Effect of dorsolateral hypothalamic lesions on sodium appetite elicited by desoxycorticosterone and by acute hyponatremia.

Abstract

Rats were lesioned in the dorsal part of the lateral area of the hypothalamus and allowed time to recover from the temporary adipsia and aphagia produced by the lesions. Saline preference was observed before and after injection of desoxycorticosterone using standard 2-bottle testing conditions. The lesions had no effect upon the normal preference for weak saline or aversion to strong saline but severely disrupted the potentiation of saline intake by desoxycorticosterone treatment. In contrast with normal rats, hyponatremia, induced by intraperitoneal dialysis against glucose, had no effect upon the saline intake of the lesioned rats.