Acute exercise performed during the late consolidation phase improves memory persistence by hippocampal protein synthesis and catecholamine modulation

Abstract

Memory persistence is a crucial aspect of long-term memory (LTM) and involves late consolidation processes that modulate memory stability over time. Acute physical exercise (PE) has emerged as a potential strategy to modulate memory consolidation and enhance memory persistence. While its effects have been extensively explored in the early consolidation phase, its impact on the late phase remains unexplored. In this study, we investigated the effects and mechanisms of an acute PE on the late consolidation window of novel object recognition (NOR) memory in rats. A 30-minute running session applied 11 h after NOR memory acquisition significantly increased memory persistence for at least 7 days. The inhibition of hippocampal protein synthesis immediately after acute PE using anisomycin (a ribosomal inhibitor) or rapamycin (an mTOR pathway inhibitor) impaired the effect of PE on memory persistence. Animals only presented memory 1 day after acquisition. The same effect was observed with the inhibition of beta-adrenergic receptors by timolol. Although there were no differences between the groups' comparison, blocking D1/D5 receptors after acute PE resulted in a lack of memory persistence in the dichotomous testing (remember/non-remember). Therefore, our exploration of the mechanisms underlying this enhancement revealed the involvement of protein synthesis and the requirement of beta-adrenergic and dopaminergic D1/D5 receptors in the dorsal hippocampus. These findings provide valuable insights into PE as a potential memory modulator, contributing to expanding our understanding of memory consolidation dynamics and acute PE effects.