title: Rule shift under long-term PCP challenge in rats.
abstract: Performance of Long-Evans rats repeatedly treated with a high dose of phencyclidine (PCP) was compared with that of controls on two tasks involving rule shifts. Fifteen hours after receiving 12 daily doses of PCP (10mg/kg) or saline, rats were tested in the first task where a fixed or variable goal had to be recognized among four maze-arm locations. After receiving the last of 33 injections, rats were subjected to a second task: they had to discriminate the relevant perceptual dimension in a pair of stimuli and choose the appropriate stimulus in each problem. Results from both tasks revealed no difference between controls and rats injected with PCP either during acquisition using a constant rule or during testing with rule shifts. Consequently, PCP appears to lack consistency in disturbing frontal cognitive functions in animal models of schizophrenia.
authors.affiliation: Ecole de Psychologie, Université Laval, Que., Canada.
authors.forename: Annie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Deschênes
authors.forename: Sonia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Goulet
authors.forename: François Y
authors.initials: FY
authors.lastname: Doré
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D001288:Attention / Q000187:drug effects*; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects*; D004193:Discrimination Learning / Q000187:drug effects; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D006213:Hallucinogens / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000187:drug effects; D010622:Phencyclidine / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D020318:Rats, Long-Evans; D021641:Recognition, Psychology / Q000187:drug effects*; D013037:Spatial Behavior / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D006213:Hallucinogens; D010622:Phencyclidine