When you purchase through link on our land site , we may bring in an affiliate commission . Here ’s how it works .
Memories evolvethroughout our lifetimes , changing as we learn and experience new things and as we recall a retentivity repeatedly . And then , memories degrade as we age .
Previously , scientists thought that this malleability was the answer of changes in the brain cells that in the first place encode the storage , and they believed these cell storedjust one copy of every memoryin the brain . However , new research paint a picture that might not be true .
The brain creates at least three copies of any given memory, new research suggests. This includes those encoded by so-called early-born neurons, pictured above in magenta in a cross section of a mouse hippocampus under a microscope.
The scientist found that , in rodents , the brain storage at least three copies of a given retention , encode it in multiple berth in the organ .
These copy are encode by different groups of neuron in thehippocampus , a brain region critical for learning and retention . The copies vary in terms of when they ’re created , how long they last and how modifiable they are through time .
Related : How accurate are our first childhood memories ?
In the new study , published Aug. 16 in the journalScience , the scientist express that , as mice encode new memories , they first make so - called ahead of time - born nerve cell . These neurons are creditworthy for stash away a tenacious - full term copy of the retention that is initially weak but becomes strong over time .
Next comes middle - ground neurons , which are more stable from the first , follow by recently - born neurons that from the first encode very strong copies of a retentivity . However , that strength fades over sentence .
investigator uncovered these findings by canvas the activity of different groups of neurons in the hippocampus after black eye had completed various memory tasks . These tasks imply learning to quash harmful situations , such as meet an galvanizing shock to their foot , before being confronted with the same task later on .
The way these three group of neurons control on different timescales may help oneself explain how the brain regulates storage over time , the study writer suggested . However , it is still unclear how exactly these neurons interact with each other to facilitate this , cogitation co - authorFlavio Donato , an adjunct professor of neurobiology at the University of Basel in Switzerland , secernate Live Science .
Notably , the memories stored by late - hold nerve cell were more plastic , or malleable , than those of early - stick out neurons , the team found . This suggests that at the start of storage formation — when early - bear neuron sovereignty — the information stored remains fairly stable over clock time , while store lay in later on are more easily heave by new selective information .
If the same phenomenon happens in humans , this finding could someday lead to the development of new therapy for specific disorder , Donato allege . For example , in post - traumatic strain disorder ( PTSD ) , masses see intrusive memories , meaning unwanted , sad memory of a traumatic event . Perhaps a drug could be designed that preferentially activates of late - born neuron , which are more moldable and thus more open to psychotherapy , he said .
— ' Muscle retentiveness ' get ' zip and unzipped ' in the brain , like computer file
— Secret inner workings of cubicle revealed through self - assembling ' memory ' chains
— How does the psyche store memories ?
In the typesetter’s case of people with memory loss due to dementedness , meanwhile , another type of drug could stimulate the action of early - bear neurons , whose data is stored more rigidly . loosely verbalize , such treatments would cook the dimension of a storage by choose which type of neuron is used to encode it in the brain , Donato explain .
" I feel like we now have biological unveiling pointedness to tone the malleability of computer storage in a way that might allow us to push it towards being more or less plastic , in parliamentary procedure to preserve it or to fundamentally re - publish it , " Donato said .
Ever marvel whysome multitude build muscularity more easily than othersorwhy freckles issue forth out in the sun ? transmit us your questions about how the human consistency works tocommunity@livescience.comwith the open line " Health Desk Q , " and you may see your question suffice on the website !
