Nierwetberg, Svenja;
(2025)
A role for hippocampal CA1 in structural learning in mice.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
The meaning of individual events or cues in the environment is often dependent on their position relative to other cues surrounding them. The ability to learn about relationships between such ambiguous cues – often called structural learning – enables us to recognise common underlying structures of events and is thought to form the basis of episodic memory. One area implicated in structural learning is the hippocampus. Specifically, neurons in the CA1 area of the hippocampus have been shown to represent variables such as cue configurations and their order in space and time. To investigate the neural basis of structural learning, we designed an odour-based task that requires mice to learn not only about sets of odour cues, but about their relative order in time. Importantly, the task design allows for manipulation of the temporal structure and identity of cues separately, enabling dissociation of their neural mechanisms. Using this task, we found that mice can flexibly use previously learnt relational structures and adapt to both changes in the temporal pattern as well as in cue identity. In line with a role for hippocampal circuitry, optogenetic inactivation of ventral CA1 (vCA1) markedly impaired task performance. Using in vivo calcium imaging, we found that vCA1 neurons encode a wide variety of task-relevant information, including maintaining odour identity across the delay and exhibiting context-specific responses to odours. Furthermore, population-level analysis revealed that neurons in vCA1 encode cues and cue combinations more robustly than outcomes.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | A role for hippocampal CA1 in structural learning in mice |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2025. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > The Sainsbury Wellcome Centre |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10205503 |
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