title: What does the retrosplenial cortex do?
abstract: The past decade has seen a transformation in research on the retrosplenial cortex (RSC). This cortical area has emerged as a key member of a core network of brain regions that underpins a range of cognitive functions, including episodic memory, navigation, imagination and planning for the future. It is now also evident that the RSC is consistently compromised in the most common neurological disorders that impair memory. Here we review advances on multiple fronts, most notably in neuroanatomy, animal studies and neuroimaging, that have highlighted the importance of the RSC for cognition, and consider why specifying its precise functions remains problematic.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Tower Building, Park Place, Cardiff, CF10 3AT, UK. vannsd@Cardiff.ac.uk
authors.forename: Seralynne D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Vann
authors.forename: John P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Aggleton
authors.forename: Eleanor A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Maguire
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D020643:Anterior Thalamic Nuclei / Q000502:physiology*; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D006179:Gyrus Cinguli / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology