Posterodorsal septal lesions impair performance on both shift and stay working memory tasks

Two groups of male Long-Evans rats ( N  = 42) were trained preoperatively on either a shift or a stay problem in a T-maze. Training trials consisted of 2 runs, an "information run" in which S was forced to go down 1 of the 2 arms of the T-maze, followed immediately by a "choice run&qu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Behavioral neuroscience 1984-01, Vol.98 (3), p.405-415
Main Authors: Stanton, Mark E, Thomas, Garth J, Brito, Gilberto N
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Conditioning
Conditioning, Operant - physiology
Discrimination Learning - physiology
Frontal Lobe - physiology
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Hippocampus
Hippocampus - physiology
Learning. Memory
Male
Maze Learning
Memory - physiology
Mental Recall - physiology
Nerve Fibers - physiology
Orientation - physiology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Rats
Retention (Psychology) - physiology
Septal Nuclei
Septum Pellucidum - physiology
Short Term Memory
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Summary:Two groups of male Long-Evans rats ( N  = 42) were trained preoperatively on either a shift or a stay problem in a T-maze. Training trials consisted of 2 runs, an "information run" in which S was forced to go down 1 of the 2 arms of the T-maze, followed immediately by a "choice run" in which S could choose either arm. In the shift condition, Ss were rewarded with wet mash only for choosing the arm opposite the one they entered on the information run. In the stay condition, Ss were rewarded for entering the arm that was entered on the information run. The shift group reached 100% performance accuracy after fewer trials than the stay group. Choice accuracy in both groups declined as the delay increased and returned to 100% at the 0-sec delay. Half of the Ss in each condition then received either lesions of the posterodorsal septum--aimed at disconnecting the septum and hippocampus--or control surgery. Results indicate that deficits in maze performance by Ss with septo-hippocampal damage were not restricted to tasks that require alternation of spatial locations. This finding falsifies the notion that maze deficits reflect a spontaneous alternation deficit or changed "spatial strategy," but it supports the hypothesis of a working memory deficit in these Ss. (4 ref)
ISSN:0735-7044
1939-0084
DOI:10.1037/0735-7044.98.3.405