title: Specific modulation of social memory in rats by cholinomimetic and nootropic drugs, by benzodiazepine inverse agonists, but not by psychostimulants.
abstract: The recognition of an unfamiliar juvenile rat by an adult rat has been shown to imply short-term memory processes. In this study the effect of various psychotropic drugs on this investigatory behaviour was examined. The procedure was as follows: an unfamiliar juvenile rat was placed in the home cage of an adult rat for 5 min. The time spent by the adult rat in investigating the juvenile was recorded. The adult rat was then immediately treated with vehicle or test compounds, and was again exposed for 5 min to the same juvenile 2 h later. At this time point vehicle-treated rats no longer recognized the juvenile rat, i.e. the time of investigation was similar to that observed during the first presentation. Arecoline (1 and 3 mg/kg IP), physostigmine (0.05 and 0.1 mg/kg SC), RS86 (0.5 mg/IP) and nicotine (0.125 and 0.5 mg/kg IP) reduced in a dose-dependent fashion the time spent in investigating the juvenile during the second exposure. This result cannot be attributed to nonspecific effects, since it was not observed when a different juvenile was used for the second exposure. The effect of arecoline was reversed by scopolamine, but not by methylscopolamine. Aniracetam reduced investigatory behaviour at the dose of 50 mg/kg IP. FG 7142 (5 mg/kg IP) and beta-CCM (0.4 mg/kg IP) were also active and their effect was reversed by Ro 15-1788. DL-Amphetamine (0.5 and 1 mg/kg IP), nomifensine (1.25-10 mg/kg IP) and strychnine (0.25 and 0.5 mg/kg IP) were ineffective or reduced this behaviour unspecifically.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurobiology, SANOFI Recherche, Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Perio
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Terranova
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Worms
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Bluthe
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dantzer
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Biziere
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001115:Arecoline / Q000494:pharmacology; D001569:Benzodiazepines; D002243:Carbolines / Q000494:pharmacology; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000187:drug effects*; D010277:Parasympathomimetics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011760:Pyrrolidinones / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012919:Social Behavior
chemical_list: D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents; D002243:Carbolines; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants; D010277:Parasympathomimetics; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs; D011760:Pyrrolidinones; D001569:Benzodiazepines; D001115:Arecoline; C036466:aniracetam; C035874:FG 7142; C036150:beta-carboline-3-carboxylic acid methyl ester