Super Memory

A super-memory smart drug?

December 15, 2011 by Amara D. Angelica

[+]

Suppression of the PKR molecule in mutant mice (right) enhances learning and memory by lowering GABA release, compared to the process in "wild type" (normal) mice (left) (credit: BCM)

Could this be the “Limitless” breakthrough we’ve been looking for?

Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine  (BCM) have discovered that when the activity of PKR — a molecule normally elevated during viral infections — is inhibited in the brain, mice learn and remember dramatically better.

“The molecule PKR (the double-stranded RNA-activated protein kinase) was originally described as a sensor of viral infections, but its function in the brain was totally unknown,” said Dr. Mauro Costa-Mattioli, assistant professor of neuroscience at BCM. But the activity of PKR is altered in a variety of cognitive disorders, so Costa-Mattioli and colleagues decided to take a closer look.

Super memory

“We found that when we genetically inhibited PKR, we increased the excitability of brain cells and enhanced learning and memory in a variety of behavioral tests,” said Costa-Mattioli.

For instance, they tested the mice ability to use visual cues for finding a hidden platform in a circular pool. Normal mice had to repeat the task multiple times over many days to remember the platform’s location. Mice lacking PKR learned the task after only one training session./.../