Complementary memory storage sites in mice: their development as affected by the competitive NMDA receptor...

Bitemporal injections of puromycin consistently induce amnesia of aversive maze learning in mice when administered within 3 days of training. These bitemporal puromycin injections lose their amnestic effectiveness if the latency between training and injection is extended beyond 6 days. Consistent with other evidence, we conclude that in our experimental paradigm, complementary memory storage sites normally develop in additional cerebral areas within 6 days following training. Previous experiments have indicated that the central adrenergic and cholinergic systems are critically involved in this process. We now present evidence that administration of the NMDA receptor antagonist, CPP, blocks the development of these complementary memory storage sites. As suggested by studies of long-term potentiation, NMDA receptor-dependent postsynaptic calcium appears to be essential for the development of these storage sites and indeed to trigger their development.