title: Hyperactivity induced by prenatal administration of methylazoxymethanol: association with altered performance on conditioning tasks in rats.
abstract: Methylazoxymethanol (MAM), an alkylating agent which kills dividing cells, produces microcephaly when administered to rats at 15 days gestation. Rats treated prenatally with MAM were tested on a variety of behavioral tests. The MAM-treated animals performed better than controls in the acquisition of a food-reinforced operant response, but poorer than controls on a passive avoidance procedure. When required to reverse the passive avoidance procedure by actively avoiding the portion of a chamber that was associated with shock, MAM-treated rats performed better than controls. The MAM-treated rats were microcephalic and were also hyperactive compared to controls. It was postulated that the behavioral changes observed in the conditioning tasks may be attributable to hyperactivity. A possible neurochemical basis for this hyperactivity is discussed.
mesh_terms: D000477:Alkylating Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000187:drug effects; D001391:Azo Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001835:Body Weight; D003216:Conditioning, Operant / Q000187:drug effects*; D005260:Female; D008746:Methylazoxymethanol Acetate / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000187:drug effects*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains
chemical_list: D000477:Alkylating Agents; D001391:Azo Compounds; D008746:Methylazoxymethanol Acetate; C030667:methylazoxymethanol