Conditioned reflex responses of the sympathetico-adrenal system to an aversive taste stimulus

Studies were carried out on male and female rats in which the effects of isolated presentation of a conditioned stimulus (a saccharine solution) to which the animals had previously developed conditioned reflex taste aversion (RTA) on the level of urinary catecholamine secretion were determined. The studies showed that presentation of an aversive taste stimulus without reinforcement by a negative stimulus increased the levels of urinary adrenaline, noradrenaline, and dopamine secretion; this repeated, albeit more weakly, the effects of the negative reinforcement (angular acceleration) used for development of RTA. After presentation of the isolated aversive taste stimulus, the greatest increase in catecholamine excretion affected adrenaline, which indicates an anxiety state (fear). There was also a significant increase in noradrenaline excretion in these conditions. The accompanying increase in dopamine excretion in experimental and control animals showed this change to be largely nonspecific in nature, and to result from the experimental procedures. Isolated presentation of the conditioned taste stimulus elicited significantly greater increases in urinary catecholamine excretion in males than in females. It is suggested that the time for which the RTA is retained could be increased by activation of the sympathetico-adrenal system resulting from presentation of the nonreinforced taste stimulus which had acquired aversive properties.