Acute administration of interleukin-1beta disrupts motor learning.
Proinflammatory cytokines have been shown to disrupt the normal transfer of short-term memory to long-term storage sites. Previous research has focused predominantly on the effect of cytokines on hippocampus-mediated spatial learning. To further understand the effects of cytokines on learning and memory, the authors evaluated the effects of interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) on a motor learning task. Male Long-Evans rats were rewarded with food pellets after they traversed a runway. The runway was either flat (control condition) or had up-ended dowels (motor learning condition). Subjects traversed the flat runway or dowel task for 5 days, 10 trials per day, and were treated with either saline or with 4 microg/kg IL-1beta immediately after training on the first 2 days. Rats in the motor learning task treated with IL-1beta were consistently slower at traversing the runway. IL-1beta did not impair performance in the control condition; rats in the flat condition performed similarly regardless of whether they were treated with saline or IL-1beta. These data are the first evidence demonstrating IL-1beta can disrupt performance in a motor learning task.
Larson
Susan J
SJ
Department of Psychology, Concordia College, Moorehead, Minnesota, USA.
Hartle
Kelly D
KD
Ivanco
Tammy L
TL
D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects; D053583:Interleukin-1beta / Q000009:adverse effects*; D007859:Learning Disabilities / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000187:drug effects; D009048:Motor Skills / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D020318:Rats, Long-Evans; D012054:Reinforcement, Psychology; D013997:Time Factors
D053583:Interleukin-1beta