Shuttle-box memory facilitation by posttraining intracranial self-stimulation: differential effects in rats with high and low basic conditioning levels.
The effects of intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) on retention (after 24 hr, 7, 15, or 60 days) of a massed 2-way active avoidance task were studied in independent groups of rats. All groups showed a higher performance on the retention session than on the acquisition one. In the control subjects, the higher retention performances were observed in the 7- and 15-day groups. However, the ICSS treatment facilitated the 24-hr retention compared with its control group, allowing the treated subjects to achieve the same level of performance on the 24-hr retention session than that achieved by the control rats at the 7-day retention test. In the 24-hr groups, the facilitatory ICSS effect was stronger in the subjects with a low level of conditioning and weaker in those with a high level. Results suggest that posttraining ICSS accelerates memory consolidation and equalizes the performance of poor and good learners.
Aldavert-Vera
L
L
Department de Psicologia de la Salut, Facultat de Psicologia, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain.
Segura-Torres
P
P
Costa-Miserachs
D
D
Morgado-Bernal
I
I
D000818:Animals; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D003214:Conditioning, Classical / Q000502:physiology*; D007026:Hypothalamic Area, Lateral / Q000502:physiology*; D017774:Long-Term Potentiation / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D008474:Medial Forebrain Bundle / Q000502:physiology; D011939:Mental Recall / Q000502:physiology*; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D012153:Retention, Psychology / Q000502:physiology*; D012653:Self Stimulation / Q000502:physiology*