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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Different behavioural patterns induced by apomorphine: evidence that the method of administration determines the behavioural response to the drug.

The behavioural effects of s.c. injected apomorphine was studied on habituated rats in a test-box designed to measure 8 different components of behaviour. Apomorphine, 1 mg/kg, induced two different behaviours: The "G-type" of behaviour characterized by compulsive gnawing and the "LS-type" of behaviour characterized by increased locomotion, sniffing and repetitive head and limb movements. G-type behaviour was induced when apomorphine, dissolved by heating, was injected s.c. into the flank of the animal. LS-type behaviour was induced both when apomorphine, dissolved by heating, was injected s.c. into the neck and when it was dissolved by heating together with a high concentration of ascorbic acid (1 mg/ml) and injected s.c. into the flank. G-type behaviour could not be elicited by changing the dose which induced LS-type behaviour or vice versa. We therefore conclude that these different behavioural effects of apomorphine were not dose--response effects but were elicited by at least two different synaptic mechanisms in the brain. Experimentally induced changes from one of these apomorphine-induced behaviours to another can therefore not merely be interpreted as a change in the intensity of the behavioural response as is done in e.g. commonly used stereotypy rating scales.

Animals

Predictors of smoking behaviour: an application of Ajzen's theory of planned behaviour.

The aim of the present paper was to verify the basic assumptions underlying the theory of planned behaviour for the prediction of cigarette smoking intentions and behaviour among adults of the general population (study 1) and a group of pregnant women (study 2). Each study was developed based upon Ajzen's theory of planned behaviour. In both studies, baseline data was collected at home with trained interviewers and with the use of paper and pencil questionnaires. The self-report on behaviour was obtained 6 months (study 1) and between 8 and 9 months (study 2) after baseline data collection. In study 1, for smokers, perceived behavioural control, attitudes and subjective norm were explaining intention, whereas perceived behavioural control and habit were the most important predictors of behaviour. In study 2, smoker's intentions was mainly under the influence of perceived behavioural control and attitude, whereas behaviour was predicted by perceived behavioural control only. The present studies suggest that promotional programmes should help smokers to know and develop their will-power regarding non-smoking of cigarettes and should be informed of the effort required in order to modify smoking behaviour.

Adult

The physiology of wandering behaviour in Manduca sexta. II. The endocrine control of wandering behaviour.

Removal of the prothoracic glands early during the 5th instar of Manduca sexta prevented the larvae from wandering and from further development. Infusion of 20-hydroxyecdysone (20-HE) into these larvae induced wandering behaviour. In intact larvae, induction of precocious wandering behaviour required a 20-HE infusion lasting longer than 5 h. Infused 20-HE induced maximal response (90%) when delivered at a rate of 0.06 micrograms g-1 body weight h-1. At considerably higher concentrations (0.25 micrograms g-1 h-1 larvae performed brief, erratic behaviour or omitted wandering entirely. The latency between appearance of 20-HE and the onset of wandering was dose-dependent with a minimum of 11 h following infusion at 0.1 micrograms g-1 h-1. Latency was not affected by the duration of 20-HE infusion. The duration of induced wandering behaviour was proportional to the duration of 20-HE infusion. Minimal wandering behaviour lasted 2 h following 20-HE infusions at 5 h, while infusions lasting 11 h induced 9 h of wandering behaviour. Several lines of evidence suggest that the effects of 20-HE accumulate over time and directly determine the duration of wandering behaviour. Many larvae exhibited a series of temporally distinct locomotor periods following various 20-HE infusion protocols, suggesting that a series of separate exposures to 20-HE can result in corresponding serial bouts of locomotion. Responsiveness to 20-HE appeared to be principally modulated by juvenile hormone. Allatectomy of 2nd, 3rd and 4th instar larvae removed juvenile hormone (JH) precociously from these stages and was followed several days later by precocious wandering behaviour. Likewise, application of the JH mimic, EGS, prior to 20-HE exposure or at the start of it, could prevent the behavioural induction. During the 5th instar, 20-HE became increasingly effective in inducing wandering as larvae grew larger than 5 g, the size at which JH normally begins to disappear from the haemolymph. Allatectomized 5th instar larvae responded directly to 20-HE a day sooner than larvae with normal JH titres, but before day 2 the effects of 20-HE on wandering behaviour appear to be indirect, requiring a latency greater than 24 h. Several processes, of which the elimination of JH is the last, appear to be required before 20-HE can induce wandering behaviour.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Animals

Comparative effects of preoptic area infusions of opioid peptides, lesions and castration on sexual behaviour in male rats: studies of instrumental behaviour, conditioned place preference and partner preference.

