Place and matching-to-place spatial learning affected by rat inbreeding (Dark–Agouti, Fischer 344) and albinism (Wistar, Sprague–Dawley) but not domestication (wild rat vs. Long–Evans, Fischer–Norway)

Variation in visual acuity within pigmented, and between pigmented and albino rat strains

“…For example, in spite of having superior (FisherÁ/ Norway) or equal visual acuity (Dark Agouti) relative to the Long-Evans strain, both of these strains are impaired relative to the Long-Evans strain. Even among albino strains, whose visual acuity does not differ in our study, Harker and Whishaw [10] report that there are significant strain differences in performance. These data do not rule out the possibility that visual acuity can influence rat behavioral performance in vision-dependent tasks, because all of the albino strains with poor visual acuity (SpragueÁ/Dawley, Wistar, Fisher-344) in Harker and Whishaw's [10] study were impaired relative to the Long-Evans (pigmented) strain.…”

“…Even among albino strains, whose visual acuity does not differ in our study, Harker and Whishaw [10] report that there are significant strain differences in performance. These data do not rule out the possibility that visual acuity can influence rat behavioral performance in vision-dependent tasks, because all of the albino strains with poor visual acuity (SpragueÁ/Dawley, Wistar, Fisher-344) in Harker and Whishaw's [10] study were impaired relative to the Long-Evans (pigmented) strain. Therefore, it is likely that rat strains vary in a number of brain functions, including visual function, and this variation can contribute to differences in performance on complex behavioral tasks.…”

“…Rat strain differences in place-and matching-toplace learning A recent study has shed some light on the implications of variation in rat visual acuity for performance in the Morris water task [10]. The results of this study indicate that visual acuity alone does not predict performance on place, or matching-to-place versions of the Morris water task.…”

Differences in forebrain activation in two strains of rat at rest and after spinal cord injury

“…The PVN also contributes to learning, memory, as well as having a role in stress, pain, and immune responses (Bodnar et al, 1986;Senba et al, 1993;Smith and Day, 1994;Matsumoto et al, 1997;Marquez et al, 2004;see Doris (1984) for review). The greater baseline activity in the SII, AD, BLA, and PVN of the LE may explain, in part, published reports that LE rats perform better in cognitive tasks (Lindner and Schallert, 1988;Tonkiss et al, 1992;Andrews et al, 1995;Harker and Whishaw, 2002), have higher baseline levels of locomotor activity (Aulakh et al, 1988;Onaivi et al, 1992;van Lier et al, 2003), and show less reactivity to external stimuli (Glowa and Hanson, 1994;Acri et al, 1995;Faraday, 2002). In addition, LE rats are more sensitive to painful stimuli, indicated by lower baseline responses to painful mechanical and thermal stimuli applied to the hindpaw (Mills et al, 2001).…”

‘Out of tune’: consequences of inbreeding on bird song

“…mean frequency) are probably affected by inbreeding too, given that each aspect of syllable expression may represent certain neurological, morphological and physiological limits [24,30] that may be more constrained in inbred birds than in outbred birds. Furthermore, song complexity relates to cognitive capacity [31], which has been shown to be affected by inbreeding in humans [32] and rats [33], and may consequently be affected by inbreeding. Song output, finally, is perhaps the most energy-demanding trait, and thus particularly sensitive to environmental factors (e.g.…”