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Low doses of atropine sulfate impair retention of a well-learned spatial task

Summary

Retention of a well-learned spatial task was assessed in rats 10 minutes prior to, and 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 minutes after treatment with 3, 10 or 30 mg/kg, iv, atropine sulfate or the equivalent volume of saline, iv. There was a variable dose effect for escape latency and choice accuracy measures of spatial retention. A relatively large dose of atropine sulfate (30 mg/kg, iv) significantly impaired choice accuracy and escape latency compared with the control group. Moreover, impairment in choice accuracy was observed with smaller doses of atropine sulfate (3, 10mg/kg, iv) than have previously been shown to disrupt spatial retention.

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Rauch, T.M., Welch, D.I. & Gallego, L. Low doses of atropine sulfate impair retention of a well-learned spatial task. J Neural Transm Gen Sect 1, 219–228 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02248671

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02248671

Keywords

  • Atropine
  • spatial retention
  • dose-response