Fear boosts activation of immature brain cells: Adult neural stem cells play role in creating emotional context of memory
Tuesday, June 14, 2011 - 13:30
in Psychology & Sociology
Scientists have long known that fear and highly emotional experiences lead to incredibly strong memories. A new study describes one way by which emotions can affect memory: The brain's emotional center, the amygdala, induces the hippocampus, a relay hub for memory, to generate new neurons. In a fearful situation, these newborn neurons are activated by the amygdala, providing a "blank slate" to strongly imprint the new fearful memory.