By Muhammad Amaan
Scientists in Australia have identified a key role for the Alzheimer’s-linked protein tau in shaping long-lasting memories, offering new clues for future dementia treatments.
The research, published in Nature Communications, found that tau is essential for organising and stabilising memories so they persist over time.
However, a statement from Australia’s Flinders University released Monday said tau is not required for initial learning or short-term recall.
Associate Professor Arne Ittner, the study’s senior author and neuroscientist at Flinders University said that without tau, memories could still form but would be weaker and less durable.
Using mouse models, researchers showed that tau helps organise “engram cells,” a specialised neurons that form the physical trace of memories during the critical encoding window, helping determine which cells are selected to store a memory.
The study also found that tau helps prevent excess or “noise” activity in the brain, ensuring only specific cells are recruited to store a memory, resulting in clearer, more stable memories.
A subtle chemical modification of tau, called phosphorylation, was identified as a key mechanism that coordinates engram cell activity.
While abnormal tau phosphorylation is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, the study shows that controlled, low-level phosphorylation is essential for normal brain function.
Researchers said disease-associated forms of tau interfered with both new memory formation and recall, pointing to how dementia-related memory loss may arise from impaired organisation and retrieval rather than memory storage alone.
