RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Intact Visual Perception in Memory-Impaired Patients with Medial Temporal Lobe Lesions JF The Journal of Neuroscience JO J. Neurosci. FD Society for Neuroscience SP 2235 OP 2240 DO 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4792-05.2006 VO 26 IS 8 A1 Shrager, Yael A1 Gold, Jeffrey J. A1 Hopkins, Ramona O. A1 Squire, Larry R. YR 2006 UL http://www.jneurosci.org/content/26/8/2235.abstract AB A recent proposal that structures of the medial temporal lobe support visual perception in addition to memory challenges the long-standing idea that the ability to acquire new memories is separable from other cognitive and perceptual functions. In four experiments, we have put this proposal to a rigorous test. Six memory-impaired patients with well characterized lesions of either the hippocampal region or the hippocampal region plus additional medial temporal lobe structures were assessed on difficult tests of visual perceptual discrimination. Across all four experiments, the patients performed as well as controls. The results show that visual perception is intact in memory-impaired patients with damage to the medial temporal lobe even when perception is assessed with challenging tasks. Furthermore, the results support the principle that the ability to acquire new memories is a distinct cerebral function, dissociable from other perceptual and cognitive functions.