The mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic system includes the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and its projections to the amygdala (AMY), the hippocampus (HIP) and the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), among others. Object recognition (OR) long-term memory (LTM) processing requires dopaminergic activity but, although some of the brain regions mentioned above are necessary for OR LTM consolidation, their possible dopamine-mediated interplay remains to be analyzed. Using adult male Wistar rats, we found that posttraining microinjection of the dopamine D1/D5 receptor antagonist SCH23390 in mPFC or AMY, but not in HIP, impaired OR LTM. The dopamine D2 receptor agonist quinpirole had no effect on retention. VTA inactivation also hindered OR LTM, and even though this effect was unaffected by co-infusion of the dopamine D1/D5 receptor agonist SKF38393 in HIP, mPFC or AMY alone, it was reversed by simultaneous activation of D1/D5 receptors in the last two regions. Our results demonstrate that the mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic system is indeed essential for OR LTM consolidation and suggest that the role played by some of its components during this process is much more complex than previously thought.

Therapies based on the impairment of reconsolidation or the enhancement of extinction offer the possibility of decreasing the persistent recollection of distressing memories. However, the direct interplay between reconsolidation and extinction has rarely been considered. Previously, we reported that reactivation induces reconsolidation of fear extinction memory. Here, using a step-down inhibitory avoidance learning paradigm in rats, we show that intrahippocampus infusion of function-blocking anti-BDNF antibody immediately or 6 h after extinction memory reactivation impairs the reconsolidation of extinction. Extinction memory reactivation increases_proBDNF, BDNF, and tropomyosin receptor kinase B (TrkB) phosphorylation levels in dorsal CA1, while blocking BDNF maturation in the hippocampus with plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 hinders the persistence of extinction and induces the recurrence of fear. Moreover, coinfusion of recombinant BDNF (0.25 μg/side) after extinction memory reactivation impedes the recovery of the avoidance response induced by inhibiting gene expression and protein synthesis in the dorsal hippocampus. Our findings unravel a new role for BDNF, suggesting that this neurotrophin is necessary and sufficient to maintain the reactivated fear extinction engram.

When retrieval occurs concomitantly with novelty detection, mismatch perception or reactivation of conflicting information, consolidated memories can enter into a labile state, and to persist, must be restabilized through a protein synthesis-dependent reconsolidation process during which their strength and content can be modified. Extensive literature implicates brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a key regulator of synaptogenesis and synaptic plasticity, in the acquisition, consolidation and extinction of several memory types. However, the participation of BDNF in memory reconsolidation has been less studied. In this review, we discuss recent reports supporting the involvement of BDNF signaling in reactivation-induced memory updating.

Avoidance memory reactivation at recall triggers theta-gamma hippocampal phase amplitude coupling (hPAC) only when it elicits hippocampus-dependent reconsolidation. However, it is not known whether there is a causal relationship between these phenomena. We found that in adult male Wistar rats, silencing the medial septum during recall did not affect avoidance memory expression or maintenance but abolished hPAC and the amnesia caused by the intrahippocampal administration of reconsolidation blockers, both of which were restored by concomitant theta burst stimulation of the fimbria–fornix pathway. Remarkably, artificial hPAC generated by fimbria–fornix stimulation during recall of a learned avoidance response naturally resistant to hippocampus-dependent reconsolidation made it susceptible to reactivation-dependent amnesia. Our results indicate that hPAC mediates the destabilization required for avoidance memory reconsolidation and suggest that the generation of artificial hPAC at recall overcomes the boundary conditions of this process. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Theta-gamma hippocampal phase-amplitude coupling (hPAC) increases during the induction of hippocampus-dependent avoidance memory reconsolidation. However, whether hPAC plays a causal role in this process remains unknown. Using behavioral, electrophysiological, optogenetic, and biochemical tools in adult male Wistar rats, we demonstrate that reactivation-induced hPAC is necessary for avoidance memory destabilization, and that artificial induction of this patterned activity during recall of reconsolidation-resistant aversive memories renders them liable to the amnesic effect of reconsolidation inhibitors.