title: Serotonin, motivation, and playfulness in the juvenile rat.
abstract: The effects of the selective 5HT(1A) agonist 8-OH-DPAT were assessed on the play behavior of juvenile rats. When both rats of the test pair were comparably motivated to play, the only significant effect of 8-OH-DPAT was for play to be reduced at higher doses. When there was a baseline asymmetry in playful solicitation due to a differential motivation to play and only one rat of the pair was treated, low doses of 8-OH-DPAT resulted in a collapse of asymmetry in playful solicitations. It did not matter whether the rat that was treated initially accounted for more nape contacts or fewer nape contacts, the net effect of 8-OH-DPAT in this model was for low doses of 8-OH-DPAT to decrease a pre-established asymmetry in play solicitation. It is concluded that selective stimulation of 5HT(1A) receptors changes the dynamic of a playful interaction between two participants that are differentially motivated to play. These results are discussed within a broader framework of serotonergic involvement in mammalian playfulness.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, PA 17325, USA. ssiviy@gettysburg.edu
authors.forename: Stephen M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Siviy
authors.forename: Loren M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Deron
authors.forename: Chelsea R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Kasten
mesh_terms: D017371:8-Hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin / Q000494:pharmacology; D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation / Q000502:physiology*; D010988:Play and Playthings / Q000523:psychology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012701:Serotonin / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D012701:Serotonin; D017371:8-Hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin