Behavioral suppression using intracranial reward and punishment: effects of benzodiazepines.
Rats were chronically implanted with electrodes aimed at the lateral hypothalamus (LH) and the dorsal central gray (DCG) and trained to press a lever that delivered rewarding stimulation of the LH and punishing stimulation of the DCG. In this situation, both diazepam (5-20 mg/kg, PO) and bromazepam (2-10 mg/kg, PO) caused a marked dose-dependent increase of the lever pressing response in the punished period. In addition, the facilitation of lever pressing in unpunished period was also seen in diazepam (5 and 10 mg/kg). These results show that behavioral suppression on lever pressing maintained self-stimulation reward is inducible following DCG stimulation, and that benzodiazepines exhibit an anti-behavioral suppression effect in this situation.
D000818:Animals; D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects*; D001960:Bromazepam / Q000494:pharmacology; D003216:Conditioning, Operant / Q000187:drug effects; D003975:Diazepam / Q000494:pharmacology; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D007031:Hypothalamus / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D008636:Mesencephalon / Q000502:physiology; D011678:Punishment; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012054:Reinforcement, Psychology
D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents; D003975:Diazepam; D001960:Bromazepam