Citation

Belozertseva IV, Sukhotina IA, Vossen JMH, Bespalov AY. Physiol. Behav. 2004; 80(4): 531-539.

Affiliation

Laboratory of Behavioral Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmacology, Pavlov Medical University, 6/8 Lev Tolstoy Street, St. Petersburg 197089, Russia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

14741238

Abstract

The 'deprivation effect' (DE) phenomenon is expressed as an increase in the level of free choice consumption of drugs, alcohol, or saccharin following a period of forced abstinence in humans and in several species of laboratory animals. The DE may reflect relapse-like drinking and be relevant for modeling addictive behaviors. In humans, drug or alcohol abstinence is commonly associated with the increased physical and sexual abuse. The present study aimed to study whether aggressive and sexual behaviors are affected by the conditions known to result in the DE. Adult male Wistar rats had unlimited free choice access to water and saccharin-containing solution (0.1%, w/v). After the preference for saccharin was established, animals underwent repeated 7-day-long episodes of saccharin deprivation. It was found that (i) aggressive and sexual behaviors were facilitated after 7 days of saccharin deprivation, and (ii) DE was significantly reduced in animals that were allowed to interact with the nonaggressive male or receptive female conspecifics during the last day of deprivation exposure. These results suggest that the saccharin deprivation exposures may facilitate aggressive and sexual behaviors. Alternative behavioral strategy may serve as a mechanism of coping with the deprivation state.

Language: en