Abstract
Groups of rats ranging from unimplanted controls to caudate-putamen (CPU) stimulated experimental animals were compared in terms of the number of trials required to acquire a brightness discrimination habit. The results indicated that the degree of deficit produced was a function of the magnitude of experimental intervention imposed. Animals with headplugs and cables, but without electrodes required significantly more trials to learn than unimplanted controls. The addition of electrodes without a headcable produced no greater deficit, while electrodes with attached cable resulted in significantly greater disruption than plug and cable alone. Stimulation of the PCU with one or three bilateral pulses following each discrimination produced significantly greater interference than did the electrode lesion and headcable. The results are discussed in terms of the control conditions required for studies of the effects of brain stimulation on behavior.
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This research was supported in part by NIMH Research Grant MH 18636 and Training Grant MH 7082. We thank Don Jewett of the University of California, San Francisco, for making histological facilities available.
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Herz, M.J., Marshall, K.E. & Peeke, H.V.S. Brain stimulation and behavior: Controls and consequences. Psychobiology 2, 184–186 (1974). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03333022
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03333022