Committing single events to memory

Single events account for many of our memories – a marriage proposal, a wedding toast, a baby’s birth. Until a recent UC Irvine discovery, scientists knew little about what happens inside your brain that allows you to remember such events. In a study with rats, neuroscientist John Guzowski and colleagues found that a single brief experience was as effective at activating neurons and genes associated with memory as more repetitive activities. Knowing how the brain remembers single events can help scientists design better therapies for diseases such as Alzheimer’s in which the ability to form such memories is impaired.