Science at the Center for the Neurobiology of Learning & Memory

CNLM scientists use state-of-the-art techniques to study the intricate mechanisms of learning and memory across every level of analysis, from molecules to mind. Our approach is comprehensive and strives to answer many fundamental questions including:

• How are memories formed, stored, and recalled?
• How can we slow down memory decline and halt Alzheimer's disease?
• How can we reduce or eliminate the effects of strong memories associated with addiction, stress, or trauma?
• How can discoveries of the cellular mechanisms of learning inform interventions for developmental disorders and intellectual disabilities?

• How can we develop new therapeutics for brain disorders like epilepsy, stroke, and traumatic brain injury using insights from learning and memory?

Within the laboratories of the CNLM, our pioneering discoveries have already shaped our understanding of memory and the brain in many ways. For example, our scientists have uncovered how:

• Memories are not formed instantly but are consolidated over time
• Memories are stored in connections among brain cells (synapses)
• Strong emotional responses strengthen memories
• Memories are reconstructed over time and are subject to distortion
• Adversity, stress, sleep, caffeine, and exercise impact memory
• Depression and addiction are associated with abnormally strong, negative, yet potentially reversible memories
• Elevated electrical signals in the aging brain lead to memory loss
• Cognitive decline can be slowed down in Alzheimer's disease
• Enhancing synaptic communication can improve learning and memory
• A rare form of superior autobiographical memory may hold the key to ending memory loss

These discoveries have marked major milestones in the history of brain science and progress our three pillars of excellence.

Click to learn about our team of Faculty Fellows and their work, advancing the CNLM's mission.

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