Our brain is not the only place in our body where memories are formed. New York University (NYU) researchers have discovered that learning through repetition may be fundamental to all our cells. This process may also help explain why recess is such a powerful learning tool.

“Learning and memory are usually associated only with the brain and brain cells, but our research shows that other cells in the body can also learn and form memories,” says neuroscientist Mykola Kukushkin.

Kukushkin explains that a better understanding of how this process works could lead to more effective treatments for learning and memory problems. Many people have learned from their own experience that preparing for exams does not create the most reliable and long-lasting memories. Many cycles of chemical activity through repetitive behaviors trigger the memory-forming process between our neurons, encoding stronger memories. This phenomenon is called the mass-space effect and is highly conserved in all animals at both the cellular and behavioral levels.

By exposing extrabrain nerve cells and kidney cells to similar chemical structures in the laboratory, Kukushkin and colleagues showed for the first time that these tissues also experience the effect of mass distribution. Based on measurements of a byproduct of gene expression called luciferase, genes associated with memory formation in neurons also appear to be activated in these cells.

“The ability to learn based on repetition intervals is not specific to brain cells; in fact, it may be a fundamental feature of all cells,” Kukushkin explains.

The response of nerve and kidney cells depended on the number of rounds of protein kinases A and C (PKA and PKC) they were treated with. These chemical “learning pulses” are known memory components that form signaling cascades.

“A three-minute pulse activated the ‘memory gene,’ but only for an hour or two; after four pulses, the gene turned on more strongly and remained on for several days,” Kukushkin writes for Psychology Today.

The response of the cells also depended on the time between pulses. These factors depended on how strongly and for how long the molecules that make up the memory were activated—what exactly happened to our neurons.

“Memory exists not only in the brain but also throughout our body, and this ‘body memory’ can play a role in health and disease,” Kukushkin writes.

There’s still a lot to learn about how everything works in the human body. Researchers previously found that enhancing the interaction between PKA and enzymes called extracellular signal-regulated kinases in sea hares (animals commonly used to study neural behavior) could not only improve learning but also reverse learning deficits.

“We will need to treat our bodies like our brains,” Kukushkin advises. “For example, consider how our pancreas remembers the pattern of our past meals to maintain healthy blood sugar levels, or how a cancer cell remembers the pattern of chemotherapy.” This study was published on: Nature Communication.