Abnormal locomotion in the rat after administration of a TRH analogue

Previous studies have indicated that the TRH analogue CG3703 induces changes in gross measures of motor activity. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether it affected the underlying components of the locomotor cycle, stance and swing times. It has been found that while total stride time was unaffected there was an alteration in the balance between swing and dual stance times such that treated rats used longer swing times and shorter dual stance times. For both control and treated animals dual stance time increased with stride time. However, for any particular stride time, treated animals deployed longer swing times and shorter dual stance times. Possible mechanisms for these observations are discussed.