Long Noncoding RNA Found to Have Impact on Fear-Extinction Memory

Researchers at The University of Queensland have discovered a new way that RNA impacts fear-related learning and memory. Led by Professor Timothy Bredy, the team demonstrated the significance of a lncRNA called Gas5 in orchestrating RNA trafficking within neurons. Published in Nature Communications, the research explores how Gas5 influences neuronal excitability, contributing in real-time to the complex processes of learning and memory formation.

“Understanding the complex world of RNA is a rapidly emerging area of neuroscience research, where we are constantly learning more about how different classes of RNA control the communication between and within brain cells,” Professor Bredy said

“There’s a lot more happening with these kinds of RNA molecules than we first thought and in fact they influence cellular function on a millisecond timeframe, which mirrors the real time changes in synaptic function that happen in the brain during learning, is extraordinary.

Non-coding RNA may be the missing link to understanding how the brain processes critically important inputs that lead to the formation of memory,” Bredy added.

The study builds on earlier findings from the Bredy Lab, which identified a separate population of learning-related RNAs that accumulate near the synapse.

These insights, coupled with the use of lncRNA capture-seq, which allowed the team to manipulate the functional state of an RNA molecule, could help researchers harness RNA to control the aspects of synaptic function underlying memory formation and to potentially develop an RNA therapeutic for the treatment of PTSD and phobia.