title: Lateralized decrease in self-stimulation induced by haloperidol in rats with unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine lesions.
abstract: Rats with bilateral hypothalamic electrode placements which generated similar self-stimulation rate-intensity functions were subjected to unilateral injections of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into A9 and A10 areas. Following 12 weeks of postoperative recovery which was bilaterally symmetrical the rats were administered 0.1 mg/kg haloperidol. In sham- and vehicle-injected control rats the haloperidol produced bilaterally symmetrical decreases in self-stimulation. In the rats with 6-OHDA lesions the haloperidol effect was asymmetric with a much greater decrease in self-stimulation evident for electrode placements in the dopamine deficient hemisphere than for electrodes in the non-lesion hemisphere. Biochemical evaluation of the lesions indicated that dopamine was severely depleted in limbic and striatal forebrain areas. The combined use of a lesion with a pharmacological blockade of a neurotransmitter system appears to be an effective technique to distinguish reward versus performance effects of the transmitter on self-stimulation.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001679:Biogenic Amines / Q000032:analysis; D002421:Caudate Nucleus / Q000032:analysis; D004292:Dominance, Cerebral / Q000502:physiology*; D004298:Dopamine / Q000502:physiology*; D006220:Haloperidol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006892:Hydroxydopamines / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007031:Hypothalamus / Q000502:physiology*; D008032:Limbic System / Q000032:analysis; D008297:Male; D016627:Oxidopamine; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012653:Self Stimulation / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D001679:Biogenic Amines; D006892:Hydroxydopamines; D016627:Oxidopamine; D006220:Haloperidol; D004298:Dopamine