Fear-potentiated startle, but not prepulse inhibition of startle, is impaired in CREBαΔ-/- mutant mice

Fear-potentiated startle was assessed in mice with a targeted disruption of the alpha and delta isoforms of the transcription factor cAMP response element binding protein (CREB) 24 hr after 5 tone + shack training trials. Whereas wild-type mice showed fear-potentiated startle that persisted up to 45 days after training, CREBalpha Delta-/- mice failed to show fear-potentiated startle. However, CREBalpha Delta-/- and wild-type mice had similar startle amplitudes and similar magnitudes of prepulse inhibition of startle, suggesting that CREBalpha Delta-/- mice have no obvious sensory or motor deficits. These results odd to the literature indicating that CREB-activated transcription plays a critical role in the formation of long-term memory and illustrate the utility of the fear-potentiated startle paradigm for assessing cognition in genetically altered mice.