--- res: bibo_abstract: - "The ability to form and retrieve memories is central to survival. In mammals, the hippocampus\r\nis a brain region essential to the acquisition and consolidation of new memories. It is also\r\ninvolved in keeping track of one’s position in space and aids navigation. Although this\r\nspace-memory has been a source of contradiction, evidence supports the view that the role of\r\nthe hippocampus in navigation is memory, thanks to the formation of cognitive maps. First\r\nintroduced by Tolman in 1948, cognitive maps are generally used to organize experiences in\r\nmemory; however, the detailed mechanisms by which these maps are formed and stored are not\r\nyet agreed upon. Some influential theories describe this process as involving three fundamental\r\nsteps: initial encoding by the hippocampus, interactions between the hippocampus and other\r\ncortical areas, and long-term extra-hippocampal consolidation. In this thesis, I will show how\r\nthe investigation of cognitive maps of space helped to shed light on each of these three memory\r\nprocesses.\r\nThe first study included in this thesis deals with the initial encoding of spatial memories in\r\nthe hippocampus. Much is known about encoding at the level of single cells, but less about\r\ntheir co-activity or joint contribution to the encoding of novel spatial information. I will\r\ndescribe the structure of an interaction network that allows for efficient encoding of noisy\r\nspatial information during the first exploration of a novel environment.\r\nThe second study describes the interactions between the hippocampus and the prefrontal\r\ncortex (PFC), two areas directly and indirectly connected. It is known that the PFC, in concert\r\nwith the hippocampus, is involved in various processes, including memory storage and spatial\r\nnavigation. Nonetheless, the detailed mechanisms by which PFC receives information from the\r\nhippocampus are not clear. I will show how a transient improvement in theta phase locking of\r\nPFC cells enables interactions of cell pairs across the two regions.\r\nThe third study describes the learning of behaviorally-relevant spatial locations in the hippocampus and the medial entorhinal cortex. I will show how the accumulation of firing around\r\ngoal locations, a correlate of learning, can shed light on the transition from short- to long-term\r\nspatial memories and the speed of consolidation in different brain areas.\r\nThe studies included in this thesis represent the main scientific contributions of my Ph.D. They\r\ninvolve statistical analyses and models of neural responses of cells in different brain areas of\r\nrats executing spatial tasks. I will conclude the thesis by discussing the impact of the findings\r\non principles of memory formation and retention, including the mechanisms, the speed, and\r\nthe duration of these processes.@eng" bibo_authorlist: - foaf_Person: foaf_givenName: Michele foaf_name: Nardin, Michele foaf_surname: Nardin foaf_workInfoHomepage: http://www.librecat.org/personId=30BD0376-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87 orcid: 0000-0001-8849-6570 bibo_doi: 10.15479/at:ista:11932 dct_date: 2022^xs_gYear dct_isPartOf: - http://id.crossref.org/issn/2663-337X dct_language: eng dct_publisher: Institute of Science and Technology Austria@ dct_title: On the encoding, transfer, and consolidation of spatial memories@ ...