title: The effects of tacrine and zacopride on the performance of adult rats in the working memory task.
abstract: 1. The present study investigated the effects of tacrine (an inhibitor of acetylcholinesterase) and zacopride (the antagonist of 5-HT3 receptors) on the performance of adult rats in a continuous operant delayed non-matching to position task assessing spatial working memory. 2. Adult rats had a decline in the percent correct responses at the longest delays (16 and 30 sec) in this task. Tacrine (1.0 mg/kg) or zacopride (0.0025, 0.05, 1.0 mg/kg) did not increase the percent correct responses at any time delays. The higher dose of tacrine reduced behavioural activity (e.g. the decreased number of trials completed and increased sample press latency) of rats during memory testing, and it slightly increased choice accuracy across all the delays. 3. The combination of zacopride (1.0 mg/kg) and tacrine (1.0 mg/kg) increased the percent correct responses at the shortest delays, but not at the longest delays. 4. These results indicate a non-mnemonic improvement in the accuracy performance of rats, and they suggest that the effects of acute, systemic administrations of zacopride (which is thought to increase the release of acetylcholine) or/and tacrine (which inhibits the breakdown of acetylcholine) do not improve spatial working/short-term memory in rats.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Kuopio, Finland.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Jäkälä
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sirviö
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Riekkinen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects; D001549:Benzamides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001643:Bridged Bicyclo Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology*; D019086:Bridged Bicyclo Compounds, Heterocyclic; D003216:Conditioning, Operant / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term / Q000187:drug effects*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012055:Reinforcement Schedule; D012702:Serotonin Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013028:Space Perception / Q000187:drug effects; D013619:Tacrine / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D001549:Benzamides; D001643:Bridged Bicyclo Compounds; D019086:Bridged Bicyclo Compounds, Heterocyclic; D012702:Serotonin Antagonists; D013619:Tacrine; C055971:zacopride