Circadian disruption of memory consolidation in Drosophila

Jerry C P Yin; Ethan Cui; Paul E Hardin; Hong Zhou

doi:10.3389/fnsys.2023.1129152

Circadian disruption of memory consolidation in Drosophila

Front Syst Neurosci. 2023 Mar 22:17:1129152. doi: 10.3389/fnsys.2023.1129152. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Jerry C P Yin^{1

2}, Ethan Cui¹, Paul E Hardin³, Hong Zhou¹

Affiliations

¹ Laboratory of Genetics, School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States.
² Neurology Department, School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States.
³ Department of Biology and Center for Biological Clocks Research, Texas A&M University, College Station, College Station, TX, United States.

Abstract

The role of the circadian system in memory formation is an important question in neurobiology. Despite this hypothesis being intuitively appealing, the existing data is confusing. Recent work in Drosophila has helped to clarify certain aspects of the problem, but the emerging sense is that the likely mechanisms are more complex than originally conceptualized. In this report, we identify a post-training window of time (during consolidation) when the circadian clock and its components are involved in memory formation. In the broader context, our data suggest that circadian biology might have multiple roles during memory formation. Testing for its roles at multiple timepoints, and in different cells, will be necessary to resolve some of the conflicting data.

Keywords: Drosophila; circadian; light/dark; memory formation; sleep.

Grants and funding

The experiments began in the Yin lab more than 25 years ago and were supported by NIH NS35575, HL/AR59649 (with Amita Sehgal), DA015753, MH067774, and NS063245, funds from the McKnight Foundation, FRAXA, CHDI/HQ Foundation, and AHAF/ADR. Recent research was partially supported through funds from the International Division of UW-Madison, and a UW-Madison OVCRGE Fall Competition Award. Research in the Hardin lab was supported by the John W. Lyons’59 endowed Chair.