Hippocampus:
Throughout our life we experience events that are worthy of remembering, we have many things that happen in which we wish to never forget. But how do we store these memories, where do they go, what makes us remember? Throughout this paper you will learn about the Hippocampus a part of the brain that forms, and stores memories from our life.
Hippocampus is a part of the brain that’s involved in memory forming, organizing, and storing. It is a limbic system structure that is particularly important in forming new memories and connecting emotions and senses, such as smell and sound, to memories (Buzsaki, Gyorgy). The hippocampus is a horseshoe shaped paired structure that is located within the temporal lobes, …show more content…
It can also function as a memory “gateway” where new memories pass before entering permanent storage in the brain. Hippocampal damage can result in anterograde amnesia which is loss of the ability to form new memories, although the old memories are safe from loss. So someone who has an injury to the hippocampus may have good memories of there childhood and the years before the injury, but almost no memory of anything that has happened since. Some memories, like the memory for a new skill or habit, can sometimes be formed even without the hippocampus. A current research project is to determine exactly what kinds of learning and memory can survive hippocampal damage, and how these kinds of learning can be used to guide rehabilitation. The hippocampus is very sensitive to reductions in oxygen level in the body. So periods of oxygen deprivation which are not fatal may nonetheless result in damage to the hippocampus. This could happen during a heart attack, respiratory failure, sleep apnea, carbon monoxide poisoning, and near-drowning. Hippocampus is also a common focus in epilepsy, and can be damaged through chronic seizures. It also is sometimes damaged in diseases like herpes encephalitis, and is one of the first brain areas to show damage in Alzheimer’s disease …show more content…
In rest phases, such as during sleep, information that was previously taken in is consolidated and passed on to other regions of the brain for final storage. This hippocampal function is linked to rhythms. The development of these rhythms depends on organized interaction between multitudes of nerve cells. Research in recent years demonstrated that suppression or intensification of brain oscillations can impair or improve learning (Nikolaus Maier).Physical activity has been known to improve cognitive function in humans and rodents. A study done by Griffin ÉW, Mullally S, Foley C, Warmington SA, O'Mara SM, and Kelly AM shows that Aerobic exercise does improve the function of the Hippocampus("Supplemental