Dr. Anna Phan: How social isolation impairs learning

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Social isolation and loneliness has been on the rise for the last 20yrs. Many studies have linked increased rates of isolation and loneliness to dementia, depression, anxiety, and other mental health disorders, but how isolation affects the brain to alter behaviors is unknown. Here, we focus on how isolation impairs learning and memory in the model organism Drosophila. We’ve found that isolation impairs learning and reduces synaptic proteins in the brains of fruit flies. This appears to cause alterations to their neural circuitry  that impairs learning by reducing the capacity for synaptic plasticity.