The effects on the sexual behaviour of male rats of excitotoxic amino acid-induced lesions of the medial preoptic area-anterior hypothalamic area (mPOA/AHA), infusions of beta-endorphin, alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone and naloxone into the mPOA/AHA, systemic naloxone and castration were compared using different behavioural paradigms. These included measures of unconditioned copulatory behaviour, instrumental responses for an oestrous female presented under a second-order schedule of reinforcement, conditioned place preference and partner preference. The results demonstrate that manipulations of the mPOA/AHA markedly affect consummatory aspects of sexual behaviour (mounting, intromitting and ejaculating) but tend not to affect appetitive or reward-related aspects of sexual behaviour, although intra-mPOA/AHA alpha MSH did result in a small increase in instrumental responses, while beta-endorphin infused into the mPOA/AHA also abolished preference for an oestrous over an anoestrous female. Systemic naloxone, on the other hand, reduced instrumental behaviour and a place preference conditioned by prior sexual interaction, while the same compound infused into the mPOA/AHA markedly facilitated copulatory responses but did not affect other measures of appetitive sexual responses. Castration caused an extremely rapid attenuation of conditioned place preference which was apparent before the males had experienced reductions in their copulatory performance. This treatment only slowly reduced partner preference. The results indicate that the use of several behavioural procedures can reveal discrete actions of neuroendocrine treatments on separable psychological processes which underly the integrated pattern of masculine sexual behaviour. In particular, they suggest that the mPOA/AHA is especially concerned with the copulatory responses of mounting and intromitting, but is much less important for a variety of appetitive sexual acts as well as sexual reward, as measured in the place preference procedure. The marked effects of castration on conditioned place preference taken together with the lack of effect of lesions of the mPOA/AHA on this measure indicate that testosterone affects sexual reward-related processes by an action at a site other than the mPOA/AHA. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Animals

Behaviour problems and language abilities at three years and behavioural deviance at eight years.

A representative sample of 535 children were followed up from their third to their eighth birthday using measures of language ability and behaviour. At age 8 yr it was found that there were significantly more boys with behavioural deviance than girls, and that children from manual social class backgrounds also showed more behavioural deviance. The only difference between the immigrant and non-immigrant children was a less frequent occurrence of neurotic deviance in the immigrant group. It was found that behaviour problems at age 3 yr were strongly related to behavioural deviance at school at age 8 yr, particularly for boys. This medium-term stability in behaviour problems had not been found in previous studies looking at younger children. A low score on a measure of language structure at age 3 yr was found to be related to a high rate of neurotic deviance at age 8 yr even when behaviour at age 3 yr was controlled. The implications of these findings for the early identification and intervention with children at risk for later behaviour deviance are discussed.

Antisocial Personality Disorder

The putatively antipsychotic agent amperozide produces behavioural stimulation in the rat. A behavioural and biochemical characterization.

Amperozide (FG 5606; N-ethyl-4-[4',4'-bis(p-fluorophenyl)butyl]-1-piperazinecarboximide ) is a new putatively antipsychotic compound with a postulated 5-HT2 antagonistic profile. Somewhat surprisingly amperozide dose dependently induced a behavioural stimulation in reserpinized and in nonpretreated rats. The behaviour consisted of both forward and backward locomotion as well as forepaw circling and a grooming like behaviour. Since the behavioural pattern clearly differ from that produced by classical dopaminergic or serotonergic agonists (e.g. apomorphine or 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin, 8-OH-DPAT), and has not been previously reported, we decided to investigate the origin of this effect. In the behavioural paradigms it was not possible to antagonize the amperozide stimulation in reserpinized rats with the dopamine receptor blockers haloperidol, raclopride or R(+)-7-chloro-8-hydroxy-3-methyl-1-phenyl-2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-1 H-3-benzazepine, SCH 23390. Neither the 5-HT2 receptor blocking agent ritanserin nor the tryptophan and tyrosine hydroxylase inhibitor DL-3,4-dihydroxy-phenyl-alpha-propylacetamide, H22/54, could block the motoric stimulation or the forepaw circling behaviour produced by amperozide. However, the noradrenaline synthesis inhibitor bis-(4-methyl-1-homopiperazinylthiocarbonyl)-disulfide, FLA 63, as well as the alpha-adrenoceptor antagonist phenoxybenzamine, could partly inhibit the locomotor stimulation. Hence, noradrenaline seems to be, at least in part, involved in the behavioural stimulatory effect of amperozide. Biochemically amperozide had no effect on the dopamine synthesis rate (DOPA formation) in normal or reserpinized animals in the striatal or the limbic brain regions. In reserpinized animals amperozide also failed to antagonize the decrease in DOPA formation after apomorphine and 3-hydroxy-benzylhydrazine HCl, NSD 1015, in these regions.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

