Hippocampal inhibitory control of contextual fear learning

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Maladaptive fear responses due to brain circuit pathology have been widely implicated in several psychiatric disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and panic disorders. Clinical solutions to these disorders thus require a greater understanding of the basic structure and function of neural circuits implementing these memory functions. Here we propose to apply new technologies - cellular-resolution functional neural imaging and cell type-specific manipulations of genetically identified hippocampal circuits in behaving mice - for studying contextual fear learning and storage. Our result will inform our basic understanding of how we learn and remember, and suggest specific targets for treatment and rehabilitation of maladaptive fear responses in disorders of fear, anxiety, and memory.