# The influence of mesolimbic-hippocampal interactions on episodic memory during active information seeking

> **NIH NIH R01** · TEMPLE UNIV OF THE COMMONWEALTH · 2022 · $499,390

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Interactions between the hippocampus and mesolimbic dopamine system supports memory encoding and
subsequent consolidation to stabilize salient information in long-term memory. These episodic traces are used
to support a variety of adaptive behaviors, including inference, generalization, and decision-making.
Information seeking further represents a context in which motivated learning occurs in the absence of explicit
reward, including incubation-induced craving and context-dependent feedback. In this way, information seeking
may serve as a model to dissect how mesolimbic-hippocampal circuits contribute to the complexity of drug
seeking behavior. Most research characterizing the contributions of mesolimbic-hippocampal interactions on
memory have focused on reward. However, this circuit is also critically involved in memory enhancements
resulting from active exploration. Critically, memory enhancements during active information seeking involves
the integration of mesolimbic signaling across multiple elements of an event (cues versus outcomes) and
timescales (event-evoked versus state-dependent). Rodent studies show that hippocampal engagement during
exploration triggers a positive feedback loop, which increases tonic dopamine signaling in the ventral
tegmental area (VTA), which in turn yields larger VTA anticipation and feedback responses. Prominently, these
positive feedback loops could instantiate and propagate the variety of behaviors contributing to substance use.
We propose to characterize how state-dependent VTA responses relate to memory enhancements during
active information seeking using a combination of novel behavioral paradigms, state-of-the-art neuroimaging,
and computational modeling to inform mechanisms underlying memory. Aim 1 will study mesolimbic-
hippocampal contributes to memory encoding during active learning and hypothesis testing. Aim 2 will study
how engagement of this circuit during encoding stabilizes memory representations during periods of post-
encoding consolidation. Finally, Aim 3 will utilize a computational psychiatry approach to study how individual
differences in memory during active information seeking relates to predictors of substance use risk.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10344662
- **Project number:** 1R01DA055259-01
- **Recipient organization:** TEMPLE UNIV OF THE COMMONWEALTH
- **Principal Investigator:** Vishnu Pradeep Murty
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $499,390
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-05-15 → 2027-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10344662

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10344662, The influence of mesolimbic-hippocampal interactions on episodic memory during active information seeking (1R01DA055259-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10344662. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*