Subregional analysis of mnemonic functions of the prefrontal cortex in the rat

Evidence is reviewed to support the idea that in the rat prefrontal cortex there are differential sub-regional functional contributions to cognitive and memory function. It is proposed that the prefrontal cortex in the rat can be fractionated in terms of functions associated with a slightly revised rule model that incorporates a domain-specific and a level-of-processing model. It is proposed that there is a hierarchy of lower order, higher order, and highest order rules that can support different subregions of the rat prefrontal cortex. The lower order rules encompass rules associated with reversal learning. The higher order rules encompass rules associated with the different domains or attributes of working memory and cross-modal set switching. The highest order rules encompass rules associated with temporal order memory and paired associate learning and performance. It appears that there is a correspondence between rats and monkeys and between rats and humans in terms of prefrontal cortex function.