Diazepam impairs acquisition but not performance in the Morris water maze

Diazepam is known to produce anterograde amnesia in both humans and animals. The present investigation sought to determine if this impairment is a direct result of diazepam's interference with mnemonic processes or a result of deficits in performance or retrieval. Diazepam (3 mg/kg) was administered prior to training in the Morris water maze either before or after the rats had acquired the location of a submerged escape platform. Diazepam was found to impair acquisition but not retrieval of spatial information and this impairment was not due to the sedative, hypothermic or state-dependent learning effects of diazepam. These results replicate previous findings in the Morris water maze and provide new evidence that this deficit is primarily mnemonic in nature.