title: Interactions with conspecific attenuate conditioned taste aversions in mice.
abstract: Social animals both increase and decrease their stress levels by interacting with conspecifics. The present study examines the effect of interaction with a conspecific on conditioned taste aversion in 32 male mice. Subjects were injected with lithium chloride immediately after drinking saccharin solution for 30 min. They were then exposed to a male conspecific for 3h following the poisoning. In the subsequent three consecutive days of two-bottle tests involving a choice between saccharin solution and water, they showed attenuated conditioned taste aversion compared with controls exposed to no conspecific after poisoning. These results confirm social interaction with a conspecific reduces conditioned taste aversion in mice. The implications of these findings are discussed with regard to social buffering effect and stress-induced analgesia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Psychological Science, Hiroshima International University, Japan. Electronic address: y-hishi@he.hirokoku-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Yutaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hishimura
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D003216:Conditioning, Operant / Q000502:physiology*; D004326:Drinking; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D018021:Lithium Chloride / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D012439:Saccharin / Q000494:pharmacology; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology; D013549:Sweetening Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D013649:Taste / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D013549:Sweetening Agents; D012439:Saccharin; D018021:Lithium Chloride
keywords: Conditioned taste aversion; Mice; Social buffering; Stress-induced analgesia