Neuronal Leucine-Rich Repeat Protein 4 Functions in Hippocampus-Dependent Long-Lasting Memory

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Abstract
Neuronal leucine-rich repeat proteins (NLRRs) are type I transmembrane proteins and expressed in neuronal tissues, but their function remains unknown. Here, we describe the identification and characterization of a new member of the NLRR family, NLRR4, and its potential role in long-lasting memory. We generated NLRR4-deficient (NLRR4−/−) mice and found that they showed impaired memory retention. In hippocampus-dependent learning tasks, NLRR4−/− mice were able to learn and maintain the memories for one day but unable to retain the memories for four days after learning. In contrast, in a hippocampus-independent task, NLRR4−/− mice were able to retain the memory normally for at least seven days. These results suggest that NLRR4 plays a key role in hippocampus-dependent long-lasting memory.