Dopamine applied into the nucleus accumbens and discriminative avoidance in rats

The actions of dopamine (DA) administered into the nucleus accumbens on motor function and discrimination were examined in rats trained to perform a discriminative conditioned avoidance response (DCAR). alpha-Methyl-p-tyrosine was found to suppress performance of the CAR although it did not impair discrimination. The administration of DA reinstated CAR performance but it also increased discriminative errors. Multivariate comparisons suggested that both of these effects were closely related to the stimulation of intertrial crossings by DA.