Hippocampus: Its Role in Relational Memory

Hippocampus is the region of the brain that is primarily associated with memory. The hippocampus, which is located in the inner (medial) region of the temporal lobe, forms part of the limbic system, which is important in regulating emotional responses. The hippocampus is thought to be principally involved in storing long-term memories and in making those memories resistant to forgetting, though this is a matter of debate. It is also thought to play an important role in spatial processing and navigation. Cholinergic system has implicated in the functionality of hippocampus interconnections with other neurons for efficient memory modulation. Pyramidal and globular cells are the main cells of the cornus ammonis and the dentate gyrus which is essential in relational memory consolidation. Acetylcholine is the main neurotransmitter implicated in encoding of memory in the hippocampus. There are diseases that are associated with hippocampus relational memory such as Alzheimer’s disease which is currently a global challenge. The hippocampus communicates with widespread regions of cortex through a group of highly interconnected brain regions in the medial temporal lobe. There is paucity of data on its role on relational memory. Therefore, the role of hippocampus in relational memory will be elucidated in this chapter.