Parturition in the rat (Rattus norvegicus): Normative aspects and the temporal patterning of behaviours

Dollinger, Mark J.; Holloway, William R.; Denenberg, Victor H.

doi:10.1016/0376-6357(80)90046-7

Cited by 24 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 9 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Finally, great care was taken to remove the pups as soon as possible, since it seemed in a prior test of this apparatus that the mother became agitated by the presence of an out-of-reach pup on the floor beneath the delivery cage. The parturient behavior of control rats in response to these experimental procedures was similar to the parturient behavior described by Dollinger et al [12] and by Kristal et al [43]; for instance, delivery times fell within an expected range and females remained relatively active during the immediate postpar tum period.…”

Section: Testing Proceduressupporting

confidence: 76%

Opioid stimulation in the ventral tegmental area facilitates the onset of maternal behavior in rats

Thompson

Kristal

1996

Brain Research

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This research investigated the effect of an increase or decrease in opioid activity in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) on the onset of maternal behavior in rats. In Experiment 1, the latency to show maternal behavior toward foster rat pups (sensitization latency) was determined in maternally naive female rats given either nothing or a unilateral intra-VTA injection of morphine sulfate (MS) (0.0, 0.01, 0.03, 0.1 or 0.3 J.Lg), on the first three days of a lO-day period' of constant exposure to pups. Rats treated with 0.03 J.Lg MS had significantly shorter sensitization latencies than did rats treated with 0,0 J.Lg MS, 0.01 J.Lg MS, or receiving no treatment (higher doses of morphine produced intermediate results). The facilitating effect of intra-VTA MS on the onset of maternal behavior was blocked by pretreatment with naltrexone hydrochloride and was found to have a specific site of action in the VTA (MS injections dorsal to the VTA were ineffective). In Experiment 2, sensitization latencies were determined in periparturitional rats given a bilateral intra-VTA injection of either the opioid antagonist naltrexone methobromide (quaternary naltrexone), its vehicle, a sham injection, or left untreated 40 min after delivery of the last pup. The mothers' own pups were removed at delivery; mothers were nonmaternal at the time of testing. Quaternary naltrexone treatment produced significantly slower sensitization to foster pups than did control conditions. Total activity and pup-directed activity did not differ significantly with treatment. The results demonstrate that increased opioid activity in the VTA facilitates the onset of maternal behavior in inexperienced nonpregnant female rats, and decreased opioid activity in the VTA disrupts the rapid onset of maternal behavior at parturition.

show abstract

Section: Testing Proceduressupporting

confidence: 76%

Opioid stimulation in the ventral tegmental area facilitates the onset of maternal behavior in rats

Thompson

Kristal

1996

Brain Research

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Maternally experienced rats are less vulnerable than naïve (pri-1 miparous) ones to the disruptive effects of various endocrine [7][8][9] and sensory or neural [10,11] manipulations. As impressive as these data are in the aggregate, clear parity-related shifts in patterns of maternal care have been relatively difficult to discern in observational studies [12][13][14][15]. In other studies, utilizing more detailed and sensitive tests, improvements in retrieving behavior have been reported across parities in rats [16,17].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Maternal Reproductive Experience Enhances Early Postnatal Outcome Following Gestation and Birth of Rats in Hypergravity1

Ronca

Baer

Daunton

et al. 2001

Biology of Reproduction

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A major goal of space life sciences research is to broaden scientific knowledge of the influence of gravity on living systems. Recent spaceflight and centrifugation studies demonstrate that reproduction and ontogenesis in mammals are amenable to study under gravitational conditions that deviate considerably from those typically experienced on Earth (1 x g). In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that maternal reproductive experience determines neonatal outcome following gestation and birth under increased (hyper) gravity. Primigravid and bigravid female rats and their offspring were exposed to 1.5 x g centrifugation from Gestational Day 11 either through birth or through the first postnatal week. On the day of birth, litter sizes were identical across gravity and parity conditions, although significantly fewer live neonates were observed among hypergravity-reared litters born to primigravid dams than among those born to bigravid dams (82% and 94%, respectively; 1.0 x g controls, 99%). Within the hypergravity groups, neonatal mortality was comparable across parity conditions from Postnatal Day 1 through Day 7, at which time litter sizes stabilized. Maternal reproductive experience ameliorated neonatal losses during the first 24 h after birth but not on subsequent days, and neonatal mortality was associated with changes in maternal care patterns. These results indicate that repeated maternal reproductive experience affords protection against neonatal losses during exposure to increased gravity. Differential mortality of neonates born to primigravid versus bigravid dams denotes gravitational load as one environmental mechanism enabling the expression of parity-related variations in birth outcome.

show abstract

“…It is naturally expressed for the first time with the birth of the first litter. Within hours of parturition, the mother rat reconstructs the nest, retrieves the displaced pups, gathers them together in the nest site and adopts a nursing posture over the pups to permit suckling (Rosenblatt and Lehrman, 1963; Dollinger et al , 1980). The mother rat (dam) continues to exhibit the full repertoire of maternal behavior (pup-licking, pup retrieval, nest-building and nursing) over the subsequent 2–3 week period, although as the pups mature, the intensity and quality of her behavior changes (Rosenblatt and Lehrman, 1963; Galef, 1981).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Antipsychotic drugs on maternal behavior in rats

2015

Behavioural Pharmacology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Rat maternal behavior is a complex social behavior. Many clinically used antipsychotic drugs, including the typical drug haloperidol and atypical drugs clozapine, risperidone, olanzapine, quetiapine, aripiprazole and amisulpride, all disrupt active maternal responses (e.g. pup retrieval, pup licking and nest building) to various extents. In this review, I present a summary of recent studies on the behavioral effects and neurobiological mechanisms of antipsychotic action on maternal behavior in rats. I argue that antipsychotic drugs at the clinical relevant doses disrupt active maternal responses primarily by suppressing maternal motivation. Atypical drug-induced sedation also contributes to their disruptive effects, especially that on pup nursing. Among many potential receptor mechanisms, dopamine D2 receptors and serotonin 5-HT2A/2C receptors are shown to be critically involved in the mediation of the maternal disruptive effects of antipsychotic drugs, with D2 receptors contributing more to typical antipsychotic-induced disruptions, while 5-HT2A/2C receptors contributing more to atypical drug-induced disruption. The nucleus accumbens shell-related reward circuitry is an essential neural network in the mediation of the behavioral effects of antipsychotic drugs on maternal behavior. This research not only helps to understand the extent and mechanisms of impacts of antipsychotic medications on human maternal care, but also is important for enhancing our understanding of the neurochemical basis of maternal behavior. It is also valuable for understanding the complete spectrum of therapeutic and side-effects of antipsychotic treatment. This knowledge may facilitate the development of effective intervening strategies to help patients coping with such undesirable effects.

show abstract

Parturition in the rat (Rattus norvegicus): Normative aspects and the temporal patterning of behaviours

Cited by 24 publications

References 9 publications

Opioid stimulation in the ventral tegmental area facilitates the onset of maternal behavior in rats

Opioid stimulation in the ventral tegmental area facilitates the onset of maternal behavior in rats

Maternal Reproductive Experience Enhances Early Postnatal Outcome Following Gestation and Birth of Rats in Hypergravity1

Antipsychotic drugs on maternal behavior in rats

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About