Spike-timing dependent plasticity of GABAergic synapses in the hippocampus

动物适应不断变化的环境的能力在很大程度上取决于它们的学习和记忆能力。为了做到这一点，大脑在任何给定的时间都会破译数十亿个神经元之间的数千个电信号。然而，目前还不清楚大脑认为这些电信号中包含的哪些信息是关键的。例如，重要的是神经活动的总量，还是两个神经元电活动的时间上的微小差异？我们的研究不仅集中于研究大脑如何解码电信号，而且还研究学习和记忆的细胞和分子机制。使用最先进的录音，我们能够同时测量两个神经元的电活动，这两个神经元正在被修改，以响应模拟学习的电信号。

The ability of animals to adapt to their ever-changing environments depends in large part on their ability to learn and remember. To do so the brain deciphers thousands of electrical signals between billions of neurons at any given time. However it is unclear what information contained within these electrical signals the brain deems critical. For example, is it the overall amount of neural activity that is important or is it the small differences in timing between when two neurons are electrically active? Our research is centered on examining not only how the brain decodes electrical signals, but on the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying learning and memory. Using state-of-the-art recordings we are able to measure the electrical activity simultaneously from two neurons which are being modified in response to electrical signals that simulate learning.