Arousal is an important defense against hypoxia during sleep. Rat pups exhibit progressive arousal impairment (habituation) with multiple hypoxia exposures. The mechanisms are unknown. The medullary raphe (MR) is involved in autonomic functions, including sleep, and receives abundant GABAergic inputs. We hypothesized that inhibiting MR neurons with muscimol, a GABA(A) receptor agonist, or preve...

These experiments explored the effects of glutamate, N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor blockade on the formation, retention, and expression of conditioned taste aversion (CTA) in young rats. Previous data from our laboratory suggested that ketamine administration potentiates a CTA in E18 rat fetuses. The current studies investigated this phenomenon in neonates. High-pressure liquid chromatog...

Infant rat pups were exposed to a novel odor (orange or cedar) while they received tactile stimulation (stroking of the body) or were presented with odor or stroking alone. The effects of these treatments were assessed on pups' performance in a huddling test (Experiment 1 and 2) and an independent feeding test (Experiment 3). During these tests, only pups that had received the simultaneous pres...

Serotonin:acetyl coenzyme A N-acetyltransferase (EC 2.3.1.5) Activity in pineal gland was assayed in rats which were born and raised under diurnal lighting conditions, in continuous darkness, or in constant light. N-Acetyltransferase activity in the pups raised under diurnal lighting showed a rhythmic pattern, with high enzyme activity during dark period. The pups raised in continuous darkness ...

This study examined the effect of maternal behavior on the expression and postnatal development of a reflexive behavior in rat pups. In neonatal rats, the leg extension response (LER) is a bilateral hyperextension of the hindlimbs in response to maternal anogenital licking (AGL). Past research has found that intranasal application of zinc sulfate (ZnSO4 ) to the dam induces hyponosmia, thereby ...

BACKGROUND Studies have shown that epinephrine release is impaired in patients with asthma. The pregnancy of female rats (dams) with asthma promotes in their pups the differentiation of adrenal medulla chromaffin cells (AMCCs) into sympathetic neurons, mediated by nerve growth factor, which leads to a reduction in epinephrine secretion. However, the relatedness between the alteration of AMCCs a...

The development of taste aversion learning to novel cues contained in mother's milk was examined in rat pups. Pups receiving distinctive mild by experimenter-delivered oral infusions followed by toxicosis formed an aversion to the dam's diet. Robust aversions were learned as early as Day 10 and were retained for at least 11 days. When the same distinctive milk was obtained directly from a foste...

introduction: pheromones play a great role in the reproductive and social behavior of animals. the main sources of pheromones are urine and paracrine secretions. through the neuroendocrine system, prolactin is a safe parameter to measure and compare the effects of pheromones on the sexual, maternal and also lactating behavior. methods: female rats were divided into 19 groups (n=8). to measure t...