Hippocampus

A seahorse-shaped structure located in the temporal lobe, part of the limbic system, critical for the formation of new declarative memories (facts and events) and spatial navigation.

Key Functions:

• Forms new declarative memories (episodic and semantic).
• Involved in spatial memory and navigation.
• Plays a role in contextual fear conditioning.
• Highly susceptible to stress and neurodegenerative diseases.

Interacting Systems & Components:

• Limbic System (key component of)
• Amygdala (interacts with for emotional memory)
• Fornix (connects to mammillary bodies)
• Entorhinal Cortex (major input to)
• Memory Formation (essential for)