[Selection of Wistar rats for predisposition to catalepsy]

Non-inbred Wistar rats were bred for predisposition to catalepsy for 14 generations. The percentage of cataleptic rats, beginning from the F1, was about 50%, while in the control population it was about 9%. This, together with the data obtained after comparison of the proportion of cataleptic animals in the progeny from homogeneous crossings between rats of normal and cataleptic phenotypes from the group selected for catalepsy (16 and 48%, respectively), makes one suppose predisposition to catalepsy to be an oligogenic character. The later onset of stereotype-like reactions to administrations of methylphenidate, and their longer persistence in cataleptic animals points to inertness of dopaminergic systems. At the same time, the increased frequency of "hyperactivity"-like reactions to methylphenidate, as well as higher arterial pressure and lower frequency of defecations seem to reflect an increased excitability of noradrenergic brain systems in rats predisposed to catalepsy.