Use of a delayed non-matching to position task to model age-dependent cognitive decline in the dog

Spatial learning and memory in young and old dogs was studied in a series of experiments using a delayed non-matching to position (DNMP) paradigm. Past research from our laboratory has suggested that aged dogs perform more poorly on a version of the DNMP task compared to young dogs [Head et al., Spa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Behavioural brain research 2000-02, Vol.108 (1), p.47-56
Main Authors: Adams, Beth, Chan, Alan, Callahan, Heather, Siwak, Christina, Tapp, Dwight, Ikeda-Douglas, Candace, Atkinson, Patricia, Head, Elizabeth, Cotman, Carl W, Milgram, Norton W
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age Factors
Aging
Aging - physiology
Animals
Behavioral psychophysiology
Biological and medical sciences
Canine
Cognition
Delayed non-matching to position
Dog
Dogs - physiology
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Male
Memory
Memory - physiology
Miscellaneous
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Reaction Time - physiology
Spatial
Spatial Behavior - physiology
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Summary:Spatial learning and memory in young and old dogs was studied in a series of experiments using a delayed non-matching to position (DNMP) paradigm. Past research from our laboratory has suggested that aged dogs perform more poorly on a version of the DNMP task compared to young dogs [Head et al., Spatial learning and memory as a function of age in the dog, Behav. Neurosci. 1995;109(5):851–585]. We have now extended these findings by testing a large number of dogs on three different variations of the DNMP paradigm to evaluate different aspects of spatial learning and memory. Our results indicate that: (1) aged dogs show impaired spatial learning compared to young dogs, (2) aged dogs display spatial working memory deficits compared to young dogs, (3) young dogs have a greater maximum working spatial memory capacity than old dogs and (4) we can use the DNMP paradigm to cognitively categorize different subsets of aged dogs. These data indicate that the DNMP paradigm can serve as a valuable tool to evaluate age-dependent cognitive dysfunction in the canine.
ISSN:0166-4328
1872-7549
DOI:10.1016/S0166-4328(99)00132-1