title: Within-event learning in rats with lesions of the basolateral amygdala.
abstract: Rats with neurotoxic lesions of the basolateral amygdala were trained in procedures designed to assess the formation of within-event, taste-odor associations. In Experiments 1 and 2 the animals were given initial exposure to a taste-odor compound; the value of the taste was then modified, and the consequent change in responding to the odor was taken to indicate that an odor-taste association had been formed. In Experiment 1 the value of the taste (saline) was enhanced by means of salt-depletion procedure; in Experiment 2 the taste was devalued by aversive conditioning. In neither procedure did lesioned animals differ from sham-operated controls. Experiment 3 confirmed, however, that taste-potentiation of odor aversion learning (an effect thought to depend on the formation of a taste-odor association) is abolished by the lesion. Implications for the view that the amygdala is necessary for sensory-sensory associations between events in different modalities are considered.
authors.affiliation: University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK. Electronic address: p.blundell@leeds.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Pam
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Blundell
authors.affiliation: University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Symonds
authors.affiliation: University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK; University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Geoffrey
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Hall
authors.affiliation: University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Killcross
authors.affiliation: University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK; University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Glynis K
authors.initials: GK
authors.lastname: Bailey
mesh_terms: D000679:Amygdala / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000293:injuries / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000502:physiology; D003216:Conditioning, Operant / Q000502:physiology; D007858:Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D020258:Neurotoxicity Syndromes / Q000523:psychology; D009498:Neurotoxins; D009812:Odorants; D027861:Prunus; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D017378:Quinolinic Acid; D051381:Rats; D012903:Smell / Q000502:physiology; D013649:Taste / Q000502:physiology; D031669:Vanilla
chemical_list: D009498:Neurotoxins; D017378:Quinolinic Acid