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Startle and sensorimotor gating in rats lacking CCK-A receptors
D Feifel1, K Priebe, P D Shilling
1Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-8218, USA. dfeifel@ucsd.edu
Summary
Otsuka Long Evans Tokushima Fatty rats lacking CCK-A receptors show altered responses to amphetamine and dizocilpine. These findings highlight the role of CCK-A receptors in sensorimotor gating and drug effects.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pharmacology
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Cholecystokinin A (CCK-A) receptors are implicated in sensorimotor gating.
- Otsuka Long Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats possess a genetic mutation leading to a lack of functional CCK-A receptors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of CCK-A receptors in prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the startle reflex.
- To examine baseline and drug-disrupted PPI in OLETF rats compared to Long Evans Tokushima Otsuka (LETO) rats.
Main Methods:
- Assessment of baseline PPI and acoustic startle response in OLETF and LETO rats.
- Administration of amphetamine, dizocilpine, apomorphine, and haloperidol to evaluate their effects on PPI.
- Evaluation of locomotor activity in response to amphetamine.
Main Results:
- No significant difference in baseline PPI between OLETF and LETO rats, but OLETF rats showed a higher startle response.
- Amphetamine and dizocilpine disrupted PPI in LETO rats but not in OLETF rats.
- Apomorphine did not affect PPI in either group, while haloperidol facilitated PPI comparably in both.
Conclusions:
- CCK-A receptors are crucial for the behavioral effects of amphetamine and dizocilpine.
- The PPI response in OLETF rats mirrors that of normal rats treated with atypical antipsychotics, suggesting CCK-A receptor involvement in antipsychotic action.