Memory-enhancing effects of hippocampal estrogen receptor activation involve metabotropic glutamate receptor signaling, mouse study suggests. (2013)
From the article:
The research, published in the the Journal of Neuroscience today, focused on estrogen effects in a brain region called the hippocampus, which deteriorates with age or Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers found that each of the two known estrogen receptors rapidly activate a specific cellular pathway necessary for memory formation in the hippocampus of female mice, but only if they interact with a certain glutamate receptor, called mGluR1.
The study revealed that when this glutamate receptor is blocked, the cell-signaling protein ERK cannot be activated by the potent estrogen, 17β-estradiol. Because ERK activation is necessary for memory formation, estradiol failed to enhance memory among mice in which mGluR1 was blocked.
Enjoying this research? Get deeper insights like this delivered every other week.
Every other week our Premium Members receive deep dives like this alongside Rhonda's commentary and 8+ other hand-picked papers.
Frick’s team also found evidence that estrogen receptors and mGluR1 physically interact at the cell membrane, allowing estradiol to influence memory formation within seconds to minutes.