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The ontogeny of salt preference in rats.

Many mammals eat salt irrespective of need. This behavior, called salt preference or appetite, is studied primarily in adults. Little is known about its ontogeny. In these experiments, 3-18-day-old rat pups were offered saline, quinine, or ammonium chloride solutions by infusion through an anterior oral catheter, and intake was measured. At 6-18 days, pups showed the inverted U-shaped preference-aversion curve for NaCl that is characteristic of adult rats. Thus, rats express a preference for salt at a very early age. However, the curves were broader than the typical adult curve and were shifted along the concentration gradient in an age-related fashion. Consumption of quinine and ammonium chloride showed similar age-related changes. These changes may reflect the postnatal timing of the development of the rat gustatory system.

Aging↗

Weaning in rats: I. Maternal behavior.

Maternal behavior during the weaning period (postpartum Days 14-35) was described from continuous timelapse videorecordings of Norway rat dams and their litters. Time spent nursing declined steadily after Day 20 but persisted until Day 34, about a week longer than suggested by reports of milk transfer. Most of the decline in nursing was due to progressively fewer nursing bouts per day; milk letdowns per day were consequently diminished. Although a private feeding chamber was available to the dams, they did not use this chamber to spend more time away from the pups as weaning progressed. Instead, the dams remained with the pups in the nesting chamber but devoted increasingly less time to nursing. Subtle, progressive changes in maternal behavior are closely orchestrated and coordinated with pup development.

Animals↗

Objective measures of dysphagia complexity in children related to suckle feeding histories, gestational ages, and classification of their cerebral palsy.

Data collected during the routine assessment of 117 dysphagic children with cerebral palsy have been related to both suckle feeding histories and gestational ages and to the classification of cerebral palsy. In addition, a concurrent survey involving 281 children with cerebral palsy in special schools was undertaken which revealed that the sample of referred children appeared to be a true representation of a wider population of dysphagic children with cerebral palsy. A Feeding Difficulty Symptom Score (FDSS) describes the severity of swallowing symptoms reported. A numerical Dysphagia Complexity Index (DCI) quantifies numerically the neurological complexity of the swallowing difficulty. The FDSS correlates closely with the DCI. Twenty-seven percent of mothers of the children who were referred for advice on their present swallowing difficulties stated that they recalled no suckle feeding problems. However, there was no difference in the severity of present swallowing difficulties between those infants who suckle fed well and those who experienced severe difficulties. Those referred children with cerebral palsy born at term exhibited more complex later swallowing problems and were more likely to be classified as athetoid than those born preterm.

Adolescent↗

A cross-fostering analysis of the effects of PCB 77 on the maternal behavior of rats.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are environmental contaminants known to cause multiple behavioral and developmental problems in humans and animals. In rats, gestational exposure to the PCB congener 3, 4, 3', 4'-tetrachlorobiphenyl (PCB 77) affects the brain and behavior of the offspring as well as the maternal behavior of the dams. Whether the behavior of dams is affected by direct effects of the contaminant or indirectly by actions of the PCB on the developing offspring is not known. We investigated this question using a cross-fostering paradigm in which pregnant rats were exposed to either oil vehicle or 2 mg/kg of PCB 77 on gestational days 6 through 18, and then raised pups that had been exposed to either oil or PCB 77 during gestation. Maternal behavior was observed on postnatal days 1, 2, 4 and 6. Some of the effects on maternal behavior, including an increase in the frequency of nursing bouts and in the amount of maternal autogrooming, can be ascribed to prenatal exposure of the litters to the PCB. Other behavioral effects, including an increase in time on the nest and in the amount of pup grooming as well as a reduction in high-crouch nursing, appear to be due to both direct effects of the PCB on the dams and effects mediated by changes in the offspring. Our results show that exposure to PCB 77 can have complex effects on the behavioral interactions between the dams and their litters with a potential impact on the development of the offspring.

Analysis of Variance↗

Control of ingestion by oral habituation in rat pups.

The role of habituation of mouthing activity in the control of ingestion was investigated in 6-, 12-, and 18-day-old rat pups. In pups at all ages, oral habituation to a flavored diet inhibited ingestion of a continuous oral infusion of that same diet. Twelve-day-old pups that had orally habituated to a diet continued to consume less of a continuous oral infusion of that diet both 30 min and 3 hr later, and the duration of suppressed ingestion was shown to be dependent on the rate of stimulus presentation during habituation experience. These data suggest that oral habituation may be a diet-specific influence on both intra- and intermeal patterning.

