Rudy J W, Sutherland R J
Department of Psychology, University of Colorado, Boulder 80309.
Behav Brain Res. 1989 Aug 1;34(1-2):97-109. doi: 10.1016/s0166-4328(89)80093-2.
A negative patterning discrimination problem was arranged by reinforcing rats for bar pressing when either a light or tone was presented (L+/T+) but not reinforcing the response when the compound stimulus, light and tone, was presented (LT-). To solve this problem, the animal must be able to construct a unique configural representation of the compound that can be distinguished from the representations of the individual elements. We have proposed that the hippocampal formation is essential for the acquisition and retention of associations involving configural representations. Thus, our theory predicts that animals with hippocampal formation damage will not learn the negative patterning problem and that animals who learned this problem before receiving hippocampal formation damage will not retain the solution. These predictions were confirmed by the results of two experiments. The animals with hippocampal formation damage were unable to solve the negative patterning problem. These animals were able to solve a simple discrimination in which responding in the presence of a light was rewarded but responding in the presence of a tone was not rewarded. These results are discussed in relation to several other theories of hippocampal formation function.
通过在仅呈现灯光或音调时（L+/T+）对大鼠按压杠杆的行为进行强化，但在同时呈现灯光和音调的复合刺激时（LT-）不强化该反应，来设置一个负性模式辨别问题。为了解决这个问题，动物必须能够构建一种独特的关于复合刺激的构型表征，这种表征要能与单个元素的表征区分开来。我们已经提出，海马结构对于涉及构型表征的联想的习得和保持至关重要。因此，我们的理论预测，海马结构受损的动物将无法学会负性模式问题，并且在接受海马结构损伤之前学会这个问题的动物将无法保留解决方案。两项实验的结果证实了这些预测。海马结构受损的动物无法解决负性模式问题。这些动物能够解决一个简单的辨别问题，即在有灯光时做出反应会得到奖励，而在有音调时做出反应则不会得到奖励。将结合其他几种关于海马结构功能的理论来讨论这些结果。
