Researchers have found a way of permanently deleting painful memories, which they say could lead to drugs for post-traumatic stress disorder.A team at John Hopkins University in the U.S removed a protein from the region of the brain responsible for recalling fear in tests on mice.
The mice were then unable to recall fear associated with a loud sound.
The method is similar to that imagined in the film Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, where Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet decide to erase each other from their memories after a difficult break-up.
The scientists, whose report appears in Science Express, said it had important implications for patients whose lives were blighted by fear.
Lead researcher, Dr Richard L Huganir, said: 'When a traumatic event occurs, it creates a fearful memory that can last a lifetime and have a debilitating effect on a person’s life ... READ MORE
