Effects of Various Habituation Procedures on Pituitary-Adrenal Responsiveness in the Mouse

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

5-1977

Abstract

This study examined the effect of prior experience with a testing apparatus on pituitary-adrenal responsiveness in mice. In Experiment 1, an attempt was made to habituate mice to an apparatus (jar) while investigating responsiveness to other stimuli. No evidence of habituation was found following 21 exposures to the jar. Experiment 2 examined 3 habituation procedures involving prolonged exposures. None of the procedures resulted in habituation and 2 of the procedures produced significantly higher plasma corticosterone levels than did a single short exposure to the jar (novelty condition). The results demonstrate the difficulty of habituating the mouse's pituitary-adrenal response to an apparatus and show that habituation procedures may actually increase rather than decrease responsiveness.

DOI

10.1016/0031-9384(77)90186-X

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