Under normal conditions, the animals develop a significant avoidance of the compartment that was previously associated with the footshock. During testing, the rat is placed back into the lit compartment, and the time the animal takes (latency) to enter the dark compartment is measured (test). A few seconds later, the rat is returned to the home cage. Upon entering, the door is closed, and a mild electric footshock is delivered from the grid floor. The time the rat takes to enter the dark compartment is taken as acquisition latency. Because of their exploratory drive and nocturnal nature, the rats quickly enter the dark compartment. After 10 s, the door separating the compartments is automatically opened, allowing the rat access to the dark (shock) compartment. During the training session, the rat is placed in the lit (safe) compartment of a two-chamber apparatus. Schematic representation of the IA task used in our studies. We propose that infantile amnesia reflects a developmental critical period during which the learning system is learning how to learn and remember.Ĭopyright © 2017 the authors 0270-6483-13$15.00/0. Here, with a particular focus on the hippocampal memory system, we review the literature and discuss new evidence obtained in rats that illuminates the paradox of infantile amnesia. It remains unclear how a brain that rapidly forgets, or is not yet able to form long-term memories, can exert such a long-lasting and important influence. ![]() Although early memories are inaccessible to adults, early-life events, such as neglect or aversive experiences, can greatly impact adult behavior and may predispose individuals to various psychopathologies. It has been suggested that infantile amnesia is due to the underdevelopment of the infant brain, which would preclude memory consolidation, or to deficits in memory retrieval. ![]() ![]() Infantile amnesia, the inability of adults to recollect early episodic memories, is associated with the rapid forgetting that occurs in childhood.
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