- This event has passed.
- Zoom option if unable to attend in person:
- Zoom link here (click on “Join a meeting”)
- Meeting ID: 91512 289258
- Passcode: 289258
Many biological processes, including memory formation, are strongly influenced by the circadian system, which synchronizes animals’ internal states with the external time of day. Long-term memory performance changes across the day/night cycle in both humans and rodents, yet the mechanisms that support this process are largely unknown. In this talk, I will present my lab’s research suggesting that a circadian clock gene, Period1 (Per1) may serve as a molecular interface between the circadian clock and memory formation. Per1 oscillates in tandem with memory in memory-relevant brain regions, like the hippocampus, with both memory and Per1 levels peaking during the day and showing a trough at night. Interestingly, old animals have repressed hippocampal Per1 levels even during the day, suggesting that they may show impairments in memory due to this persistent “nighttime state” that limits memory across the diurnal cycle. Together, our data suggest that Per1 may function locally in memory-relevant brain regions to exert diurnal control over memory.