Animals↗

Maternal interactions prior to separation potentiate isolation-induced calling in rat pups.

The vocal response rates of 12-13-day-old infant rats to isolation in a bare test box are markedly increased by brief (1-min) periods of contact with an anesthetized dam prior to isolation, without affecting other isolation-induced behaviors. No such potentiation followed brief contact with littermates, novel test conditions, or experimenter handling. Brief contact with the dam was equally effective in the test chamber or home cage and was not further enhanced by repeated contact-separation sequences. Passive contact became ineffective when prolonged to 30 min, and potentiation could not be restored by providing the additional reinforcing events of continuous suckling, periodic oxytocin-induced milk letdown, or bouts of simulated maternal licking. However, when pups engaged in active interaction with an awake dam, potentiation was significantly enhanced following 1-, 10-, and 30-min periods. A working hypothesis is outlined for the adaptive role of potentiation in the development of the rat pup.

Animals↗

The behavior and routes of lead exposure in pregrasping infants.

Understanding the routes of lead exposure in a very young infant is an essential precursor to identifying effective strategies for minimizing blood-lead (PbB) levels throughout infancy. The present study integrated observational data, lead-loading data, and household airborne particulate levels <10 microm (PM(10)) to understand the broad patterns of lead exposure in infants from Port Pirie, South Australia. Seven, 2-19-week-old infants were observed between three and six times, for 3-9 h per visit, at intervals of 1-9 weeks. Household lead-loading and PM(10) data were collected for five of the families. Eight objects were observed in an infant's mouth, but only the infant's fingers, pacifier, and nipple of the mother's breast or teat of a bottle were observed in an infant's mouth for an average of more than 1% of an observation day. The objects most frequently put in an infant's mouth were their own fingers or their pacifier. Synthesizing our data on behavioral frequency, lead loading, and the surface area of contact, and using estimates of dose response, and sampling, transfer, and absorption efficiencies, the results suggest that a 4-month-old infant could absorb up to 4 microg of lead a day (equivalent to a PbB level of up to about 2.4 microg/dl) by mouthing their fingers, about two-thirds of all exposure routes identified in this study. Estimates also suggest that lead uptake via inhalation accounts for about 0.5-3% of an infant's PbB at 5 microg/dl. If our estimates reflect real routes and values, the majority of the average PbB level of 6-month-old infants in Port Pirie during 2002 could potentially be accounted for by the normal infant and family behaviors observed in this study. While the current level of concern is 10 microg/dl, recent studies indicate no safe threshold for Pb exposure, and so interventions for reducing chronic low-level exposure are useful. We suggest that home-based interventions for reducing Pb exposure should focus on maintaining low Pb loadings on objects that are directly associated with an infant, and outside objects that have few transfer steps to the infant.

Cohort Studies↗

Breastfeeding patterns in exclusively breastfed infants: a longitudinal prospective study in Uppsala, Sweden.

Exclusive breastfeeding was studied among 506 infants in Uppsala, Sweden, based on daily recordings during the first 6 mo. The mothers had previously breastfed at least one infant for at least 4 mo. Most of the mothers considered that they breastfed on demand. Wide variations in breastfeeding frequency and suckling duration were found both between different infants and in the individual infant over time. At 2 wk, the mean frequency of daytime feeds (based on one 13-d record) between different infants ranged from 2.9 to 10.8 and night-time feeds from 1.0 to 5.1. The daytime suckling duration (based on one 24-h record) ranged from 20 min to 4h 35 min and night-time duration from 0 to 2h 8 min. At any given age, a maximum of only 2% of the infants were not breastfed during the night. At 4 mo, 95% of the infants were breastfeeding and 40% were exclusively breastfed at this age. Longer breastfeeding duration and longer duration of exclusive breastfeeding were both associated with higher frequency of breastfeeds, longer breastfeeding of the previous child and higher education. No gender differences were found. Maternal smoking was associated with shorter duration of exclusive breastfeeding, and pacifier use was associated with shorter duration of both exclusive breastfeeding and total breastfeeding. This study confirms that every mother-infant pair needs to be understood as a unique dyad throughout lactation. These data demonstrate a wide range of patterns among women who are exclusively breastfeeding and indicate that it would be inappropriate to put pressure on individual families to adopt preconceived patterns of infant feeding.

Age Factors↗

Cerebral dopamine, apomorphine and oral activity in the neonatal pig.

