1. Does Stress Really Impair Memory?
Student’s Name：顏嘉賢
School Number：B

2. QUESTION
How is stress related to memory?
Enhance?
Impair?
Why?

3. INFORMATION 1: ENHANCEMENT OF MEMORY
Stressful / emotionally arousing events
enhance the “consolidation” of memory
Stress hormones
stress-activated neurotransmitters
Amygdala

4. INFORMATION 2: STRESS HORMONES
Glucocorticoids
Cortisol
Stress cortisol receptor
Long-term exposure to cortisol
atrophy of hippocampus
naturally
(In hippocampus)

6. Dendritic Spine
Learning & memory
Synapses

7. synapse

8. INFORMATION 3: CRH &CRHR
CRH: corticotropin releasing hormone
Secreted by hypothalamus
CRHR: CRH receptor
Located in hippocampus

9. Acute Stress CRH release hippocampus
dendritic spines disintegration CRHR
impair memory
storage
“consolidation”
collection

10. BLOCK damage eliminated
On the contrary…
CRH CRHR
BLOCK damage eliminated
binding

11. INFORAMTION 4: REVERSIBILITY
From Newcomer’s experiment:
Memory impairment is reversible
“the point of no return”
Controlling cortisol levels pharmacologically

12. THE SAME QUESTION
How is stress related to memory?
Enhance?
Impair?

13. THE ANSWER~~~~~
BOTH !!!!
However…

14. CONCLUSION Stress itself is not harmful…
but the EXCESS of stress is!!!
Acute or chronic exposure to stress causes functional and morphological alterations in the brain impair memory consolidation

15. Thanks for your attention!