Long-term potentiation in the insular cortex enhances conditioned taste aversion retention

Long-lasting changes in synaptic strength, such as long-term potentiation ( LTP), are thought to underlie memory formation. Recent studies on the insul ar cortex (IC), a region of the temporal cortex implicated in the acquisiti on and retention of conditioned taste aversion (CTA)I have demonstrated tha t tetanic stimulation of the basolateral nucleus of the amygdala (Bla) indu ce LTP in the IC of adult rats in vivo, as well as, that blockade of N-meth yl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors disrupts CTA and IC-LTP induction in vivo. Here, we present experimental data showing that induction of LTP in the Bla -IC projection previous to CTA training enhances the retention of this task . These findings are of particular interest since they provide support for the view that the neural mechanisms underlying neocortical LTP may contribu te to memory related functions performed by the IC. (C) 2000 Elsevier Scien ce B.V. All rights reserved.