Effects of genetic vestibular defects on behavior related to spatial orientation and emotionality.
- 1 January 1979
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Psychological Association (APA) in Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology
- Vol. 93 (3), 467-480
- https://doi.org/10.1037/h0077566
Abstract
A large battery of behavioral tests was administered to normal mice and to mice with varying degrees of otoconial agenesis due to genes affecting vestibular development. A factor analysis revealed that the variance on the 11 best tests could be accounted for in terms of 2 underlying variables. Factor I, the more important of the 2, was associated with activity, habituation and spontaneous alternation. Factor II appeared to represent a fear of new stimuli or situations. In both cases factor scores were highly related to the degree of otoconial deficiency. One subgroup of mice with severe otoconial agenesis displayed hyperactivity and a total absence of either habituation or spontaneous alternation. In these animals, brain and body development were stunted and the reactions to amphetamine and physostigmine were opposite to those seen in normal mice. The results support the idea that the static organs contribute importantly to spatial orientation and suggest that early-onset vestibular defects can result in profound alterations of emotionality.This publication has 6 references indexed in Scilit:
- Effects of differential interference with postnatal cerebellar neurogenesis on motor performance, activity level, and maze learning of rats: A developmental study.Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 1979
- Hippocampal connections and spatial discriminationBrain Research, 1978
- Maze orientation, visual and vestibular cues in two-maze spontaneous alternation of ratsPhysiological Psychology, 1977
- Place units in the hippocampus of the freely moving ratExperimental Neurology, 1976
- Cues for spontaneous alternation.Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 1966
- Cerebello-hippocampal influences on the electroencephalogramElectroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology, 1959