Article Abstract:
The hippocampus is vital for the human declarative memory. To know whether the hippocampus in animals is designed for spatial memory or whether it mediates a general memory function, normal rats and rats with hippocampal damage were trained on non-spatial stimulus-stimulus associations before examining the nature of their memory representations. Findings show that normal rats showed transitivity and symmetry, which rats with hippocampal damage failed to demonstrate. Thus, non-spatial declarative processing in both animals and humans depends on the hippocampus.
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Article Abstract:
The hippocampus is essential for memory, particularly in learning and remembering places. A profoundly amnesic patient (EP) with virtually total bilateral damage to the hippocampus, was asked to recall the spatial layout of the area where he grew up and moved away from over 50 years ago. The patient performed as well as or better than age-matched control subjects, but had no knowledge of his current neighbourhood, suggesting that the medial temporal lobe is not a permanent repository of spatial maps.
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Article Abstract:
Animals may find a hidden goal by using a cognitive map, or by using a heading vector. Rats with hippocampus damage find it difficult to find a hidden goal. A control operation was undertaken to determine which of the strategies is affected by such damage. The results suggested that rats with damaged hippocampus could navigate by way of heading vectors but not by cognitive maps.
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