Neuropeptide substance P improves water maze performance in aged rats.
The effects of the peripherally administered neuropeptide substance P (SP) on spatial learning capacities were investigated in 27-month-old rats using a water-maze task. Old rats were injected intraperitoneally once daily for 6 days with 50 or 250 micrograms/kg SP or vehicle 30 min prior to acquisition trials. Improvement in maze performance was observed following injections of 250 micrograms/kg SP only. Furthermore, vehicle-treated old rats showed significantly poorer acquisition rates than vehicle-treated 12-week-old rats. Thus, the improvement in performance after the 250 micrograms/kg dose of SP can be interpreted in terms of a compensation of performance deficit in the old rats.
Hasenöhrl
R U
RU
Institute of Physiological Psychology, University of Düsseldorf, Federal Republic of Germany.
Huston
J P
JP
Schuurman
T
T
D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D007274:Injections, Intraperitoneal; D007858:Learning / Q000187:drug effects*; D008297:Male; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013028:Space Perception / Q000187:drug effects; D013373:Substance P / Q000494:pharmacology*
D013373:Substance P