Bilateral postsubiculum lesions impair visual and nonvisual homing performance in rats

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Behavioral Neuroscience
• Cognitive Neuroscience

Background:

• Navigation relies on diverse sensory cues, including visual and self-movement information.
• The postsubiculum (PoS) is recognized for its role in processing visual cues for navigation.
• The function of the PoS in utilizing self-movement cues remains less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the role of the postsubiculum (PoS) in processing self-movement cues during navigation.
• To compare navigational performance in light and darkness following PoS lesions.

Main Methods:

• Rats with bilateral neurotoxic lesions of the PoS were compared to control rats.
• Navigational performance was assessed using a food-carrying task in both light and dark conditions.
• The task involved exiting a refuge, locating a food pellet, and returning it to the refuge.

Main Results:

• Both control and PoS-lesioned rats exhibited circuitous outward journeys when searching for food.
• Only control rats demonstrated accurate navigation during return journeys, utilizing either visual or self-movement cues.
• PoS-lesioned rats showed deficits in direct homing, irrespective of lighting conditions.

Conclusions:

• The postsubiculum (PoS) is essential for integrating self-movement cues into navigational strategies.
• The PoS's role in spatial navigation extends beyond visual cue processing.
• These findings highlight the PoS as a critical hub for multimodal navigation.