Course of relational and non-relational recognition memory across the adult lifespan

Human recognition memory shows a decline during normal ageing, which is thought to be related to age-associated dysfunctions of mediotemporal lobe structures. Whether the hippocampus is critical for human general relational memory or for spatial relational memory only is still disputed. The human perirhinal cortex is thought to be critically involved in non-relational memory, but another view postulates hippocampal involvement in both relational and non-relational memory. Investigating whether there is a differential impact of ageing on these memory processes may shed further light into these issues. Thus, in the present study, 106 healthy adults performed three recognition memory tasks in a consecutive age groups design involving a range from age 20 to 76. This allowed the separate assessment of spatial and nonspatial relational memory as well as non-relational memory. Both spatial and nonspatial relational memory declined in the 66-76 yr group. This pattern is consistent with the presumed course of hippocampal changes across normal ageing and points to the hippocampal role in relational memory in general. An impairment of non-relational memory commenced earlier in the 51-65 yr group. This finding is discussed in relation to perceptual/attentional mediation of memory and its potential brain correlates in ageing.