Recovery of memory following amnesia in the rat and mouse

Conducted 6 experiments with male Holtzman rats (n = 84) and male C57BL/6J strain mice (n = 278). Memory of 1-trial passive avoidance was disrupted by ECS or a protein synthesis inhibitor, cycloheximide. Results indicate that (a) reexposure of the amnesic S to the training apparatus was sufficient to initiate recovery, (b) a reminder shock catalyzed the rate of recovery of memory only when presented before or after reexposure to the training apparatus, (c) the recovered memory was as durable as the memory observed in Ss never treated with the amnesic agents, and (d) cycloheximide attenuated the recovery of memory in mice made amnesic by the same agent. This attenuation applied to memory recovered by reexposure to the apparatus alone or in combination with reminder shock given before or after the initial retention test. (15 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved).