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Heart rate changes during consumption of preferred and non-preferred food under amphetamine treatment
1Department of Neurophysiology, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland.
Abstract:
Heart rate was recorded in five dogs while they ate three kinds of foods varying in preference. Heart rate increased during the initial phase of eating, to the greatest extent with the most preferred food. dl-Amphetamine sulfate (0.2 mg/kg) injected intramuscularly produced a general decrease of heart rate. Nevertheless, the heart rate increase during first period of eating was as great as before treatment. Furthermore, the difference in heart rate increase between the most and least palatable foods was still present, and in some dogs even enhanced. It was concluded that amphetamine at this dose in dogs does not attenuate the hedonic properties of food, but may even intensify them. Therefore, the food intake-reducing effect of amphetamine cannot be due to its suppression of hedonic value of food but is the result of its action on other mechanisms such as hunger drive or control of movement.
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