Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
Trends Cogn Sci. 2013 Aug;17(8):379-90. doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2013.06.009. Epub 2013 Jul 10.
The parahippocampal cortex (PHC) has been associated with many cognitive processes, including visuospatial processing and episodic memory. To characterize the role of PHC in cognition, a framework is required that unifies these disparate processes. An overarching account was proposed whereby the PHC is part of a network of brain regions that processes contextual associations. Contextual associations are the principal element underlying many higher-level cognitive processes, and thus are suitable for unifying the PHC literature. Recent findings are reviewed that provide support for the contextual associations account of PHC function. In addition to reconciling a vast breadth of literature, the synthesis presented expands the implications of the proposed account and gives rise to new and general questions about context and cognition.
海马旁皮质（PHC）与许多认知过程有关，包括视空间处理和情景记忆。为了描述 PHC 在认知中的作用，需要一个统一这些不同过程的框架。一个总体的解释是，PHC 是处理上下文关联的大脑区域网络的一部分。上下文关联是许多高级认知过程的主要元素，因此适合统一 PHC 的文献。本文回顾了最近的研究结果，这些结果为 PHC 功能的上下文关联解释提供了支持。除了调和广泛的文献外，所提出的综合还扩展了所提出解释的含义，并引发了关于上下文和认知的新的一般问题。
