Relational processing in the semantic domain is impaired in medial temporal lobe amnesia.

ABSTRACT: It has been argued that the hippocampus supports cognition by virtue of its role in flexibly binding together distinct elements of experience. Such 'relational processing' enables us to (re)construct episodic representations of real or imagined events. The present study examined whether hippocampally mediated relational processing also contributes to the construction of semantic representations. To do so, we asked amnesic individuals with medial temporal lobe (MTL) lesions including the hippocampus to generate hypothetical meanings for novel word compounds (e.g., cactus carpet), a task that requires existing concepts to be flexibly linked. The quality of definitions and number of features generated for the novel compounds were lower in patients with MTL lesions than in control participants

SUBMITTER: Keane MM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7220829 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature