The Molecular Bond That Helps Secure Your Memories
1 min read
Summary
Neuroscientist Todd Sacktor has devoted his career to understanding how memories persist in the brain.
In the 1990s, he discovered a protein called PKMζ that accumulates in the brain’s synapses - the connections between neurons - during the creation of a memory.
Yet, decades later, the exact role of this molecule in the memory process remained unclear.
In a paper published in Science Advances in 2024, Sacktor and his colleagues found that the protein interacts with another called KIBRA.
The pair work together to strengthen memories over time.
When the interaction was disrupted in mice, their ability to form new long-term memories was inhibited.
The discovery offers a molecular explanation of how memories can endure a lifetime despite the body’s fleeting molecules.
