Delayed Matching-to-Sample

Delayed matching-to-sample (DMTS) is a working memory paradigm in which the subject is presented with a sample stimulus, followed by a delay period, and then must select the matching stimulus from a set of comparisons. The delay between sample and comparison can be varied parametrically to generate a forgetting curve — the decay in accuracy as a function of delay duration — which provides a direct measure of working memory capacity and duration.

DMTS is critically dependent on prefrontal cortex and hippocampal function. Lesions to these regions produce delay-dependent impairments: accuracy at short delays is preserved but degrades more rapidly at longer delays. This delay-dependent pattern makes DMTS a powerful tool for dissecting the neuropharmacology of working memory, particularly cholinergic and glutamatergic mechanisms.

ConductMaze automates DMTS with configurable stimulus sets (lights, lever positions, nose-poke arrays), programmable delay sequences, and automated forgetting curve generation. The software randomizes sample-comparison pairings, controls delay-interval illumination, and calculates percent correct at each delay for parametric analysis.