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Squire LR, Stark CE, Clark RE (2004) The medial temporal lobe. Annu Rev Neurosci. 27:279-306. doi: 10.1146/annurev.neuro.27.070203.144130.
Abstract
The medial temporal lobe includes a system of anatomically related
structures that are essential for declarative memory (conscious memory for facts and
events). The system consists of the hippocampal region (CA fields, dentate gyrus, and
subicular complex) and the adjacent perirhinal, entorhinal, and parahippocampal cortices.
Here, we review findings from humans, monkeys, and rodents that illuminate
the function of these structures. Our analysis draws on studies of human memory impairment
and animal models of memory impairment, as well as neurophysiological
and neuroimaging data, to show that this system (a) is principally concerned with
memory, (b) operates with neocortex to establish and maintain long-term memory, and
(c) ultimately, through a process of consolidation, becomes independent of long-term
memory, though questions remain about the role of perirhinal and parahippocampal
cortices in this process and about spatial memory in rodents. Data from neurophysiology,
neuroimaging, and neuroanatomy point to a division of labor within the medial
temporal lobe. However, the available data do not support simple dichotomies between
the functions of the hippocampus and the adjacent medial temporal cortex, such
as associative versus nonassociative memory, episodic versus semantic memory, and
recollection versus familiarity.
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