Citation

Zhou Z, Wang Y, Tan H, Bharti V, Che Y, Wang JF. Neurosci. Lett. 2015; 603: 84-88.

Affiliation

Kleysen Institute for Advanced Medicine, Health Sciences Centre, Winnipeg, Canada; Departments of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada; Departments of Psychiatry, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada. Electronic address: jun-feng.wang@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2015, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.neulet.2015.07.027

PMID

26219985

Abstract

A lack of behavioral tests and animal models for manic-depressive bipolar disorder is recognized as an important factor limiting development of novel pharmaceutical treatments for the disorder. Repeated amphetamine-induced hyperactivity is a commonly used animal model for mania. However, hyperactivity represents only one facet of mania and is also seen in other disorders. Increased engagement in risk taking behavior is frequently observed in the manic phase of bipolar disorder. In the present study, we analyzed the effect of the most commonly used mood stabilizer lithium on repeated amphetamine treatment- induced risk-taking behaviors in rats using elevated plus maze and wire-beam bridge tests. We found that repeated amphetamine treatment not only increased locomotor activity, but also increased risk taking behavious in rats, and further that chronic lithium treatment inhibited the amphetamine-increased risk taking behavior. Our studies suggest that these tests may be useful tools to analyze the pharmacological validity of new and improved anti-manic drugs in animals.

Language: en