Genetically-based behavioral traits influence the effects of Shuttle Box avoidance overtraining and extinction upon intertrial responding: a study with the Roman rat strains

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• 作者：Aguilar ; Raú ; l ; Gil ; Luis ; Ferná ; ndez-Teruel ; Alberto ; Tobe&ntilde ; a ; Adolf
• 关键词：2-way Shuttle Box ; Intertrial responding ; Contextual extinction ; Psychogenetics ; Impulsiveness ; Fearlessness
• 刊名：Behavioural Processes
• 出版年：2004
• 出版时间：April 30, 2004
• 年：2004
• 卷：66
• 期：1
• 页码：63-72
• 全文大小：130 K

文摘

In the present study, we evaluated the effects of extended exposure procedures to contextual fear cues as a way of reducing intertrial responses (ITRs), a characteristic stereotyped behavior displayed in 2-way Shuttle Box avoidance overtraining. We used rat strains psychogenetically selected for efficient (Roman high-avoidance; RHA) versus poor 2-way Shuttle Box performance (Roman low-avoidance; RLA), the former being fearless/impulsive relative to the latter. Additionally, Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were compared with RHAs to have a measure of the ITRs exhibited by another, non-selected group of animals. The main findings were that after extended exposure RHAs diminished their ITRs without affecting avoidance performance, although they emitted a pattern of ITRs somewhat excessive as compared with SDs. We concluded that three factors could influence the expression of ITRs in RHA rats: (1) the repetitive and stereotyped responding induced by 2-way Shuttle Box overtraining; (2) contextual fear conditioning; and (3) a genetic background associated with high impulsiveness.