X-Message-Number: 3820 From: (Thomas Donaldson) Subject: Re: CryoNet #3812 - #3815 Date: Wed, 8 Feb 1995 20:03:52 -0800 (PST) To Dr. Strout: Hi! Because memory (among other things) is so important to cryonics, and because a lot of work on memory has been going on, I will give some brief comments here about your suggestion as I see it. What seems to happen is that our memories pass through different stages of consolidation. LTP is one of the earliest stages, and does not depend on protein synthesis to occur. These different stages have been distinguished both by giving inhibiting drugs and by otherwise preventing the test animal's brain from functioning at different, measured times after the learning experience. One interesting book on this specific area of neurology-neuroscience that I personally have found useful (though now slowly growing out of date) is Yadin Dudai's THE NEUROBIOLOGY OF MEMORY. I publish a bimonthly newsletter PERIASTRON discussing scientific issues related to cryonics, and all the work on memory has caused PERIASTRON to spend a great deal of attention to such work. It's not the kind of thing I have at my fingertips, but I'd be happy to put together a large bibliography on the subject for you if you are interested. One advantage of using biochemical inhibitors of receptors, for instance, is that we can stop one step in the sequence of memory consolidation without stopping others. This method has been increasingly used, though it does need a knowledge of the particular transmitter chemical and/or the particular receptor that may be involved. Global techniques such as rapid cooling or others have the problem that they tend to stop EVERYTHING. I come up to the UCSF Medical Library from Half Moon Bay as part of my work on this newsletter, and go through recent issues of relevant periodicals looking for information worth reporting. One journal which I've found particularly good (it isn't just about memory, but there are significant reviews of memory work in it) is TRENDS IN NEUROSCIENCES. We may be able to get together for a meeting. My phone # is (415) 726-2251. And in case you wonder, PERIASTRON is ME ... I do it all. Best and long long life, Thomas Donaldson Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=3820