Basolateral amygdala interacts with other brain regions in regulating glucocorticoid effects on different memory functions

Extensive evidence indicates that acutely administered glucocorticoid hormones influence cognitive performance. Posttraining activation of glucocorticoid-sensitive pathways involving glucocorticoid receptors dose-dependently enhance long-term memory consolidation. We previously reported that such glucocorticoid effects on memory consolidation rely on noradrenergic activation of the basolateral complex of the amygdala (BLA) and interactions of the BLA with other brain regions. By contrast, memory retrieval and working memory performance are impaired with high circulating levels of glucocorticoids. Although these memory functions depend on the hippocampus and the medial prefrontal cortex, respectively, in recent experiments we found that glucocorticoid-induced impairment of these two memory functions also requires the integrity of the BLA and the noradrenergic system. Thus, these findings suggest that the BLA is a key structure in a memory-modulatory system that regulates, in concert with other brain regions, stress and glucocorticoid effects on different memory functions.