The effect of the 5-HT1A receptor partial agonist tandospirone on memory was investigated in mice using a single trial, step-through passive avoidance task. Tandospirone disrupted performance in a dose-dependent manner when administered before the training trial but not when injected immediately post-training. The pre-training effect was not the result of reduced responsiveness to foot shock because tandospirone did not alter current threshold intensity to elicit flinch, run and vocalization responses. The performance deficit was alleviated by treatment with d-amphetamine prior to the retention test. The memory impairment by tandospirone was mimicked by the 5-HT1A receptor agonist 8-OH-DPAT (8-hydroxy-dipropylaminotetralin HBr) and blocked by the 5-HT1A receptor antagonist BMY7378 (8-[2-[4-(2-methoxyphenyl)-1-piperazinyl]ethyl]-8-azaspirol-[4]- decane-7,9-dione). BMY7378 alone was ineffective. Treatment with the 5-HT synthesis inhibitor PCPA (parachlorophenylalanine) resulted in apparent enhancement rather than disruption of the avoidance behavior. However, the anterograde amnestic effects of tandospirone and 8-OH-DPAT were not affected by PCPA, and lack of interactions between PCPA and the 5-HT1A agonists revealed in the statistical analyses indicated that the effects of PCPA were not mediated by 5-HT1A receptors. It is concluded that 5-HT1A receptor agonists and partial agonists produce a reversible anterograde amnesia that is mediated by postsynaptic 5-HT1A receptors.