Behavioral measures of neurotoxicity

Three particular behavioral functions constitute the focus of this chapter: motor, sensory and complex (learning and memory) behavior. A wealth of behavioral procedures have been devised to assess each of these behavioral functions. One purpose of this monograph is to familiarize the reader with the particular procedures most frequently utilized to evaluate neurotoxicant-induced changes in each of these categories, pointing out their relative strengths and weaknesses. A second and predominant purpose is to acquaint the reader with the more complex behavioral approaches and procedures available for each of these functions, paradigms which exemplify the scope and possibilities provided by behavioral measures. While the more complex procedures unquestionably require more extensive training time, they also offer the advantage of a more selective measurement of the particular behavioral function of interest. Delineation of the components of complex performance may yield information relevant to understanding both the behavioral and biological mechanisms underlying a toxicant's effect. Furthermore, complex procedures provide the capability of determining the specificity of a toxicant-induced change in a particular behavioral function by allowing concurrent evaluation of multiple behavioral functions.