The effects of intraperitoneal (IP) administration of the endogenous opioid peptide, [Leu1enkephalin (LE), on avoidance conditioning in rodents were investigated. At a dose of 30 /lglkg (IP), LE enhanced acquisition of a one-way step-through active avoidance response when administered 2 minutes before training to Swiss Webster mice. [Leu1enkephalin produced aU-shaped dose-response function because both lower and higher doses of LE did not affect avoidance responding. fLeu1enkephalin-induced enhancement of avoidance ac quisition was also observed in Sprague-Dawley rats; the intraperitoneal injection of 10 /lglkg LE, administered 5 minutes before training, enhanced acquisition of a tinez et al. 1991a;Koob 1987;Gold 1989;McGaugh 1989). Two of these defming characteristics are that 1) the dose-response functions produced by modulatory substances are V-shaped, rather than hyperbolic, and 2) each modulatory substance has the ability to either