• The physical basis of memory and learning

  Research in the past decade has finally begun to reveal the physical basis for the storage of memories. There is increasingly strong evidence that physical changes in the structures called synapses, which allow communication between neurons in the brain, and the functional consequence of those changes, called long-term potentiation, are the physical basis of important forms of learning and memory.
  

• Neuroimaging in cognitive research

  Neuroimaging techniques that allow scientists to peer inside the living, functioning human brain, are immensely powerful tools for cognitive research. One particularly valuable technique, functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, promises to make it possible for researchers to discover which brain circuits are responsible for specific cognitive processes.
  

• The effect of hormones on learning and memory

  Estrogens, the female sex hormones that are so important in menstruation and other bodily functions, may also modulate cognitive processes such as memory. There is preliminary evidence that estrogen maintenance therapy enhances memory in post-menopausal women and delays memory loss related to Alzheimer's disease.
  

• Generation of new nerve cells in the adult brain

  For many years it was believed that the brain, once formed, could not produce new nerve cells. But adult generation of new nerve cells, found first in birds, then in rats, then in monkeys, has now been found in humans as well. The nerve cell regeneration occurs in the hippocampus, a portion of the brain essential to the formation of memories. NIMH-supported scientists are attempting to learn what role nerve cell regeneration plays in the normal memory function of the hippocampus.
  

• Role of stress in nerve cell regeneration

  Recently, work with animals has shown that nerve cell generation is affected by stress: stress appears to decrease the capacity for generation of new nerve cells. Scientists supported in part by NIMH funds are working intensively to understand the factors linking stress and decreases in nerve cell regeneration. Understanding these effects is critical because stress can be such a major factor in life events and because the brain areas affected play an important role in basic memory functions.
  

• Role of emotion in cognition

  Emotion plays a major role in determining how memories are stored. Strong emotion, such as fear, can mark a memory so that it retains its vividness in a very persistent way, as in post-traumatic stress disorder. NIMH-supported scientists are studying how such memories are formed, stored and retrieved, in the hope of obtaining information that can be used in the development of new treatments for memory-related disorders.
  

• Extension of cognitive research to depression and anxiety disorders

  Research in this area is expanding rapidly. For example, NIMH-supported researchers have found that a depressive mental "schema"- a tendency to "view the glass as half empty rather than half full" even when in a normal mood, predisposes a person to depression and plays a role in the active illness.
  

• Cognition in schizophrenia

  NIMH-supported research has contributed to the development of an influential model of the cognitive problems that are a prominent feature of schizophrenia. The model says that people with schizophrenia have difficulty taking account of the context of events and information and making an appropriate response. The neurotransmitter dopamine is thought to play a role in this problem.
  

• Infants

  The process by which infants acquire language has long been of interest to scientists and parents alike. NIMH-supported researchers have now shown that infants 3 to 4 months old have greater ability to comprehend speech than previously thought. Other studies focus on infants of depressed mothers. These children, who are at risk for depression later in life, may be affected by their mothers' speech patterns: the researchers have shown that depressed mothers of infants use flat, unanimated tones in speaking to their babies. This research suggests that intervention to treat depression in mothers of infants, and to improve their interaction with their babies, may pay off in reduced rates of depression as the children grow up.
  

• Decision-making

  The process by which people choose between different options has long been of interest to cognitive psychologists. In addition, decision-making is often impaired in mental illness. With NIMH support, these studies are now going beyond tightly controlled laboratory experiments into the Areal world.@ Researchers will study the mental processes that underlie decision-making.
  

• Conditioning in animals

  NIMH-supported investigators are learning more about the perceptual, memory, and attentional mechanisms underlying classical conditioning (the process by which an animal learns to associate two stimuli, such as a light and a shock) and operant conditioning (the process by which an animal learns to relate certain external events to its own behavior, such as gaining a food reward by pressing a lever). The researchers are developing cognitive models to explain these phenomena. This work will have applications for understanding phobias and for the development of treatments.
  

• Plasticity: the integration of "nature" and "nurture"

  The physical changes in the brain resulting from new memories, the addition of new neurons, changes in hormones, and stress and trauma all point to constant remodeling of the brain itself. Through this plasticity, experience is constantly changing the brain. Neuro-scientists are beginning to glimpse how the mind might alter its substrate, the brain.

For More Information About NIMH

The Office of Communication and Public Liaison carries out educational activities and publishes and distributes research reports, press releases, fact sheets, and publications intended for researchers, health care providers, and the general public. A publications list may be obtained on the web at http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publist/puborder.cfm or by contacting:

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Bethesda, MD 20892-9663
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http://www.nimh.nih.gov
Anxiety Disorders Information:
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Depression Information: 1-800-421-4211

Information about research opportunities at the NIMH Intramural Research Program may be obtained from:

Office of the Scientific Director, NIMH
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Information for scientists on NIMH grants and contracts programs, including grant application and review, Requests for Applications, Requests for Proposals, program announcements, research training and career development, small business programs, program analyses of NIMH extramural research grants and applications, access to NIH Grants policy, and other material may be obtained from the NIMH home page: http://www.nimh.nih.gov.

NIH Publication No. 00-4742
Printed 2000