Taste preferences for lithium chloride by adrenalectomized rats

Abstract

Previous findings had indicated that LiCl and NaCl were similar in taste to the rat. Sodium-deficient adrenalectomized rats were given two-bottle preference tests between the following pairs of solutions: LiCl and H₂O, LiCl and KCl, LiCl and NH₄Cl, and LiCl and NaCl. Ingestion measures taken during the first few minutes of contact with these solutions indicated that adrenalectomized rats preferred LiCl to H₂O, KCl, or NH₄Cl and showed no preference between LiCl and NaCl. Long-term measures of intake indicated that rats learned to avoid ingesting LiCl. It was concluded that the preferences of adrenalectomized rats are initially based on the taste of solutions but that the toxic effects of ingesting LiCl produce a learned aversion to this substance.