Martin MM, Schultz MD, Winter SS, Wallace DG (2006) Selective cholinergic lesions of the medial septum disrupt dead reckoning-based navigation. Neuroscience 2006 Abstracts 66.10. Society for Neuroscience, Atlanta, GA.
Summary: Recent investigations using selective lesion techniques have suggested that the septohippocampal cholinergic system may not be critical for spatial orientation. These studies employ spatial tasks that provide the animal with access to both allothetic and idiothetic cues; therefore, the spared performance may reflect intact spatial orientation or compensatory mechanisms associated with one class of spatial cues. The present study examined the contribution of the septohippocampal cholinergic system to spatial behavior by examining performance in foraging tasks in which cue availability was manipulated. Female Long-Evans rats were either given a sham surgery or a selective medial septum/ vertical limb of the diagonal band cholinergic lesion using the neurotoxin 192 IgG-saporin. Rats were then trained to find food pellets randomly located on an open field which they then carried back to a visible home base (“cued”) to eat. Once they became proficient at returning to their home base location, cued training was alternated with probes. The three probes included 1) replacing the visible home base with a hidden home base to measure ability to use cues not associated with the home base (“uncued”); 2) moving the hidden home base to a new location to pit use of allothetic cues against idiothetic cues (“reversal”); and 3) testing under completely dark conditions thereby limiting access only to idiothetic cues (“dark”). Although both groups could use allothetic cues as evidenced by intact performance on cued and uncued probes, rats with compromised septohippocampal cholinergic systems were impaired during the reversal and dark probes. These observations are consistent with a selective role for the septohippocampal cholinergic system in idiothetic cue processing necessary for dead reckoning based navigation.
Related Products: 192-IgG-SAP (Cat. #IT-01)