POSTNATAL CADMIUM EXPOSURE AND LONGTERM BEHAVIORAL-CHANGES IN THE RAT

  • 1 January 1982
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 4  (3) , 283-287
Abstract
Although Cd is a well-known toxicant, its effects at subtoxic doses on behavior have rarely been investigated. The long-term effect on levels of spontaneous locomotor activity and performance in a learning task resulting from postnatal exposure to Cd were studied in 64 male Sprague-Dawley rat pups divided into 7 treatment and 1 vehicle control group. Treated animals were intubated with CdCl2 from the 6th-15th day of life at doses ranging from 0.25-7.0 mg/kg body wt. Activity was quantified in tilt cages at 45 days of age and performance in an appetitively motivated spatial discrimination task, with reversal, was assessed at between 90 and 94 days of age in a T-maze. A significant increase in spontaneous locomotor activity was observed in rats treated with 0.25 mg/kg Cd. Cd treated animals performed better than controls during learning and reversal learning trials. Possible hypotheses accounting for these results were discussed.