Abstract
DBA/2J and C57BL/6J mice were injected with nicotine, and tested in a Y water maze in two procedures: the L procedure, corresponding to innate behavior, in which the animals must swim towards the light, and the D procedure, corresponding to the acquisition of a new pattern of behavior, in which they must swim toward the dark.
Three sets of experiments were carried out:
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1.
In the pre-trial experiments, nicotine administration improved the innate tendencies of both strains, while the acquisition of a new behavior was facilitated in the C57 and impaired in the DBA mice.
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2.
In the post-trial experiments (D procedure), nicotine administration induced clear facilitating effects on the consolidation processes of the C57, while impairing these processes in the DBA strain.
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3.
The only effect evident, following nicotine administration, before the highest doses were reached, in the trained mice of both strains, was a performance impairment of the DBA mice trained in the L procedure.
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Castellano, C. Effects of nicotine on discrimination learning, consolidation and learned behaviour in two inbred strains of mice. Psychopharmacology 48, 37–43 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00423304
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00423304