Scientists at the research center Applied Medicine (CIMA ) of the University of Navarra have identified a molecular switch that activates, during the development of the brain, the mechanisms involved in report and learning. The results have been published in the latest issue of the prestigious journal Neuron.

The brain is made up of complex networks of neurons that transmit and process information. "Although it is still unknown how this vast network is formed network, we already have some pieces of this puzzle. We know, for example, that around the third year of life, a radical change takes place as a result of which the brain begins to remember. However, it remains a mystery how the brain suddenly acquires this capacity to store memories," explains Dr. Isabel Pérez-Otaño, manager of the laboratory of Cellular Neurobiology of the CIMA and lead author of work.

The study carried out at the CIMA sheds light on this issue by demonstrating the importance of the NR3 gene, whose controlled deletion acts as a clicker in the process. "We designed a mouse model with prolonged expression of this gene, which is normally deleted during brain development , and observed that although the animals were able to learn new tasks, they did not remember them the next day. The brains of the mice showed subtle defects in the synapses (microscopicStructures connecting neurons to neurons). The results were corroborated by extensive morphological, electrophysiological and behavioral tests."

But the work of this group of scientists goes further and confirms that it is possible to recover normal cognitive functions by suppressing NR3A expression, even when this is done at a late period of development. The data obtained suggest new avenues of treatment for neurological disorders that delay childhood cognitive development . "Moreover, abnormal expression of NR3 in adult brains could be implicated in pathologies as diverse as Parkinson's disease or schizophrenia, so these advances in a basic mechanism of development would also provide clues on how to combat these diseases," concludes Dr. Pérez-Otaño.