Impairments in the learning and memory of even the simplest of tasks can be extremely disruptive to normal functioning and, in the long term, affect both mental and physical health. To fully understand impairments of learning and memory, it is necessary to understand how the brain alters activity to produce learning and memory. To this end, the long term goal of the proposed research is to described neuronal mechanisms and processes that form the basis of simple forms of learning and memory. More specifically, the proposed experiments are designed to study of the involvement the cerebellar deep nuclei (i.e., the interpositus nucleus) in classical conditioning, a simple form of motor learning. Three phases of experimentation are proposed: 1) a characterization of the patterns of critical sitmulus inputs the interpositus nucleus, 2) a description of potential alterations of activity of the interpositus nucleus during classical conditioning, 3) the development of a reduced preparation amenale to future intracellular study of neuronal mechanisms involved in classical conditioning. In all three phases of the proposed experimentation, extracellular field potentials and single unit acitivity evoked by stimulation of precerebellar afferents will be monitored to assess imterpositus activity. It is anticipated that these studies will provide valuable data concerning activity of the interpositus nucleus during classical conditioning.
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