Assessment of reward responsiveness in the response bias probabilistic reward task in rats: implications for cross-species translational research.

ABSTRACT: Mood disorders, such as major depressive disorder, are characterized by abnormal reward responsiveness. The Response Bias Probabilistic Reward Task (hereafter referred to as probabilistic reward task (PRT)) quantifies reward responsiveness in human subjects, and an equivalent animal assessment is needed to facilitate preclinical translational research. Thus, the goals of the present studies were to develop, validate and characterize a rat analog of the PRT. Adult male Wistar and Long-Evans rats were trained in operant testing chambers to discriminate between two tone stimuli that varied in duration (0.5 and 2 s). During a subsequent test session consisting of 100 trials, the two tones were made ambiguous (0.9 and 1.6 s) and correct identification of one tone was reinforced with a food pell

SUBMITTER: Der-Avakian A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3756297 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature