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Biomedical subjects

T Thompson

Publications and source records attributed to T Thompson.

At least 199 records · Page 11Linked to original sources

Effects of response-contingent clock stimuli on behavior maintained by intravenous codeine in the rhesus monkey.

Response-contingent brief presentations of clock stimuli differentially correlated with food availability altered rates of codeine-maintained lever pressing. Rhesus monkeys performed under a two lever multiple schedule: Multiple fixed interval clock 5 min variable interval 2 min. Different colored lights were presented during successive 75 sec period of the fixed-interval clock component. Lever pressing under the FI Clock schedule was maintained by presentation of 1 g Noyes pellets, and lever pressing under the VI schedule by 0.05 mg/kg infusions of codeine PO4. Characteristic schedule-controlled performance developed in both schedule components. When the clock stimulus from the first or the final period of the FI Clock schedule was presented contingent upon completion of a short fixed ratio of responses during the variable-interval schedule component, the first clock stimulus decreased and the final clock stimulus increased rates of codeine-maintained lever pressing. Neither the first nor the final clock stimulus altered the frequency of codeine injection. The effect of each clock stimulus was accentuated by increasing the duration of stimulus presentation and by decreasing the response requirement for stimulus illumination. These rate-altering effects of the clock stimuli were most pronounced when different reinforcers were presented in the two components of the multiple schedule when either food or intravenous codeine injection was available under both components of the multiple schedule, response-contingent clock stimulus presentation did not alter response rates under the VI schedule.

Animals↗

Phenobarbital dosage for control of neonatal seizures.

The relationship of the initial phenobarbital dose to weight, gestational age, blood level, and seizure control was studied in 39 neonates. The blood proportional to the dosage per kilogram, and was not related to weight or gestational age. Seizures remitted only at blood phenobarbital concentrations above 16.9 micrograms per milliliter. Therapeutic levels can be achieved by the intravenous or intramuscular administration of 16 to 23 mg per kilogram of phenobarbital.

Humans↗

The chemiluminescence response and bactericidal activity of polymorphonuclear neutrophils from newborns and their mothers.

Chemiluminescence (CL) was measured in the polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) of 18 normal term infants, their mothers, and controls during phagocytosis of opsonized zymosan particles. Chemiluminescence was significantly lower in the PMN of newborns in comparison with the PMN of their mothers and of the controls. Depressed bactericidal activity was demonstrated in newborn PMN, in comparison with the activity of the PMN of their mothers and controls, when challenged with Escherichia coli at large bacteria-PMN ratios. Uptake of radio-labeled bacteria by PMN was identical in newborns, mothers, and controls, which indicates that reduced CL was not a result of impaired ingestion. Therefore, PMN of normal term infants have both depressed oxidative metabolic responsiveness as measured by CL and depressed bactericidal capacity.

Adult↗

Chronic effects of methadone on a line tilt generalization gradient in the pigeon.

Using an adjusting interval schedule, pigeons were trained to key peck at a relatively constant rate during 45 degrees line tilt presentations and at an extremely low rate in the presence of 0 degrees and 90 degrees line angles. Subsequently, the birds received intramuscular injections of methadone hydrochloride every 8 hr in doses beginning at 3 mg/kg/day and increasing progressively to 90 mg/kg/day. Stimulus generalization tests were run on the first day and on the last day a given dose was administered to assess the development of tolerance. Although chronic methadone treatment was associated with an overall decrement in key peck rate, the gradients of line tilt generalization were indistinguishable from saline control gradients at doses as high as 90 mg/kg/day. Though the birds exhibited gross behavioral incoordination, visual stimulus control appeared unaffected.

Animals↗

Characteristics of a somatostatin-binding protein.

The concentrations of a somatostatin-binding protein, found in the cytosol of a number of rat tissues, are similar in both sexes, and hypophysectomy has little or no effect on the level of binding protein in tissue extracts. On the other hand, streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus causes a modest decrease. The somatostatin-binding proteins obtained from extracts of several rat tissues are not only similar in molecular weight but also exhibit a similar isoelectric point and electrophoretic mobility. Agents that block thiol groups or prevent the formation of disulfide bridges markedly decrease the binding of somatostatin to the cytoplasmic protein. Studies using thiol reagents and gel filtration suggest that free thiol groups in somatostatin-binding protein are important for the binding of somatostatin.

Animals↗

d-amphetamine and fixed-interval performance: effects of operant history.

Sixteen rats were initially exposed for 50 sessions to either a fixed-ratio 40 or an interresponse-time-greater-than-11-second food reinforcement schedule, then shifted to a fixed-interval 15-second food reinforcement schedule. Animals with fixed-ratio 40 histories lever pressed at much higher rates under the fixed-interval schedule than did animals with inter-response-time-greater-than-11-second histories. This difference persisted across 93 sessions of fixed-interval exposure. The effects of d=amphetamine were assessed after 15 and 59 sessions of fixed-interval exposure. On both occasions, the low-rate responding of animals with interresponse-time-greater-than-11-second histories was typically increased by all doses of the drug, while the high-rate responding of animals with fixed-ratio 40 histories was typically decreased by all doses of the drug. These results suggest that control response rate under the fixed-interval schedule, which may be affected by a history of responding under another schedule, is the primary determinant of the relative effects of d-amphetamine.

