An NMDA receptor-mediated model of associative olfactory learning

Lethbridge, Rebecca (2011) An NMDA receptor-mediated model of associative olfactory learning. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

These experiments support a critical role of the NMDAR in early odor preference learning. First, learning is associated with a significant increase in phosphorylation of the NMDAR at odor-specific glomerular synapses following training and blocking the NMDAR at these glomerular synapses during training prevents learning. These results establish a causal role of the NMDAR in the induction of early odor learning. Second, early odor preference learning induces a transient decrease in synaptic NMDAR GluN1 subunit expression at 3 h post-training and a slower change of synaptic GluN2B subunit expression at 24 h. Transient decreases in synaptic NMDAR expression are thought to be important for maintaining the existing memory while reducing the plasticity for competing new memory. Finally, using ex vivo electrophysiology, it was shown that learning significantly increases the AMPA/NMDA ratio of mitral cell EPSC components. Together, these experiments support an NMDAR-mediated mitral cell-LTP model of early odor preference learning.

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