It is generally accepted that long-term memory (LTM) is encoded as alterations in synaptic strength.
An alternative model, however, proposes that LTM is encoded by epigenetic changes. Non-coding RNAs can mediate epigenetic modifications. Therefore, RNA from a trained animal might be capable of producing learning-like behavioral change in an untrained animal.
Here, it is demonstrated that the memory for long-term sensitization in the marine mollusk Aplysia can be successfully transferred by injecting RNA from sensitized into naïve animals. Moreover, a specific cellular alteration that underlies sensitization in Aplysia, sensory neuron hyperexcitability, can be reproduced by exposing sensory neurons in vitro to RNA from trained animals. The results provide support for a nonsynaptic, epigenetic model of memory storage in Aplysia.
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