Animals↗

Properties of soluble somatostatin-binding protein.

A soluble somatostatin-binding protein was detected in the cytosol fractions of various rat, human and bovine tissues. Maximum binding occurred at pH8.0-8.5 and was Ca(2+)-dependent. The specific binding of somatostatin per 10mug of cytosol protein from 12 rat tissues ranged between 36 and 15%, and 3% for peripheral blood cells. There was also substantial binding in cytosol from human anterior pituitary and liver, and bovine anterior pituitary. The specific binding in rat and human plasma in the presence of EDTA was only 1%. Gel filtration suggested a molecular weight of approx. 80000 for the somatostatin-binding protein from several sources. Exposure of the binding protein to trypsin eliminates somatostatin-binding activity but ribonuclease and deoxyribonuclease have no effect. The binding protein is thermolabile, ethanol-precipitable, and not completely specific for somatostatin. Bound (125)I-labelled [Tyr(1)]somatostatin is not easily displaced by excess of unlabelled somatostatin. The effects of dithiothreitol and mercaptoethanol on the binding of (125)I-labelled [Tyr(1)]somatostatin to the binding protein suggests that binding involves two sequential steps, first loose binding, then disulphide linkage. Since semipurified somatostatin-binding protein causes a dose-related inhibition of the binding of (125)I-labelled [Tyr(1)]somatostatin in radioimmunoassays for somatostatin, estimates of somatostatin content of tissue extracts by radioimmunoassay in some cases may be spuriously high. It is not yet clear whether the binding protein is a true cytosol protein or an easily solubilized membrane protein.

Animals↗

The effects of d-amphetamine on the automaintained key pecking of pigeons.

Three food-deprived pigeons were initially exposed to an automaintenance procedure in which 8-s response key illuminations were followed by food delivery without regard to the subject's behavior. The percentage of occasions on which key illumination was followed by food delivery was then successively reduced from 100 to 50, 25, 10, and 2.5%. Despite the lack of a programmed contingency between key pecking and food delivery or key illumination, key pecking occurred under all automaintenance conditions. Mean responses per 8-s key illumination during non-drug sessions varied from over 15 to less than one, with the 100 and 50% pairing conditions engendering the highest rates and the 2.5% pairing condition the lowest. Under all automaintenance conditions, d-amphetamine in does of 0.5, 1, and 2 mg/kg decreased responding in a dose-dependent fashion. Rate-dependent effects were not evident despite the appreciable differences in mean response rates engendered by the various conditions.

Animals↗

Effects of delaying food availability contingent on ethanol-maintained lever pressing.

The effects of delaying food availability 8 s contingent on every, every second, and every fourth lever press maintained by 4,8, and 16% (v/v) ethanol solutions were examined when food was initially available to rats on a fixed-interval 26-s schedule. The delay contingency decreased ethanol-maintained responding at all ethanol concentrations, with the degree of decrease inversely related to the intermittency of the delay schedule and to the ethanol concentration. Such decreases were not evident in the performance of yoked-control animals which received food coincidentally with experimental animals. Temporal changes in food presentation alone therefore could not account for the decreases produced by the delay contingency.

Animals↗

Effects of d-amphetamine and chlordiazepoxide on positive conditioned suppression.

Six rats lever-pressed under a variable-interval 80-sec food reinforcement schedule. After responding had stabilized, an 8-sec tone terminating with food delivery was superimposed on the variable-interval schedule on the average once every five minutes without regard to the animal's behavior. This positive conditioned suppression procedure consistently reduced responding during the pre-food stimulus (tone). Neither d-amphetamine (0.5, 1.0, 2.0 mg/kg) nor chlordiazepoxide (7.5, 15, 30 mg/kg) significantly affected the relative suppression produced by the tone. Instead, both drugs produced generally non-selective effects, similarly affecting response rate in the presence and absence of the tone.

Animals↗

Attenuation of ethanol intake by contingent punishment of food-maintained responding.

Two food-deprived rats responded under a concurrent fixed-ratio 12 (food) fixed-ratio 1 (8% ethanol) reinforcement schedule in which a tone occurred during every second or every fourth interpellet interval. When ethanol-maintained lever presses during the presence of the tone shifted the food schedule to one in which electric shock punishment occurred, ethanol-maintained responding consistently decreased. The decrease in the frequency of ethanol-maintained responding varied directly with shock voltage from 25 to 100 V, and occurred during intervals with the tone present and absent. These results indicate that ethanol intake may be attenuated by contingent changes in a concurrent food schedule.

Alcohol Drinking↗

Effects of feeding regimen on ethanol intake by guinea pigs.

During daily two-hr sessions, guinea pigs licked a drinking tube filled with either 0 (tap water), 2,4 or 8% (v/v) ethanol solution under three feeding regimens. Consumption of each solution was highest when sufficient food to maintain subjects at 90% of free-feeding weight was provided during sessions, lower when the same food ration was provided after sessions, and lowest when ad lib access to food was provided within and between sessions. However, this decrease in consumption across feeding regimens was inversely related to ethanol concentration. Under all feeding regimens, volume of solution consumed decreased with increasing ethanol concentration while milligrams ethanol consumed increased with ethanol concentration. These results are similar in some respects to previous findings with rats and monkeys, suggesting that further studies of oral ethanol self-administration by guinea pigs may be merited.

Alcohol Drinking↗