Word Count: 7, 903 Relational memory and its relevance to aging To be published in The Cognitive Neuroscience of Human Memory

150 words Memory for a past event involves remembering the various components of the event (item memory; IM), as well the associations or links formed between the components (relational memory; RM). Research studies using animal models, neuropsychological studies of human amnesic patients, and functional neuroimaging investigations have shaped our understanding of the cognitive and neural mechanisms that give rise to RM. RM depends predominantly on the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and medial temporal lobes (MTL), as well as other neural regions depending on the nature of the components of the learning event. Considerable emphasis has been placed on elucidating the neural processes involved in RM, as RM is more sensitive than IM to the mnemonic changes observed in healthy aging. This chapter reviews the theoretical concepts and empirical findings concerning the neural bases of RM and how these change in normal aging. Up to 10