The flexible use of multiple cue relationships in spatial navigation: a comparison of water maze performance following hippocampal, medial septal, prefrontal cortex, or posterior parietal cortex lesions.

Full Abstract

Rats prepared with lesions of the prefrontal cortex, posterior parietal cortex, hippocampus, or medial septal area were tested for acquisition of a number of variations of the open-field water maze using a version of place learning assessment described by Eichenbaum, Stewart, and Morris (1991). Specifically, the individual role of the aforementioned cortical and subcortical structures in tasks with differing representational demands on navigation were assessed. The results suggest that the sham-operated control, posterior parietal cortex-lesioned rats, and medial septal area-lesioned rats were able to navigate effectively under changing task conditions. Conversely, the navigational performances of the prefrontal cortex- and hippocampal formation-lesioned rats were impaired when task demands changed. The results are discussed in terms of the flexible use of multiple distal cues to guide navigation and the resulting loss of this flexibility after lesions to either the prefrontal cortex or the hippocampus.

Author information

Author/s: Compton, D M (DM); Griffith, H R (HR); McDaniel, W F (WF); Foster, R A (RA); Davis, B K (BK);

Affiliation: Department of Psychology, Georgia College and State University, Milledgeville 31061, USA. dcompton(-atsign-)mail.gac.peachnet.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Journal: Neurobiology of learning and memory (Neurobiol Learn Mem), published in UNITED STATES. (Language: eng)

Reference: 1997-Sep; vol 68 (issue 2) : pp 117-32

Dates: Created 1997/11/20; Completed 1997/11/20; Revised 2007/10/17;

PMID: 9322255, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 2/18/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article
(including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.