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Selective breeding for deficient sensorimotor gating is accompanied by increased perseveration in rats
F Freudenberg1, M Dieckmann, S Winter
1Brain Research Institute, Department of Neuropharmacology, University of Bremen, P.O. Box 33 04 40, 28334 Bremen, Germany.
Neuroscience
|August 19, 2007
Summary
Rats selectively bred for low prepulse inhibition (PPI) exhibit cognitive deficits, specifically in behavioral flexibility and adapting to changing reward values. These findings offer a valuable model for studying neuropsychiatric disorders.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Behavioral Science
- Psychiatry
Background:
- Prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the acoustic startle response is a key measure of sensorimotor gating.
- Deficits in PPI are observed in neuropsychiatric disorders like schizophrenia and Tourette's syndrome.
- Rats selectively bred for high and low PPI provide a stable model for studying these deficits.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if low PPI in selectively bred rats is associated with other behavioral and cognitive deficits.
- To assess learning, memory, and behavioral flexibility in rats with genetically low PPI.
- To evaluate the utility of low PPI rats as an endophenotype model for neuropsychiatric disorders.
Main Methods:
- Utilized spatial and operant learning paradigms to assess cognitive functions.
- Employed delayed alternation T-maze and radial maze tasks to evaluate working memory and behavioral flexibility.
- Used Skinner box tasks with changing reinforcement schedules to assess adaptive behavior.
Main Results:
- Rats with low PPI did not differ in basic task acquisition or working memory.
- Low PPI rats exhibited enhanced perseveration in spatial and operant tasks, struggling to adapt to changing reward values.
- Rats with low PPI showed a higher breakpoint in progressive ratio reinforcement schedules.
Conclusions:
- Selectively bred low PPI rats display specific cognitive deficits, particularly in behavioral flexibility and adapting to new information.
- These deficits mirror cognitive impairments seen in certain psychiatric disorders.
- Low PPI rats serve as a valuable non-pharmacological model for evaluating therapeutic strategies for neuropsychiatric conditions.
