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Journalism of Courage
Emotional memories of a traumatic experience in life often persist in our minds. Now, researchers from The University of Queensland shed light on how we remember traumatic events.
The team found uncovered a cellular mechanism underlying the formation of emotional memories, which occurs in the presence of a well-known stress hormone.
They showed how noradrenaline, the brain8217;s equivalent of adrenaline, affects amygdala- the brain area associated with emotions- by controlling chemical and electrical pathways in the brain responsible for memory formation.
8220;This is a new way of understanding how neurons form long term memories in the amygdala,8221; said Dr Louise Faber, from Queensland Brain Institute QBI.
8220;Our strongest and most vivid human memories are usually associated with strong emotional events such as those associated with extreme fear, love and rage.8221;
8220;For many of us, our deepest memories are mental snapshots taken during times of high emotional impact or involvement,8221; she said.
8220;Some aspects of memory formation are incredibly robust 8211; and the mechanism we8221;ve discovered opens another door in terms of understanding how these memories are formed,8221; she added.
She said that the new discovery could help other scientists to elucidate new targets, leading to better treatments for conditions such as anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder.
