Investigation of anabolic steroids in two taste aversion paradigms

The aversive effects of estradiol have been studied in two different taste aversion paradigms. A similar investigation was undertaken for the anabolic-androgenic steroids, nandralone and testosterone cypionate, using Rockland-Swiss mice. Experiments 1 and 2 used the brief exposure of a novel saccharin solution as the conditioned stimulus for taste aversion learning, and showed that anabolic steroids (1 mg) do not induce taste aversions. Instead, these hormones induced a small non-contingent increase in saccharin preference. Experiment 3 showed that daily nandralone administration (1 mg/day) had a greater anabolic effect than the same dose of testosterone cypionate. Experiment 4 paired the continuous exposure to a novel diet with daily nandralone injections, and showed that steroid treatment increased intake of the novel diet. When the novel diet was subsequently presented with the familiar diet in a two-choice preference test, there was no indication that an aversion was conditioned to the novel target diet. On the contrary, nandralone treatment significantly increased the preference for the novel diet. These experiments show that anabolic-androgenic steroids do not have aversive effects in mice, and that they may have positive consequences.