Enhanced context-dependency of object recognition in rats with hippocampal lesions

Object recognition memory was assessed on a novel-object preference (NOP) task in rats with lesions of the hippocampal formation (HPC). The learning and test phases of NOP trials occurred in either the same context or in different contexts. When the learning and test contexts were the same, rats with HPC lesions performed like control rats, displaying a significant tendency to investigate a novel object more than a familiar sample object. When the test occurred in a context that was familiar but different from the learning context, performance was unaffected in control rats, but rats with HPC lesions no longer discriminated between the objects, and therefore showed no evidence of recognizing the sample object. When the test context was unfamiliar, novel-object preference in control rats was attenuated but still above chance levels, whereas rats with HPC lesions did not show a preference. The data suggest that the HPC is not critical for encoding or retrieving conjunctive representations of the context in which incidental learning occurs, whereas it plays an essential role in recognition of objects that are subsequently encountered in different contexts.