A meta-analysis of the effect of protein synthesis inhibitors on rodent fear conditioning

  1. Clarissa F. D. Carneiro
  2. Felippe E. Amorim
  3. Olavo B. Amaral

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Abstract

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses have been increasingly recognized for their potential value in pre-clinical research, but their applications have not been extensively explored in behavioral neuroscience. In this work, we studied protein synthesis inhibition, a classic intervention used to disrupt fear learning, reconsolidation, and extinction in rodents, to explore how meta-analyses can identify potential moderators of its effect. We initially performed separate meta-analyses for different injection sites and target sessions to evaluate the effect of the intervention in various scenarios. Heterogeneity was further investigated by multilevel meta-regression models aggregating various sites, with article or research group as additional levels. We detected robust effects of protein synthesis inhibitors on training and reconsolidation, but not on extinction, possibly due to the lower number of studies on the latter. Our analyses identified some well-established moderators, such as intervention timing and reexposure duration. However, other factors proposed as boundary conditions for reconsolidation, such as memory age and training strength, were not associated with effect size. While our results point to the value of meta-analyses in consolidating findings from the literature, we believe that associations suggested by data synthesis should ideally be verified by well-powered, rigorous confirmatory experiments.

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  1. Version published to 10.24072/pcjournal.339
  2. Peer Community in Neuroscience

    The study conducted by Carneiro and colleagues (Carneiro et al., 2023) seeks to explore the specific circumstances that influence the impact of protein synthesis inhibitors on the formation and endurance of fear-related memories. This investigation takes the form of a comprehensive meta-analysis of existing literature, making two significant contributions. Firstly, it enhances our understanding of fear conditioning by corroborating established interpretations (Schroyens et al., 2019, 2021) while also introducing novel insights. Secondly, it contributes to the ongoing discourse within behavioral neuroscience regarding the practicality and challenges of applying systematic reviews and meta-analyses to pre-clinical research (Prinz et al., 2011; Errington et al., 2021).

    To delve deeper into the subject, the authors conducted distinct meta-analyses for different injection sites and target sessions, thus examining the intervention's effects under varying conditions. Their findings highlight the robust influence of protein synthesis inhibitors on memory consolidation and reconsolidation, but suggest a lack of significant impact on extinction, potentially attributed to the limited number of studies on this topic. Notably, their analysis pinpoints certain well-recognized influencing factors, such as intervention timing and re-exposure duration. However, other proposed boundary conditions, such as memory age and training strength, do not appear to significantly influence the effect size, possibly due to a limited number of studies. This leads to the conclusion that while meta-analyses are valuable for consolidating existing knowledge, substantiation through well-powered, confirmatory experiments is imperative.

    Moreover, the research underlines the substantial heterogeneity among individual experiments, particularly within studies, which poses challenges for meta-analysis. Aggregating studies using various methodologies increases the capacity to identify influencing factors, emphasizing the importance of these approaches. The study also addresses the limitations of existing meta-analysis methods and suggests that additional sources of variability and difficulties in replication may exist, extending beyond the usual boundary conditions. These challenges could be attributed to biases within the literature, random error, or variations in experimental protocols.

    The paper highlights the significance of rigorous and reproducible research practices in pre-clinical investigations, emphasizing the need for an iterative process that combines data synthesis with empirical testing. While meta-analyses serve as valuable tools for knowledge consolidation, the authors stress that they cannot replace high-powered, confirmatory replication studies. Consequently, they advocate for a more holistic and interconnected approach to experimental science, incorporating data synthesis with empirical validation to enhance the reliability of research findings.

     

    References

    Carneiro CFD, Amorim FE, Amaral OB (2023) A meta-analysis of the effect of protein synthesis inhibitors on rodent fear conditioning. , 2022.10.11.509645. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.10.11.509645

    Errington TM, Mathur M, Soderberg CK, Denis A, Perfito N, Iorns E, Nosek BA (2021) Investigating the replicability of preclinical cancer biology. eLife, 10, e71601. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.71601

    Prinz F, Schlange T, Asadullah K (2011) Believe it or not: how much can we rely on published data on potential drug targets? Nature Reviews. Drug Discovery, 10, 712. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrd3439-c1

    Schroyens N, Alfei JM, Schnell AE, Luyten L, Beckers T (2019) Limited replicability of drug-induced amnesia after contextual fear memory retrieval in rats. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 166, 107105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nlm.2019.107105

    Schroyens N, Sigwald EL, Van Den Noortgate W, Beckers T, Luyten L (2021) Reactivation-Dependent Amnesia for Contextual Fear Memories: Evidence for Publication Bias. eNeuro, 8, ENEURO.0108-20.2020. https://doi.org/10.1523/ENEURO.0108-20.2020

     

     

  3. Version published to 10.1101/2022.10.11.509645 on bioRxiv