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Updated: Aug 20, 2026

Novel Object Recognition Test for the Investigation of Learning and Memory in Mice
Published on: August 30, 2017
Acute exposure to a novel object during consolidation enhances cognition
Aldemar Degroot1, Mary C Wolff, George G Nomikos
1Eli Lilly and Company, Lilly Corporate Center, Neuroscience Discovery Research, Indianapolis, IN 46285-0510, USA.
Abstract:
Environmental enrichment enhances learning and memory in both rodents and man. We examined the effect of active manipulation of a novel object (toy) on cognitive performance and acetylcholine (ACh) efflux in the hippocampus of rats. Animals exposed to the toy showed a significant increase in hippocampal ACh efflux provided that they actively manipulated the object. Similarly, a single 1 h introduction of the novel object (toy) immediately after a training session in a radial arm maze significantly improved memory only if the animals actively manipulated the object. The data suggest that environmental enrichment during a critical period (consolidation) is sufficient to improve learning and memory. This effect is likely mediated through an enhancement of hippocampal cholinergic neurotransmission.
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