Glucocorticoids can induce PTSD-like memory impairments in mice
Science. 2012-02-23; 335(6075): 1510-1513
DOI: 10.1126/science.1207615
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1. Science. 2012 Mar 23;335(6075):1510-3. doi: 10.1126/science.1207615. Epub 2012
Feb 23.
Glucocorticoids can induce PTSD-like memory impairments in mice.
Kaouane N(1), Porte Y, Vallée M, Brayda-Bruno L, Mons N, Calandreau L, Marighetto
A, Piazza PV, Desmedt A.
Author information:
(1)CNRS UMR 5228, Centre de Neurosciences Intégratives et Cognitives, Talence,
France.
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterized by a hypermnesia of the
trauma and by a memory impairment that decreases the ability to restrict fear to
the appropriate context. Infusion of glucocorticoids in the hippocampus after
fear conditioning induces PTSD-like memory impairments and an altered pattern of
neural activation in the hippocampal-amygdalar circuit. Mice become unable to
identify the context as the correct predictor of the threat and show fear
responses to a discrete cue not predicting the threat in normal conditions. These
data demonstrate PTSD-like memory impairments in rodents and identify a potential
pathophysiological mechanism of this condition.
DOI: 10.1126/science.1207615
PMID: 22362879 [Indexed for MEDLINE]