In the movie "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," Kate Winslet and her boyfriend Jim Carrey break up, and she goes to a "memory-erasing clinic" to delete all memories of him, in order to leave behind painful memories and embrace a new life. American scientists say that such a movie plot might actually happen in a few years.

Researchers at the Medical College of Georgia in the United States have successfully erased unpleasant memories in mice without harming their brains. The researchers found a special protein called "CaMKII" in the mice's brains, which plays a key role in memory structure. They discovered a chemical genetic method that can turn the memory molecules of CaMKII on or off, permanently deleting specific painful memories in mice.

The researchers stated that this method can eliminate specific painful memories in mice without affecting other memories. However, there is still a long way to go before clinical trials on humans. Dr. Joe Tsien from the Brain and Behavior Discovery Institute at the Medical College of Georgia said, "The molecular paradigm we developed might have the same effect on humans if tested. But it could take several years, or even more than a decade, for this to happen."

Source: http://health. chinatimes. com/ contents. aspx? cid=1,15& id=3149