Hypothalamic self-stimulation in three inbred strains of mice

doi:10.1016/0006-8993(74)90485-5

Brain Research

Volume 81, Issue 1, 29 November 1974, Pages 159-167

https://doi.org/10.1016/0006-8993(74)90485-5 Get rights and content

Abstract

Male mice from 3 inbred strains (DBA/2 Orl, BALB/c Orl and C57 BL/6 Orl) were implanted with a bipolar electrode in the hypothalamus and tested for self-stimulation. The 3 strains differed in performances: the BALB/c mice showed higher scores than the DBA/2 mice which themselves showed higher rates than the C57 BL/6 mice. These strains also differed in frequency, threshold and the nature of seizures suspending their self-stimulation behavior.

Moreover, for each strain, a comparison between dorsal and ventral hypothalamus implantation was made. In the 3 strains dorsal implantation gave higher self-stimulation scores than ventral. On the other hand the seizures occured more frequently with ventral implantations.

References (27)

Al-AniA.T. et al.
Gaba production, acetylcholinesterase activity and biogenic amine levels in brain for mouse strains differing in spontaneous activity and reactivity
Life Sci.
(1970)
CazalaP. et al.
Etude pre´liminaire du comportement d'autostimulation chez la souris
Physiol. Behav.
(1972)
FuxeK. et al.
Morphological and functional aspects of central monoamine neurons
Int. Rev. Neurobiol.
(1970)
PoschelB.P.H. et al.
Hypothalamic self-stimulation: its suppression by blockade of norepinephrine biosynthesis and reinstatement bymeta-amphetamine
Life Sci.
(1966)
RosenquistA.C. et al.
Wheel running elicited by electrical stimulation of the brain
Physiol. Behav.
(1968)
StinusL. et al.
Self-stimulation and catecholamines. II. Blockade of self-stimulation by alpha-methylparatyrosine, and their reinstatement by catecholamine precursors administration
Brain Research
(1973)
StinusL. et al.
Self-stimulation and catecholamines. III. Effect of imposed or self-stimulation in the area ventralis tegmenti on catecholamine utilization in the rat brain
Brain Research
(1973)
WimerR.E. et al.
Genetic variability in forebrain structures between inbred strains of mice
Brain Research
(1969)
CalhounW.H. et al.
Brain serotonin and emotionality in mice
Amer. Psychol.
(1964)
CazalaP. et al.
Les crises convulsives en autostimulation pendant la pe´riode de sensibilitéa`la crise audioge´ne chez la souris DBA/2
C.R. Acad. Sci. (Paris)
(1974)

CazalaP. et al.

He´te´roge´ne´ite´dorso-ventrale hypothalamique et comportement d'autostimulation chez la souris

C.R. Acad. Sci. (Paris)

(1973)

FullerJ.L. et al.

Audiogenic seizures in eleven mouse strains

J. Hered.

(1967)

GoddardG.V. et al.

A permanent change in brain function resulting from daily electrical stimulation

Exp. Neurol.

(1969)

Cited by (33)

