Conditioning-related changes of unit activity in the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus of urethane-anaesthetized rats

Changes in geniculate unit activity of urethane-anaesthetized and freely moving rats were investigated during conditioning. The conditioned stimulus (CS) was a flash which was paired with an electrical stimulation of the tail as unconditioned stimulus (US). The discharge rates evoked by the CS during forward conditioning were significantly higher in responding units than those evoked by reversal of CS and US (backward conditioning) or by pseudoconditioning. Tail stimulation alone did not cause significant changes in the firing rate of most of the neurons. In 25% of the investigated neurons the facilitation of activity evoked by forward conditioning persisted during an extinction period of more than 15 min. The effect of conditioning on neuronal activity appeared to be comparable in urethane-anaesthetized rats and in freely moving ones which responded to the US with a slight freezing behavior.