Disconnection of the amygdala central nucleus and substantia innominata/nucleus basalis disrupts increments in conditioned stimulus processing in rats.
Rats with a neurotoxic lesion of the amygdala central nucleus (CN) in one hemisphere and a 192 immunoglobulin G (192IgG)-saporin lesion of cholinergic neurons in the contralateral substantia innominata/nucleus basalis (SI/nBM) failed to show the enhanced attentional processing of a conditioned stimulus (CS) observed in sham-operated rats when that CS's predictive value was altered. Performance of these asymmetrically lesioned rats was poorer than that of rats with a unilateral lesion of either structure or with a symmetrical lesion of both structures in the same hemisphere. These results implicate connections between the CN and SI/nBM in the incremental attentional processing of CSs, extending previous research that has shown similar effects of bilateral lesions of either the CN or the SI/nBM.
Han
J S
JS
Department of Psychology, Johns Hopkins University, USA.
Holland
P C
PC
Gallagher
M
M
D000679:Amygdala / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002799:Cholinergic Fibers / Q000502:physiology; D003214:Conditioning, Classical / Q000502:physiology*; D004292:Dominance, Cerebral / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000502:physiology; D051381:Rats; D020318:Rats, Long-Evans; D013377:Substantia Innominata / Q000502:physiology*