Behavioral effects of arecoline in rats

✍ Scribed by S. N. Pradhan; S. N. Dutta

• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 1970
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 556 KB
• Volume: 17
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0033-3158
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00402090

✦ Synopsis

Effects of arecoline (0.25--4 mg/kg) were studied on several behavioral schedules in rats. It usually decreased the responses, especially at high doses, in schedules including spontaneous motor activity, FR (water and food) and FI (food) reinforcement, DRL and shock avoidance. Slight enhancement of responses was observed at low doses in spontaneous activity, FR (food) reinforcement, FI reinforcement and shock avoidance. Arecoline methiodide had negligible and insignificant effects.

The depressant effect of areeoline (2 mg/kg) in the spontaneous activity schedule could be antagonized by scopolamine (0.25 and 0.1 mg/kg), but not by methylscopolamine (0.5 mg/kg) and meeamylamine (2 mg/kg). On the other hand, arecoline induced behavioral depression under FR water and food reinforcement could neither be antagonized by scopolamine (0.025--0.1 mg/kg) that itself caused depression, nor by mecamylamine (2 mg/kg).