Characterizing Memory Task Behavior in Caenorhabditis elegans: From Stochastic mRNA to Phenotype

Abstract

Understanding how information is encoded, formed, and stored as memory is a fundamental question in neuroscience; without memory, organisms would be reduced to simple reflexes and stereotyped behavior. However, there is still no clear understanding of the molecular pathways, downstream targets of identified proteins, and regulatory mechanisms of memory formation. Presented here is a characterization of molecular mechanism of short term memory, in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, a model system offering unique advantages for identifying novel genetic regulators of memory. We show that stochastic differences in gene expression profiles within isogenic population underlie variability in memory performance, and identify putative neuron-expressed genes which enhance memory performance.