Matthews Douglas B, Silvers Janelle R
Department of Psychology and Tennessee Center for Addiction Research, The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152, USA.
Neurobiol Learn Mem. 2004 Nov;82(3):299-308. doi: 10.1016/j.nlm.2004.06.007.
The discovery of multiple memory systems supported by discrete brain regions has been one of the most important advances in behavioral neuroscience. A wealth of studies have investigated the role of the hippocampus and related structures in supporting various types of memory classifications. While the exact classification that best describes hippocampal function is often debated, a specific subset of cognitive function that is focused on the use of spatial information to form hippocampal cognitive maps has received extensive investigation. These studies frequently employ a variety of experimental manipulations including brain lesions, temporary neural blockade due to cooling or discrete injections of specific drugs. While these studies have provided important insights into the function of the hippocampus, they are limited due to the invasive nature of the manipulation. Ethanol is a drug that is easily administered in a non-invasive fashion, is rapidly absorbed and produces effects only in specific brain regions. The hippocampus is one brain region affected by acute ethanol administration. The following review summarizes research from the last 20 years investigating the effects of acute ethanol administration on one specific type of hippocampal cognitive function, namely spatial memory. It is proposed that among its many effects, one specific action of acute ethanol administration is to produce similar cognitive and neurophysiological effects as lesions of the hippocampus. Based on these similarities and the ease of its use, it is concluded that acute ethanol administration is a valuable tool in studying hippocampal function and multiple memory systems.
由离散脑区支持的多种记忆系统的发现，一直是行为神经科学最重要的进展之一。大量研究探讨了海马体及相关结构在支持各类记忆分类中的作用。虽然对于最能描述海马体功能的确切分类常常存在争议，但聚焦于利用空间信息形成海马体认知地图的特定认知功能子集，已受到广泛研究。这些研究经常采用多种实验操作，包括脑损伤、因冷却或特定药物的离散注射导致的临时神经阻滞。虽然这些研究为海马体的功能提供了重要见解，但由于操作具有侵入性，它们存在局限性。乙醇是一种易于以非侵入方式给药的药物，吸收迅速且仅在特定脑区产生作用。海马体是受急性乙醇给药影响的脑区之一。以下综述总结了过去20年中研究急性乙醇给药对一种特定类型的海马体认知功能（即空间记忆）影响的研究。有人提出，在其众多作用中，急性乙醇给药的一种特定作用是产生与海马体损伤类似的认知和神经生理效应。基于这些相似性及其使用的便利性，得出结论：急性乙醇给药是研究海马体功能和多种记忆系统的一种有价值的工具。
