Archived Seminar: Memory, Learning to Learn, and Control of Cognitive Representations
Pioneers in Biomedical Research Seminar presented by the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Archived Seminar: Memory, learning to learn, and control of cognitive representations
Date: Feb. 19, 2021
Time: 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
About this Seminar
Biological neural networks can represent information in the collective action potential discharge of neurons, and store that information amongst the synaptic connections between the neurons that both comprise the network and govern its function. The strength and organization of synaptic connections adjust during learning, but many cognitive neural systems are multifunctional, making it unclear how continuous activity alternates between the transient and discrete cognitive functions like encoding current information and recollecting past information, without changing the connections amongst the neurons. This lecture will first summarize our investigations of the molecular and biochemical mechanisms that change synaptic function to persistently store spatial memory in the rodent hippocampus. Dr. Fenton will then report on how entorhinal cortex-hippocampus circuit function changes during cognitive training that creates memory, as well as learning to learn in mice. He will then describe how the hippocampus system operates like a competitive winner-take-all network, that, based on the dominance of its current inputs, self organizes into either the encoding or recollection information processing modes. Dr. Fenton's research finds no evidence that distinct cells are dedicated to those two distinct functions, rather activation of the hippocampus information processing mode is controlled by a subset of dentate spike events within the network of learning-modified, entorhinal-hippocampus excitatory and inhibitory synapses.
Additional Details
This is a free event hosted by the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute and co-sponsored by the institute's Center for Neurobiology Research. The Pioneers in Biomedical Research Seminar Series, which runs annually from September to May, has featured leading biomedical researchers from throughout the country since the program began in 2012. Presented virtually via Zoom primarily for research and clinical audiences, the lectures are also open to all members of the Virginia Tech community including graduate students, undergraduates, faculty, and staff, as well as the public.
You May Also Be Interested In...
-
Home ItemA Novel Bispecific Antibody to Target the Brain Tumor Microenvironment , home
May 2, 2025, 11:00 a.m. | Khuson Yun, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Neurology, Houston Methodist Chair, Neurodegenerative Disease Research, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College | Co-Sponsored by the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute Cancer Research Center – Roanoke
-
Home ItemTransformation of Information from the External World by Cortical Circuits During Learning , home
May 9, 2025, 11:00 a.m. | Alison Barth, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University | Co-Sponsored by the Center for Neurobiology Research, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute
-
Home ItemThe Role of Exercise in Memory Function , home
May 23, 2025, 11:00 a.m. | Henriette van Praag, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Science, Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, Florida Atlantic University | Co-Sponsored by the Center for Exercise Medicine Research, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute
-
Home ItemPathways and Regulation of Cardiac Nav1.5 Channel Trafficking in Adult Myocytes , home
May 30, 2025, 11:00 a.m. | Gea-Ny Tseng, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine | Co-Sponsored by the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute Center for Vascular and Heart Research
-
Home ItemTargeting Acquired Dependencies During Tumor Evolution , home
June 6, 2025, 11:00 a.m. | Kris Wood, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University School of Medicine | Co-Sponsored by the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute Cancer Research Center – D.C.

Andre Fenton, Ph.D.
Professor, Center for Neural Science, College of Arts and Science, Neuroscience Institute, NYU Langone Health, New York University