Jodi R Samartgis

Publications (3)8.06 Total impact

• Article: Piracetam, an AMPAkine drug, facilitates memory consolidation in the day-old chick.

  Jodi R Samartgis, Leslie Schachte, Agnes Hazi, Simon F Crowe
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  ABSTRACT: Piracetam is an AMPAkine drug that may have a range of different mechanisms at the cellular level, and which has been shown to facilitate memory, amongst its other effects. This series of experiments demonstrated that a 10mg/kg dose of piracetam facilitated memory consolidation in the day-old chick when injected from immediately until 120min after weak training (i.e. using a 20% v/v concentration of methyl anthranilate) with the passive avoidance learning task. Administration of piracetam immediately after training led to memory facilitation which lasted for up to 24h following training. This dose of the AMPAkine was not shown to facilitate memory reconsolidation. These findings support the contention that application of the AMPAkine piracetam facilitates memory using a weak training task, and extend the range of actions previously noted with NMDA-related agents to those which also facilitate the AMPA receptor.
  Pharmacology Biochemistry and Behavior 08/2012; 103(2):353-358. · 2.53 Impact Factor
• Article: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor facilitates memory consolidation and reconsolidation of a weak training stimulus in the day-old chick.

  Jodi R Samartgis, Leslie Schachte, Agnes Hazi, Simon F Crowe
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  ABSTRACT: Recent research has pointed to a role for brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in long-term potentiation and memory. The present series of experiments examined the effects of the application of exogenous BDNF on memory consolidation and reconsolidation of a weak training stimulus with the day-old chick, using the passive avoidance learning paradigm. Chicks injected intracranially with 12.5 μg/mL recombinant BDNF immediately after a single-trial training event displayed enhanced retention relative to saline up to 24h post-training. Furthermore, this dose was also shown to enhance retention when administered following initial weak training. Thus, exogenous BDNF was shown to enhance both consolidation and reconsolidation of memory when administered acutely to the day-old chick.
  Neuroscience Letters 04/2012; 516(1):119-23. · 2.11 Impact Factor
• Article: Memantine facilitates memory consolidation and reconsolidation in the day-old chick.

  Jodi R Samartgis, Leslie Schachte, Agnes Hazi, Simon F Crowe
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  ABSTRACT: Memantine is a non-competitive N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist that has been approved for the treatment of the cognitive deficits noted in Alzheimer's disease. While there is a body of research that supports memantine's facilitative action upon memory compromise, this series of studies aimed to investigate the effects of this drug in healthy animals with intact memory functioning. A 0.1 mM dose of memantine injected immediately after a weakly aversive training event (i.e. 20% v/v methyl anthranilate) was found to enhance passive avoidance learning for this event in day-old chicks up to 24 h following training. The same dose of memantine was also observed to enhance memory for the training event when it was administered in conjunction with a reminder trial. These results suggest that memantine is capable of facilitating both memory consolidation as well as memory reconsolidation. It was concluded that memantine's mechanism may involve the short-term or intermediate memory phases of the Gibbs and Ng model of memory, and that the current findings represent enhancement of intact memory, rather than amelioration of memory compromise.
  Neurobiology of Learning and Memory 03/2012; 97(4):380-5. · 3.42 Impact Factor