Functional observational battery comparing effects of ethanol, 1,1,1-trichloroethane, ether, and flurothyl

Effects of the putative antagonist NCS382 on the behavioral pharmacological actions of gammahydroxybutyrate in mice

“…In contrast, the hind-limb splay and forelimb grip strength tests were least affected by GHB as only the highest dose of GHB (1.0 g/kg) affected these measures. The FOB results with GHB are similar to those of the depressants pentobarbital and ethanol (Tegeris and Balster 1994;Bowen et al 1996). At doses greater than 0.2 g/kg, GHB suppressed locomotor activity and operant response rates.…”

“…Eight experimentally naive mice were tested at each dose of GHB (administered 30 min prior to testing) and eight experimentally naive mice at each dose combination of GHB plus NCS382 (administered 40 min prior to testing). The FOB consisted of four behavioral tests, which have been shown to be sensitive to the hypnotic and sedative effects of drugs (Bowen et al 1996). The tests were conducted in the following order: number of rears in the home cage, forelimb grip strength, inverted screen, hind-limb splay, and number of rears in an open field environment.…”

Decreased sensitivity in adolescent vs. adult rats to the locomotor activating effects of toluene

“…For example, inhaled toluene concentrations similar to those encountered in abuse settings produce a profile of effects in adult rodents that progress from motor excitation at low concentrations (i.e., 500-4,000 ppm) to sedation, motor impairment and anesthesia at higher concentrations of 6,000-15,000 ppm [4], [24], [68]. Biphasic dose-response curves for locomotor activity have also been documented for acute concentrations of 1,1,1-trichloroethane (TCE; 500 ppm -14,000 ppm) [8], [4], [60], [64]. Concentrations of these solvents that initially produce only sedation or anesthesia can result in coma and ultimately death by respiratory depression when exposure is prolonged or continuous [5].…”

Tolerance and sensitization to inhaled 1,1,1-trichloroethane in mice: results from open-field behavior and a functional observational battery

“…The FOB protocol used in this study has been described in detail in previous publications (Bowen et al 1996b;Tegeris and Balster 1994) and consisted of 21 different dependent measures assessing the following five domains of behavioral and physiological responses: CNS activity, CNS excitability, autonomic effects, muscle tone/equilibrium, and sensorimotor reactivity. During the last 2 min of TCE exposure, the mice were scored on the following measures: posture, arousal, rearing, clonic movements, tonic movements, palpebral closure, gait, and gait abnormalities.…”

“…Thirty-minute vapor exposures to TCE concentrations of 2,000, 6,000, 10,000, and 13,300 ppm and the appropriate air control were administered in a counterbalanced order. The concentrations of TCE selected for acute administration were based on previous investigations of TCE in our laboratory (Bowen and Balster 1996;Bowen et al 1996b). The FOB was administered only on the day when animals received the test concentration corresponding to their group assignment.…”