Reward deficits in compulsive eating
2019, Compulsive Eating Behavior and Food Addiction: Emerging Pathological Constructs
Food is consumed for at least two reasons: to maintain energy homeostasis and to obtain the pleasurable properties of palatable food items. Consumption driven by the hedonic properties of palatable food can result in excessive caloric intake, which likely plays an important role in the strikingly high rates of obesity in developed countries. Compared with the well-characterized mechanisms of homeostatic feeding, less is known about the mechanisms of hedonic feeding. Palatable food can stimulate activity in brain reward systems, and emerging evidence suggests that excessive consumption of such food items can trigger counteradaptive responses in reward circuitries similar to the actions of drugs of abuse. Here, I will summarize our current understanding of how overconsumption of palatable energy-dense food can alter the activity of brain reward systems and the role that such diet-induced reward dysfunction may play in the emergence of compulsive eating.
Animal Models of Addiction and Neuropsychiatric Disorders and Their Role in Drug Discovery: Honoring the Legacy of Athina Markou
2018, Biological Psychiatry
Citation Excerpt :
Olds and Milner (10) established in the early 1950s that rats will work vigorously to electrically self-stimulate certain regions of the brain such as the lateral hypothalamus or ventral tegmental area (VTA). Subsequently, it was shown that mice (11), cats (12), dogs (13), and even humans (14) will also work hard for ICSS stimulation. ICSS is thought to act by stimulating neurons and circuits in the brain that regulate the rewarding properties of natural reinforcers such as food, water, and sex.
Each of the co-authors worked with Athina Markou, at different stages of our careers and in different capacities, to develop, optimize, and use animal models of drug addiction and, more generally, mental health disorders such as anxiety, depression, and schizophrenia. Here, we briefly summarize some of our work with Athina, primarily involving the use of the intracranial self-stimulation and intravenous drug self-administration procedures. This work established that excessive consumption of addictive drugs can induce profound dysfunction in brain reward circuits. Such drug-induced reward deficits are likely to play a key role in precipitating the emergence of compulsive drug-seeking behaviors. We also summarize findings suggesting that perturbations in glutamatergic transmission contribute to brain reward deficits in drug-dependent animals and that metabotropic glutamate receptors are potential targets for the development of novel medications to facilitate long-term drug abstinence and prevention of relapse.
Comparison of μ opioid receptors in brains of rats bred for high or low rate of self-stimulation
1992, Physiology and Behavior
Opiates and endogenous opioid peptides play an important role in reward-mediated behaviors, including self-stimulation. Two strains of rats, LC2-Hi and LC2-Lo, selectively bred for high vs. low rate of lateral hypothalamic self-stimulation, were employed in the present study. Quantitative autoradiography was performed on brains of adult male rats of each strain, using the μ opioid receptor agonist ³H-DAGO. Strain differences in receptor density were observed in the nucleus accumbens and in ventral areas of the hippocampus.
Intertrial interval dependent effect of lateral hypothalamic stimulation on spontaneous alternation behavior in a T-maze
1989, Physiology and Behavior
Spontaneous alternation behavior in a T-maze was studied in mice of the BALB/c strai implanted with a stimulation electrode in the lateral hypothalamus (LH). For animals receiving no electrical stimulation spontaneous alternation rates decreased as a function of the increasing time interval between the first and the second trial (intertrial interval ITI). Thus, as compared to chance rate alternation (41.4%), mice significantly alternated at the 30 sec ITI (73.2%), exhibited a slight but not significant tendency to alternate at 30 min (51.8%) and performed very close to chance at 6 hr (39.3%). Stimulation of the LH, using a low current intensity (5 μA) during the first arm-choice, modifies subsequent arm-choice tested on the second trial. The direction of the effect, however, is highly dependent on the ITI. Thus, as compared to nonstimulated animals, stimulated mice show a strong preference to return to the previously visited arm when the ITI was 30 min, while for an ITI of 6 hr they, in fact, significantly avoid that arm (alternation). These results indicate that LH stimulation induces facilitative effects on memory for events occuring on the 1st trial as clearly shown for the 6 hr ITI. In addition to its general facilitative effect, stimulation could induce a place-reward association of short-duration which could explain the fact that animals tend to return to the same arm at 30 min. Alternatively, it is suggested that stimulation might have short-lasting amnesiant properties. Both of these hypotheses are discussed.
Electrical self-stimulation in the medial and lateral septum as compared to the lateral hypothalamus: Differential intervention of reward and learning processes?
1988, Physiology and Behavior
The characteristics of the electrical self-stimulation behavior elicited from the lateral hypothalamus (LH) and from both medial (MS) and lateral (LS) parts of the septal nucleus have been compared in male mice of the BALB/c strain. Using two different experimental situations (the lever-press box and a spatial discrimination test in a Y-maze) the self-stimulation rate-current intensity relations and the performances during both acquisition and reversal of a spatial discrimination were tested successively. In the lever-press box, it was observed that highest self-stimulation rates were obtained from LH placements while both MS and LS rates were lower. However, MS animals showed higher self-stimulation rates and lower self-stimulation thresholds than LS animals. Acquisition of the spatial discrimination in the Y-maze was achieved by all 3 groups with similar time courses. However, when tested for the reversal of the discrimination, the LS implanted mice were much more perturbed than the two other groups and exhibited marked perseveration. The incidence of convulsive episodes was more frequent in LS mice than in either MS or LH implanted animals during both phases of the discrimination task. These differences in the self-stimulation behavior elicited from medial and lateral parts of the septal complex are discussed in relation to the operation of positive reinforcement mechanisms and to internal inhibition processes operating during acquisition and reversal of the spatial discrimination.
Dorso-ventral variation in the attenuating effect of lateral hypothalamic stimulation on the switch-off response elicited from the mesencephalic central gray area
1987, Physiology and Behavior
Previous experiments have shown that the lateral hypothalamus (LH) is a heterogeneous structure with respect to self-stimulation and aversion. Specifically it has been reported that stimulation of the dorsal LH region entails consequences which are both more rewarding and more aversive than those due to ventral LH stimulation [5, 7, 8, 16, 18]. The aim of the present study was to compare the effects of electrical stimulation applied to either the dorsal or the ventral regions of the LH on the switch-off response elicited by activation of the dorsal part of the mesencephalic central gray area (CG). This experiment was performed using BALB/c mice. The results obtained show that whatever the LH site, hypothalamic stimulation reduces the aversive effects of CG stimulation; however, ventral LH activation was more effective than the dorsal one. In addition, a close relationship was observed between the tolerance in regard to LH stimulation alone, and the tolerance in regard to combined CG/LH stimulation. These data suggest that the more marked aversive consequences of dorsal LH stimulation represent a limiting factor for the attenuating effect on CG escape responding.

View all citing articles on Scopus

View full text

Hypothalamic self-stimulation in three inbred strains of mice

Abstract

Life Sci.

Physiol. Behav.

Int. Rev. Neurobiol.

Life Sci.

Physiol. Behav.

Brain Research

Brain Research

Brain Research

Brain serotonin and emotionality in mice

Amer. Psychol.

Les crises convulsives en autostimulation pendant la pe´riode de sensibilitéa`la crise audioge´ne chez la souris DBA/2

C.R. Acad. Sci. (Paris)

He´te´roge´ne´ite´dorso-ventrale hypothalamique et comportement d'autostimulation chez la souris

C.R. Acad. Sci. (Paris)

Audiogenic seizures in eleven mouse strains

J. Hered.

A permanent change in brain function resulting from daily electrical stimulation

Exp. Neurol.