Abstract
At current levels below those eliciting a motor response, complete and consistent inhibition of muricide occurred during stimulation at 12 of 21 loci within the septum. Septal muricide-inhibitory stimulation (MIS) was not followed by overt or electrographic seizure activity. Septal MIS had no significant effect on the acceptance of chocolate chips but did increase drinking latency in 48 hr water-deprived rats. MIS significantly reduced time spent in the stimulated side of a shuttlebox, suggesting that long-duration MIS may be somewhat aversive. The septum is anatomically related to other areas implicated in aggression inhibition; these systems may function in either the unlearned or learned inhibition of rats' muricide occurring in certain behavioral situations.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 863-867 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | Physiology and Behavior |
| Volume | 24 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 1980 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:1This work was supported in part by a grant from the Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation to M. Potegal and by the Neurobehaviorai Sciences Research Training grant, 1 T32 MH 15174-01, and a National Institute of Drug Abuse grant, DA 02089. 2preliminary reports of these data were presented at the 1979 annual meetings of the Eastern Psychological Association and the Midwestern
Keywords
- Interspecific aggression
- Muricide inhibition
- Septal stimulation