Memories: Molecules and Circuits

The questions of how, where and when memory traces are formed in the brain remain central issues in Cognitive Neuroscience. How do neuronal systems encode, consolidate and retrieve memory? How are memories embedded into complex neuronal networks? How do molecular mechanisms modulate the neuronal plasticity and functioning of these networks during memory processing? What are the fundamental units of computation in the brain? Thanks to the development of novel approaches, including transgenic techniques, functional brain imaging, multiple cell recording, functional genomics and proteomics, the last decade has been witness to dramatic advances in the neurobiology, neuroanatomy, neurophysiology and neuropathology of learning and memory processes.

This volume surveys the recent advances and provides an integrative view of molecular, cellular, and systems level mechanisms underlying cognitive processes in both animals and humans. Current state of the art and future avenues are discussed by distinguished scientists who provide not only an overview of the underlying neurobiology of cognitive processes from a basic science standpoint, but who also focus on clinical and therapeutic aspects surrounding impairments associated with disorders that affect cognition.