Abstract
When memories are retrieved they become labile, and subject to alteration by a process known as reconsolidation. Disruption of memory reconsolidation decreases the performance of learned responses, which is often attributed to erasure of the memory; in the case of Pavlovian learning, to a loss of the association between a conditioned stimulus (CS) and unconditioned stimulus (US). However, an alternative interpretation is that disrupting reconsolidation does not erase memories, but blunts their emotional/motivational impact. It is difficult to parse the predictive vs. emotional/motivational value of CSs in non-human animals, but studies on variation in the form of conditioned responses (CRs) in a Pavlovian conditioned approach task suggest a way to do this. In this task a lever-CS paired with a food reward (US) acquires predictive value in all rats, but is attributed with emotional/motivational value to a greater extent in some rats (sign-trackers) than others (goal-trackers). We report that the post-retrieval administration of propranolol selectively attenuates a sign-tracking CR, and the associated neural activation of brain “motive circuits”, while having no effect on conditioned orienting behavior in sign-trackers, or on goal-tracking CRs evoked by either a lever-CS or a tone-CS. We conclude that the disruption of reconsolidation by post-retrieval propranolol degrades the emotional/motivational impact of the CS, required for sign-tracking, but leaves the CS–US association intact. The possibility that post-retrieval interventions can reduce the emotional/motivational aspects of memories, without actually erasing them, has important implications for treating maladaptive memories that contribute to some psychiatric disorders.
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Acknowledgements
We thank Alex Kawa, Elizabeth O’Donnell, and Meghan Zechmeister for their assistance with behavioral testing, and Kyle Pitchers and Joshua Haight for assistance with the immunohistochemistry. Research supported by grant P01 DA031656 to TER. Authors report no financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.
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This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health Grant P01 DA031656 to TER. All authors declare no financial and non-financial competing interests. The authors declare no conflict of interest.
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Cogan, E.S., Shapses, M.A., Robinson, T.E. et al. Disrupting reconsolidation: memory erasure or blunting of emotional/motivational value?. Neuropsychopharmacol 44, 399–407 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41386-018-0082-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41386-018-0082-0
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