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Emotional attachment to memories makes them stronger
Memories associated with strong emotions are often burned into the brain. Most people can remember where they were on September 11th or what the weather was like the day their first child was born. Memories of world events on September 10th or lunch last Tuesday have long been erased. Why are memories of emotions so strong? "It makes sense that we don't remember everything," says René Hen, PhD, professor of psychiatry and neuroscience at Columbia University's Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. "We have limited brain power. We just have to remember...
Emotional attachment to memories makes them stronger
Memories associated with strong emotions are often burned into the brain.
Most people can remember where they were on September 11th or what the weather was like the day their first child was born. Memories of world events on September 10th or lunch last Tuesday have long been erased.
Why are memories of emotions so strong?
"It makes sense that we don't remember everything," says René Hen, PhD, professor of psychiatry and neuroscience at Columbia University's Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. "We have limited brain power. We just need to remember what is important for our future well-being."
In this context, fear is not just a short feeling, but a learning experience that is crucial for our survival. When a new situation scares us, the brain records the details in our neurons to avoid similar situations in the future or applies appropriate caution.
What is still a mystery is why these memories recorded by the brain's hippocampus become so strong.
To find out, Hen and Jessica Jimenez, an MD/PhD student at Columbia, placed mice in new, frightening environments and recorded the activity of hippocampal neurons that reach the brain's fear center (the amygdala). The activity of the neurons was also recorded a day later as the mice attempted to recall memories of the experience.
Not surprisingly, neurons that respond to the frightening environment send this information to the fear center of the brain.
Here's what's surprising about the study
“What was surprising was that these neurons were synchronized when the mouse later recalled the memory,” says Hen.
"We have seen that it is synchrony that is crucial for producing fear memory. The greater the synchrony, the stronger the memory," adds Jimenez. “These are the types of mechanisms that explain why you remember salient events.”
How and when does synchronization occur?
How and when synchronization occurs is still unknown, but the answer could reveal the inner workings of the brain that create lifelong memories and lead to new treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder.
“In people with PTSD, many similar events remind them of the original scary situation,” says Hen, “and it is possible that the synchronization of their neurons has become too strong.”
“We’re really trying to study the mechanisms of how emotional memories are formed to find better treatments for people with PTSD and memory disorders in general.”