LP-BM5 murine leukemia virus infection causes an AIDS-like syndrome--murine acquired immunodeficiency syndrome--in C57B1/6 mice and impairs spatial learning in the Morris water maze without gross motor impairment. We used a shuttle shock-avoidance procedure to examine the effects of LP-BM5 infection on learning and retention of avoidance behavior. Thirty mice were inoculated with LP-BM5; 30 rec...

A substantial literature implicates the anterior and mediodorsal (limbic) thalamic nuclei and the reciprocally interconnected areas of cingulate cortex in learning, memory, and attentional processes. Previous studies have shown that limbic thalamic lesions severely impair discriminative avoidance learning and that they block development of training-induced neuronal activity in the cingulate cor...

The reinforcing effects of aversive outcomes on avoidance behaviour are well established. However, their influence on perceptual processes is less well explored, especially during the transition from adolescence to adulthood. Using electroencephalography, we examined whether learning to actively or passively avoid harm can modulate early visual responses in adolescents and adults. The task incl...

The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that, during adulthood, the offspring of adolescent rats differ in emotionality, learning and memory from the offspring of adult rats. The behavior of the offspring of adolescent (age, 50-55 days) and adult rats (age, 90-95 days) was tested in the open field, activity cage, and passive and active avoidance apparatus. The latencies during training...

It is widely recognized that the nature and severity of responses to toxic exposure are age-dependent. Using active avoidance conditioning as the behavioral paradigm, the present study examined the effect of short-term methylmercury (MeHg) exposure on two adult age classes, 1- and 2-year-olds to coincide with zebrafish in relatively peak vs. declining health conditions. In Experiment 1, 2-year-...

It is widely recognized that the nature and severity of responses to toxic exposure are age-dependent. Using active avoidance conditioning as the behavioral paradigm, the present study examined the effect of short-term methylmercury (MeHg) exposure on two adult age classes, 1and 2-year-olds to coincide with zebrafish in relatively peak vs. declining health conditions. In Experiment 1, 2-year-ol...