In addition to the hippocampus, the marginal division of the striatum is also involved in learning and memory. What is the impact degree of substance P in the striatal marginal division on learning and memory function? Yan Yu and his team, College of Biophotonics, South China Normal University, China found, using immunofluorescence staining, that substance P receptor, neurokinin 1 was highly expressed in the hippocampus and striatal marginal division of normal rats. Unilateral or bilateral injection of an antisense oligonucleotide against neurokinin 1 receptor mRNA in the rat hippocampus or marginal division of the striatum effectively reduced neurokinin 1 receptor expression, and rat learning and memory function was significantly decreased. The authors considered that marginal division of the striatum plays a similar function in learning and memory to the hippocampus. Related results were published in Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 9, No. 8, 2014).
Through immunofluorescence staining, substance P receptor, neurokinin 1, exists in the hippocampus of normal rats.
(Photo Credit: Neural Regeneration Research)
Source: Neural Regeneration Research