5-Hydroxytryptophan

Registration of feeding behaviour in rats by recording food approach behaviour.

A method is described in which food approach behaviour of rats is recorded to study feeding behaviour. Between rats, differences in food approach behaviour were observed. For each rat, food approach behaviour was constant over a long period of time. This allows conversion of approach behaviour data into quantified feeding behaviour. Examples of long-term feeding behaviour and of reproducibility of food intake are given.

Animals

Effects of rapid urbanization on child behaviour and health in a part of Khartoum, Sudan--II. Psycho-social influences on behaviour.

A study of child behaviour and health in a newly urbanized part of Khartoum, Sudan, was carried out in 1980 on 245 children aged 3-15 years. The same area, then rural, had been investigated in 1965. Compared to 1965, the 1980 study showed an increase of behaviour problems of boys aged 7-15. In both studies the levels of most behaviour problems were below the figures from comparable studies from developed countries. Contrary to this the physical health and nutrition had improved between 1965 and 1980. The older children of newcomers, especially blue-collar, wage-earners with low incomes showed the highest frequencies of behaviour deviances. Children who had dropped out of school had higher rates while those belonging to the best third of their grades had less behaviour problems. While polygamy did not influence the rates of behaviour problems maternal anxiety/depression and harsh corporal punishment did so. Children of school-age (7-15) showed a strong connection between poor somatic health and high rates of behaviour deviances. The impact of various cultural changes on the families and the psychological well-being of the children is discussed.

Adolescent

Risk factors for aggressive behaviour are of limited value in predicting the violent behaviour of acute involuntarily admitted patients.

Violent behaviour within 8 and 28 days respectively was related by a multivariate statistical procedure to risk factors for aggressive behaviour in an epidemiologically representative sample of 105 acute involuntarily admitted patients. Previous violent behaviour by the patient was found to correlate significantly with aggressive behaviour during the first 8 days of admission, and abuse of drugs other than alcohol was found to correlate significantly with aggressive behaviour during the first 28 days of admission. Determination coefficients were very low, and it is concluded that risk factors associated with aggressive behaviour are of limited value in predicting aggressive behaviour among acute involuntarily admitted inpatients.

Acute Disease

Induction of incubation behaviour in male ring doves (Streptopelia risoria): a behavioural analysis.

Male ring doves (Streptopelia risoria) were treated with either progesterone or dexamethasone (a powerful ACTH inhibitor) and tested for incubation behaviour. Progesterone treatments shortened the latency of incubation response by facilitating nest-related pre-incubation behaviour patterns in the nest bowl and components of incubation behaviour. The accumulated rather than the daily dose level of progesterone injections appeared to be the determinant factor in mediating behavioural effects. Dexamethasone treatment at the dosage of 100 mug/day for 7 days inhibited the overall expression of male courtship behaviour. None of the dexamethasone-treated ring doves "sat" in 2 weeks. It is suggested that the hormonal and situational (non-hormonal) cues are not only important contributory factors but also complement one another in the induction of incubation behaviour.

Animals

Developing self-care skills and reducing institutionalized behaviour in a long-stay psychiatric population: the role of the nurse in behaviour modification.

This paper examines the potential for behaviour modification in the rehabilitation of chronic, long-stay psychiatric patients and the impact such procedures may have on the work role of ward-based nursing staff. Through the use of five case histories the effectiveness of behavioural analysis and modification in encouraging self-help skills and constructive activity is identified. In addition to a critical examination of the clinical and organizational factors involved in patient improvement, it is argued that behaviour modification develops the therapeutic potential of nurses. The development of the patient-teaching dimension of the nursing role not only fosters greater clinical responsibility, but also promotes both professional independence and institutional power. This is not to imply that the use of behavioural methods cannot be combined with customary nursing practices, for in many ways they provide nurses with an appropriate technology to achieve established therapeutic goals. In conclusion, it is noted that clinical success is not sufficient to ensure the acceptance of ward-based behavioural programmes. The critical issues concern conventional hospital and staff practices and institutional rigidity, not the commitment of nursing staff or patient improvement.

