines of memory research: a) the possible role of the protein kinase M-zeta (PKMzeta) in memory persistence; b) the processes of "synaptic tagging and capture" in memory formation; c) the modulation of extinction learning, widely used in the psychotherapy of fear memories under the name of "exposure therapy". PKMzeta is a form of protein kinase C (PKC) that apparently remains stimulated for months after the consolidation of a given memory. Synaptic tagging is a mechanism whereby the weak activation of one synapse can tag it with a protein so other synapses in the same cell can reactivate it by producing other proteins that bind to the tag. Extinction, once mistakenly labeled as a form of forgetting, is by itself a form of learning; through it animals can learn to inhibit a response. We now know it can be modulated by neurotransmitters or by synaptic tagging, which should enable better control of its clinical use.
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