title: Effects of training, early handling, and perinatal flumazenil on shuttle box acquisition in Roman low-avoidance rats: toward overcoming a genetic deficit.
abstract: The present series of studies investigated the effects of intensive training, postnatal handling-stimulation and/or perinatal flumazenil (Ro 15-1788, benzodiazepine receptor antagonist) on the acquisition of two-way active avoidance by Roman low-avoidance (RLA/Verh) rats. This rat line has been selectively bred for poor avoidance in the shuttle box, while their Roman high-avoidance counterparts (RHA/Verh) have been selectively bred for their extremely good performance in that task. In the first experiment, RLA/Verh rats submitted to a long and intensive training procedure (unlike those submitted to short training) were able to achieve a performance of 56% of avoidances per session. In the second experiment both postnatal handling and perinatal flumazenil treatments increased avoidance responding in another group of RLA/Verh rats tested at the age of 18 months. Finally, in the last experiment, the performance of a third stock of RLA/Verh rats of the same age which had received perinatal flumazenil did not differ, on the later phases of training, from that shown by RHA/Verh animals. The results are discussed in terms of the "warm up" phenomena which seems to be highly involved in the selection of RLA/Verh rats, as well as on the possibility that central benzodiazepine receptors could play a role in the genetic deficit shown by RLA/Verh rats, which apparently confers a greater emotivity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology and Psychiatry, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Escorihuela
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tobeña
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Driscoll
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fernández-Teruel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn / Q000502:physiology; D001007:Anxiety / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000187:drug effects*; D004597:Electroshock; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology; D005442:Flumazenil / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018757:GABA Modulators / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005824:Genetics, Behavioral; D006234:Handling, Psychological; D008297:Male; D010805:Physical Conditioning, Animal; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains
chemical_list: D018757:GABA Modulators; D005442:Flumazenil