A meeting to remember: Meeting on Memory and Related Disorders

The Juan March Foundation workshop on Memory and Related Disorders was held on the Campus of Cantoblanco, Universidad Autonoma of Madrid, Spain between 12 and 14 December 2005, and was organized by J. Lerma, G. Gasic and J. Avila. ![][1] Blustery Madrid winter days, traffic‐congested streets and an encounter with dysfunctional public transport are difficult to forget. Fortunately, the approximately 50 scientists that gathered in the city for the workshop on ‘Memory and Related Disorders’ also took away memories of outstanding presentations and vigorous discussions. The workshop tackled a diverse set of topics including: the neural systems involved in declarative and emotional memories; the cellular and molecular correlates of memory and their modulation by drugs of abuse; memory phases; and the effects on the cellular and neural systems of ageing and neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental diseases. Diverse experimental disciplines represented at the meeting—such as bioinformatics, biophysics, cell and molecular biology, experimental psychology, genetics, neuroimaging, neuroethology, pharmacology and physiology—provided a rich tapestry depicting the encoding and maintenance of memories, and the diseases that subvert these processes. Studies of the mammalian mechanisms of memory have focused on the hippocampus, the perirhinal and parahippocampal cortices of the temporal lobe, the amygdala, the olfactory, prefrontal and visual cortices, and the cerebellum (Fig 1). The first session of the meeting examined the neural systems that process different types of memory in humans. The studies that were discussed used neuroimaging, clever psychological paradigms and pharmacological interventions to try to traverse the gulf between descriptive studies and insights into the mechanisms involved. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and anatomically constrained magnetoencephalography (which captures signal changes with a fast onset), A. Wagner (Stanford, CA, USA) examined the mechanisms of the human medial temporal lobe (MTL), which builds and retrieves memories. Activation patterns during the encoding of words differ for … [1]: /embed/graphic-1.gif