Disconnection of the amygdala central nucleus and substantia innominata/nucleus basalis disrupts increments in conditioned stimulus processing in rats

Behav Neurosci. 1999 Feb;113(1):143-51. doi: 10.1037//0735-7044.113.1.143.

Abstract

Rats with a neurotoxic lesion of the amygdala central nucleus (CN) in one hemisphere and a 192 immunoglobulin G (192IgG)-saporin lesion of cholinergic neurons in the contralateral substantia innominata/nucleus basalis (SI/nBM) failed to show the enhanced attentional processing of a conditioned stimulus (CS) observed in sham-operated rats when that CS's predictive value was altered. Performance of these asymmetrically lesioned rats was poorer than that of rats with a unilateral lesion of either structure or with a symmetrical lesion of both structures in the same hemisphere. These results implicate connections between the CN and SI/nBM in the incremental attentional processing of CSs, extending previous research that has shown similar effects of bilateral lesions of either the CN or the SI/nBM.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Amygdala / physiology*
  • Animals
  • Attention / physiology*
  • Brain Mapping
  • Cholinergic Fibers / physiology
  • Conditioning, Classical / physiology*
  • Dominance, Cerebral / physiology*
  • Male
  • Neural Pathways / physiology
  • Rats
  • Rats, Long-Evans
  • Substantia Innominata / physiology*