Neonatal dopamine depletions spare lateral hypothalamic stimulation reward in adult rats.
Previous research has shown that adult rats sustaining near-total depletions of striatal dopamine (DA) as neonates exhibit few of the profound deficits in ingestion and sensory-motor behavior seen in comparably lesioned adults. This study extends these findings to another realm of DA-related behavior, reward function. In a rate-frequency curve-shift measurement paradigm, reward effectiveness of lateral hypothalamic brain stimulation was shown to be normal in adult rats depleted of brain DA as neonates. However, impairments were seen in rapid-initiation operant performance. Neonatally DA-depleted rats were also shown to be subsensitive to the DA receptor antagonist pimozide, suggesting that activity within undamaged DA neurons is not necessary for the elicitation of hypothalamic self-stimulation reward.
Stellar
J R
JR
Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138.
Waraczynski
M
M
Bruno
J P
JP
D015102:3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid / Q000032:analysis; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn / Q000502:physiology*; D001923:Brain Chemistry; D004298:Dopamine / Q000172:deficiency*; D004567:Electrodes, Implanted; D007031:Hypothalamus / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D010868:Pimozide / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012201:Reward; D012653:Self Stimulation / Q000502:physiology
D015102:3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid; D010868:Pimozide; D004298:Dopamine