Prefrontal executive and cognitive functions in rodents: neural and neurochemical substrates

Dalley JW, Cardinal RN, Robbins TW (2004) Prefrontal executive and cognitive functions in rodents: neural and neurochemical substrates. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 28(7):771-784. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2004.09.006

Objective: To review current progress in our understanding of the rodent prefrontal cortex, especially evidence for functional divergence of the anatomically distinct sub-regions of the rat prefrontal cortex.

Summary: A greater understanding of the prefrontal cortex will come from using tasks that load specific cognitive and executive processes, in parallel with discovering new ways of manipulating the different sub-regions and neuromodulatory systems of the prefrontal cortex.

Usage: Lesions of the cortically projecting cholinergic neurons of the nucleus basalis magnocellularis made using excitotoxins, or the highly selective cholinergic immunotoxin 192 IgG-SAP, generally impair discriminative performance.

Related Products: 192-IgG-SAP (Cat. #IT-01)

See Also:

• Heckers S et al. Complete and selective cholinergic denervation of rat neocortex and hippocampus but not amygdala by an immunotoxin against the p75 NGF receptor. J Neurosci 14:1271-1289, 1994.