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Study published in Nature Communications analyzed the hippocampus of rodents and pointed out how highly connected neural networks can hinder lasting memories
A study published in the journal Nature Communications provided a new explanation for a common question: why don’t we have memories of early childhood?
The research, conducted with small rodents, indicates that the brain does not start as a blank slate. On the contrary, the hippocampus, an essential region for forming memories, is already born with highly connected networks.
According to the study, this hyperconnectivity can hinder the permanence of lasting memories. Thus, experiences lived in the early years may lose structure as the brain matures.
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The discovery was associated with the work of researchers from the Institute of Science and Technology Austria, with the participation of neuroscientist Peter Jonas, co-author of the study.
Study analyzed the memory center in the brain
The research focused on the hippocampus, a structure located inside the brain. This region received its name because it resembles the shape of a seahorse.
More specifically, the researchers observed the cornu ammonis 3, known as CA3.
This area plays a central role in memory storage and retrieval. Additionally, it exhibits high neural plasticity.
Neurons can strengthen, weaken, and reorganize their connections over time.
What scientists observed in rodents
To understand this process, the researchers analyzed brain tissues of rodents in three life stages:
- shortly after birth;
- during adolescence;
- in adulthood.
Initially, the networks in the hippocampus were very dense and interconnected. Therefore, many connections functioned simultaneously.
As growth occurred, this pattern changed. The previously disordered networks began to split into more sparse, specific, and organized connections.
During adolescence, there was a significant drop in connectivity. Thus, the brain began to refine its connections more selectively.
Why Childhood Memories Disappear
This very transformation may explain the absence of early childhood memories.
At the beginning of life, memories would be recorded in very broad neural networks. Later, with the reorganization of the hippocampus, these networks lose part of their original structure.
Consequently, many old experiences dissipate. Thus, the adult brain cannot retrieve these memories clearly.
The Brain Is Not Born as a Blank Slate
According to Peter Jonas, the memory system does not function as a blank slate.
Instead, it begins as a large tangle of connections. Then, gradually, it becomes more sparse and specifically connected.
Therefore, the research changes how scientists interpret the beginning of memory.
The brain does not just receive information from the world. It already has an initial organization that influences how this information will be absorbed.
Discovery Helps Understand Memory Maturation
The research does not claim that the same process occurs exactly the same way in humans. After all, the study was conducted with rodents.
Even so, the results help explain how the development of the hippocampus may influence the forgetting of early years.
The study reinforces that the lack of childhood memories does not happen due to a simple absence of experiences.
In fact, it may be linked to the way the infant brain organizes, modifies, and refines its connections.
Finally, the discovery shows that memory starts intensely, broadly, and highly connected. Over time, it becomes more selective.
Do you remember any very old scene from childhood or does everything seem to have disappeared over time? Share your opinion!
