Blockage of arginine vasopressin's effect on memory-enhancement by destruction of periaqueductal gray matter in rats / 第三军医大学学报

ABSTRACT

The effects of the destruction of the periaqueductal gray matter(PAG)on the memory-enhancement by intraperitoneal injection of arginine vasopressin(AVP)were observed in rats.Rats with either sham lesions or electrolytic destruction of the bilateral PAG were trained in a shuttle box for active avoidance response(AAR).After the rats met the criterion of 80% correctness,an intraperitoneal injection of 6?g/kg of AVP or 0.2ml of saline was given.Extinction of AAR was assessed in the rats.It was found that AVP markedly retarded the extinction of AAR in rats with sham lesion,and the extinction of the rats with destroyed PAG was significantly faster than that of the rats with sham lesion.The above mentioned findings suggest that AVP can act on the central nervous system to enhance memory mediated probably through PAG.This observation provides further support for the suggestion that certain limbic midebrain structures are involved in the memory enhancement by AVP.