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Potentiation of the behavioral effects of amphetamine by imipramine

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Summary

The effects of imipramine in combination with amphetamine were studied in two operant-behavior situations. In one of these, rats were required to press a response lever in order to avoid brief electric shocks; in the other, rats were reinforced for displacing a small response “key” only if such responses were emitted at a rate no greater than one per 15 seconds.

In general, imipramine was found to potentiate the tendency of amphetamine to increase responding in these situations. The relationship of imipramine to atropine, which has a similar action in combination with amphetamine, is discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Squibb Institute for Medical Research, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA

    Peter L. Carlton (Senior Research Scientist)

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  1. Peter L. Carlton
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Additional information

I am indebted to Dr. B. N. Craver for his generous advice on the experiments and the preparation of the manuscript. The idea for the present experiments grew out of a discussion with Dr. Larry Stein.

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Carlton, P.L. Potentiation of the behavioral effects of amphetamine by imipramine. Psychopharmacologia 2, 364–376 (1961). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00404124

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00404124

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