Aged

Effects of pup sucking behaviour on inhibition of sexual behaviour and ovulatory secretion of LH in lactating rats.

The time-interval between parturition and the display of sexual receptivity varied between 13.5 +/- 0.7 and 35.9 +/- 2.5 days in rats with litters of between 1 and 24 pups. Body weight gain decreased and the avidity of pup sucking behaviour, measured by the latency before the pups, placed on the ventrum of an anaesthetized mother, attached to a nipple of the mother, increased as litter size increased. Litter-shifting procedures, which introduced asynchrony between the lactational age of the mother and the age of the pups, produced deficiencies in sucking behaviour and did not prolong the time-interval between parturition and the display of sexual receptivity by the mother. By keeping the lactational age of the mother in synchrony with the age of the pups and depriving the pups of maternal contact and nutrition every alternate day, the time-interval between parturition and the display of sexual receptivity by the mother was prolonged by 17 days, the avidity of pup sucking behaviour markedly enhanced and the body weight gain of the pups retarded in comparison with mothers and pups continuously living together. The results show that the display of the first postlactational behavioural oestrus and surge of pituitary LH secretion can be greatly delayed by an increase in the avidity of pup sucking behaviour.

Animals

Effect of lesions of areas of brain--stimulation reward of one region of brain on operant behaviour for receiving electrical stimulation into sites of another region and on operant behaviour for food reward.

It was aimed to study the effects of lesions of a self-stimulation (SS) area of one region of brain on the SS of another region, and on feeding behaviour in adult Wistar rats (males). The two regions proposed for study were the lateral hypothalamus (LH) and the substantia nigra-ventral tegmental area (SN-VTA). The objective was to elucidate whether each region had its own neural organization for SS behaviour or not, and whether the neural substrates of SS behaviour and feeding behaviour were one, or separate. Four bipolar electrodes were implanted bilaterally in LH and SN-VTA in each rat, and their SS pedal press rates for rewarding electrical stimulations were characterised. The rats were also trained in operant conditioning paradigm for receiving reward of food grains in FR-30 schedule. Their free-field food intake in home cages was measured. Later, electrolytic lesions of the four electrode sites were made one after another at 2-day intervals through the same biopolar electrodes. After each lesioning, the SS of the same and of the other electrode sites, and the operant performance of FR-30 food reward schedule, and daily free-field food intake (in home cage) were determined. Lesions of the LH SS site always disrupted SS-of contralateral LH but not of SN-VTA SS. Lesions of SN-VTA had not modified contralateral SN-VTA SS. A study of effects of ipsilateral lesions of LH SS site on SN-VTA SS, or of lesions of SN-VTA SS site on LH SS, revealed a range of changes, as were also effects on the FR-30 operant performance and daily food intake. Medium size lesions of SS area made in one region affected the SS of that area but not usually the SS of the other region. Large lesions of one region affected the SS of the other regions also. With large lesions, feeding behaviour also was affected, firstly of the operant type and secondly the free-field type.

Animals

Stereotyped behaviour in animals induced by stimulant drugs or by a restricted cage environment: relation to disintegrated behaviour, brain dopamine and psychiatric disease.

Stereotyped behaviour can be produced in animals both by stimulant drugs (amphetamine, methamphetamine, cocaine, etc.) and by a restricted cage environment. Strong evidence indicates that the effect of stimulant drugs is mediated through a primary effect on brain dopamine, and further knowledge is now being acquired through studies on dopamine receptors, tolerance and reverse tolerance to amphetamines and the neural connections of dopaminergic sub-systems with other sub-systems in the brain. The forms of stereotypy induced by a restricted cage environment have been compared with other effects of this type of environment on behaviour and general health. This has led to a hypothesis that stereotyped behaviour may function as a survival (or defence) strategy in an unfavourable milieu. Some evidence indicates that brain dopamine is also involved in the mediation of stereotyped behaviour induced by the environment. The relevance of these results in clinical psychiatry is discussed. Stereotypy (and related disintegrated behaviour) is a well known feature of several mental diseases.

Amphetamines

A controlled trial of cognitive-behavioural and behavioural treatment of anorexia nervosa.