Neonatal piglets in which oral stimulation associated with feeding was reduced by intragastric tube feeding displayed an increase in stereotyped snout rubbing, licking and chewing behaviour. An investigation of a possible neurochemical basis for this behaviour was made by using sensitive radioenzymatic and microfluorimetric assays to estimate the concentrations of the catecholamines and of the dopamine metabolites homovanillic acid (HVA) and 3,4-dihydroxyphenyl-acetic acid (DOPAC) in different brain regions. These observations revealed that the increased non-nutritive oral activity of such piglets did not appear to be caused by an increased release of dopamine in the brain, since it was not associated with increases in the concentrations of the acidic metabolites of dopamine in either the caudate nucleus, the putamen, the nucleus accumbens, the olfactory tubercle, the hypothalamus, or the substantia nigra. The only neurochemical changes observed were small decreases in the concentration of HVA in the putamen and the nucleus accumbens. A lack of effect on catecholamine concentrations in any of the six brain regions examined suggested that the environmental manipulation caused no changes in the development of catecholamine-containing nerve endings. Subcutaneous injection of apomorphine was found to increase the non-nutritive oral activity of piglets. Apparent conditioning effects of the environment on apomorphine-induced stereotyped behaviour however, prevented any satisfactory testing of possible changes in cerebral dopamine receptor sensitivity following reduced oral stimulation.

3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid↗

Feeding behavior by parasitic phase lampreys, Ichthyomyzon unicuspis.

Feeding behavior was initiated in juvenile and adult lampreys, Ichthyomyzon unicuspis, by attachment to goldfish or by injection of saline extracts of goldfish skin and muscle into the sucker cavity. Feeding was confirmed by the apparent swallowing of fish extract plus food dye by lampreys. Distinctive characteristics of feeding behavior included low frequency cycles, long duration (hours), variable biphasic pressure changes in the sucker cavity, and protraction of the tongue-like apicalis. In contrast, pumping behavior was used to move excess fluid from the sucker through the pharynx and out the gill pores; it was characterized by transient, high-frequency, monophasic suctions, simple retraction of the apicalis, and lack of swallowing.

Animals↗

Self-administration of ethanol and saccharin in newborn rats: effects on suckling plasticity.

Responsiveness to a surrogate nipple providing water, saccharin, 5% ethanol, or 10% ethanol was tested in newborn rats naive to suckling (3-5 hr old) on Postnatal Day (P) 0 and in older neonates with regular suckling experience on P1 or P2. At all ages, pups demonstrated greater nipple attachment for saccharin or 5% ethanol than for water. Intake of saccharin and 5% ethanol was high in newborns, far exceeding that of water. At P1 and P2, pups exhibited a preference for saccharin, but not for 5% ethanol. Preexposure to a nipple providing ethanol or saccharin (but not a nipple alone or fluids alone) increased subsequent responsiveness toward an empty surrogate nipple (no fluid), both 1 hr and 24 hr after preexposure. Although, during preexposure, pups responded most positively to the nipple providing saccharin, the longest time spent on an empty nipple was observed in pups preexposed to 10% ethanol.

Animals↗

Development of rats' maternally directed orienting behaviors from birth to day 2.

We previously observed 2- to 3-day-old (P2-3) rats perform maternally directed orienting behaviors (MDOBs)-locomotion, torso flexion, rotation to the supine orientation, and snout probing, accompanied by audible vocalizations (barking)-under surfaces having properties of the dam's ventrum, which result in close contact between the pup's ventrum and the surface. We now report on the development of MDOBs from birth through P2. Wistar rats (24 litters) were tested at one of four times: 1 hr after birth before the first nursing bout (P0pre), on the day of birth after the first nursing bout (P0post), on postnatal Day 1 (P1), or on postnatal Day 2 (P2). Pups were placed prone on a warmed platform inside a corral where, for 4 min, they encountered one of two motherlike surfaces at head height: (a) a soft cotton roof or (b) a patch of the pup's own anesthetized dam's ventrum. Control pups received no overhead stimulus. The behaviors we had identified as MDOBs and others, including limb behaviors, are easily recognized at P0pre, and, in aggregate, are more frequent then than at any later age. The differential responsiveness of most of the behaviors to the dam's ventrum compared to the cotton roof or open condition is relatively low at P0pre, but rises rapidly through P2. Behavioral structure develops quickly from a rudimentary principal component with two behaviors at P0pre to two principal components incorporating seven behavior classes by P2. MDOBs are discussed in relation to late-term fetal behaviors, early postnatal righting responses, and the oral nipple grasp, and as a model of the development of filial attachment in an altricial mammal.

Animals↗