Operant Reward Learning in <i>Aplysia</i> : Neuronal Correlates and Mechanisms

TLDR

Operant conditioning is a form of associative learning through which an animal learns about the consequences of its behavior. The study reports an appetitive operant conditioning procedure in *Aplysia* that induces long‑term memory. The authors used this operant conditioning protocol to induce long‑term memory. Biophysical changes in neuron B51, critical for rewarded behavior, were induced by operant conditioning and by dopamine reinforcement, enabling detailed analysis of cellular and molecular mechanisms.

Abstract

Operant conditioning is a form of associative learning through which an animal learns about the consequences of its behavior. Here, we report an appetitive operant conditioning procedure in Aplysia that induces long-term memory. Biophysical changes that accompanied the memory were found in an identified neuron (cell B51) that is considered critical for the expression of behavior that was rewarded. Similar cellular changes in B51 were produced by contingent reinforcement of B51 with dopamine in a single-cell analog of the operant procedure. These findings allow for the detailed analysis of the cellular and molecular processes underlying operant conditioning.