This study was undertaken to investigate whether a cognitive-behavioural treatment procedure was superior to a standard behavioural treatment, in the outpatient therapy of patients with anorexia nervosa. The two treatments were also compared with a control treatment procedure consisting of routine outpatient management. Each group consisted of eight subjects. All the groups showed some improvement, but the findings did not provide support for the prediction that cognitive-behavioural treatment, designed specifically to manipulate both attitudes and behaviour, was superior to the other types of treatment. The implications of the findings are considered.

Adult

Operant-behavioural and cognitive-behavioural treatment for chronic low back pain.

Fifty-eight outpatients with chronic low back pain were randomly allocated to one of six experimental conditions. Four conditions were designated as treatment conditions and two as control conditions. The four treatment groups consisted of: cognitive treatment (either with or without relaxation training) and behavioural treatment (either with or without relaxation training). The cognitive and behavioural groups also received physiotherapy. The two control conditions consisted of: attention (physiotherapy plus discussion sessions) and no-attention (physiotherapy-only) conditions. All conditions, including the two controls, received the same physiotherapy back-education and exercise program. For the sample as a whole, improvements were obtained on measures of affective distress, functional impairment, medication use, pain-related dysfunctional cognitions and use of active coping strategies. These improvements were generally maintained at 6- and 12-month follow-ups. The combined psychological/physiotherapy treatment conditions improved significantly more than the physiotherapy-only conditions from pre to posttreatment on measures of pain intensity, self-rated functional impairment and pain-related dysfunctional cognitions. However, these differences were only weakly maintained at 6- and 12-month follow-ups. The behavioural conditions improved significantly more than the cognitive conditions from pre to posttreatment on the self-rated measure of functional impairment, but this difference was not maintained at 6- and 12-month follow-ups. Progressive relaxation training was found to make little contribution to either cognitive or behavioural treatments.

Adult

Rotational behaviour in rats with unilateral striatal kainic acid lesions: a behavioural model for studies on intact dopamine receptors.

Rotational behaviour can be induced in rats with unilateral kainic acid induced degeneration of the neostriatum and adjacent regions by means of dopaminergic drugs. Kainic acid lesioned rats, when challenged with apomorphine or the ergot compounds elymoclavine, lergotrile and bromocriptine, perform dose-related turning towards the lesioned side. Blockade of the rotations by a number of dopamine receptor antagonists indicates dopaminergic involvement. Since kainic acid treatment had previously been shown to reduce the number of dopamine receptors in the injected brain regions, ipsilateral turning behaviour elicited by dopaminergic drugs after these lesions seems to be due to intact receptors on the contralateral hemisphere. Comparison of rotation data from experiments at intact dopamine receptors with those from experiments at supersensitive dopamine receptors revealed: (1) A marked decrease of the threshold dose for induction of rotational behaviour in the 6-OHDA lesioned rats. This decrease is particularly pronounced for lergotrile and bromocriptine. (2) A higher peak activity of rotations in rats with supersensitive dopamine receptors. (3) A considerable increase in the slope values of logits plots following denervation of dopamine receptors. Thus, the present report suggests: (a) that a behavioural model for studies of drugs acting at intact dopamine receptors can be obtained by unilateral neostriatal kainate injections and (b) that development of dopaminergic supersensitivity involves increased affinity of the receptors for dopamine receptor agonists and an increase in the coupling to its biological effector mechanism.

Animals

Hippocampal EEG and behaviour in dog. I. Hippocampal EEG correlates of gross motor behaviour.

It was shown that rewarding spectral shifts (i.e. increase in amplitude or peak frequency of the hippocampal EEG) causes a solitary dog to show increased motor behaviour. Rewarded spectral shifts concurred with a variety of behavioural transitions. It was found that statistically significant modulations occur in the spectral properties of the hippocampal EEG correlated with: (1) the transition from walking to standing; (2) the transition from standing while eating to walking away from the food dish; (3) the increase in speed of a walking dog, caused by rewarding the animal; and with (4) each head movement in a learned series of head movements. Thus behavioural transitions to a more active state are accompanied by an increase of amplitude, frequency and rhythmicity in the theta band of the hippocampal EEG; behavioural transitions to a less active state show the inverse relationship with the hippocampal EEG. A close relationship between modulations of the dog's hippocampal EEG activity and elementary motor acts is stressed. The hypothesis is put forward that the spectral properties of the hippocampal EEG reflect the degree to which a number of motor and sensory structures in the limbic midbrain and brain stem are active.

Animals