The amphetamine-chlordiazepoxide mixture, a pharmacological screen for mood stabilizers, does not enhance amphetamine-induced disruption of prepulse inhibition.

In rodents, administration of a mixture of the psychostimulant d-amphetamine and the benzodiazepine chlordiazepoxide results in supra-additive hyperlocomotion, a phenomenon used to identify mood stabilizers. In an attempt to determine whether the d-amphetamine/chlordiazepoxide assay could extend to other behaviors that are affected in mania, we evaluated the effects of the mixture on prepulse inhibition. In addition, we combined chlordiazepoxide with the selective dopamine reuptake inhibitor GBR 12909 or the noradrenergic stimulant (-) ephedrine, and tested these alternative mixtures in locomotor activity and prepulse inhibition tests.

Environmental enrichment has antidepressant-like action without improving learning and memory deficits in olfactory bulbectomized rats.

Depression, especially in the elderly, is associated with poor cognitive functioning. Exercise has received much attention in the treatment for depression and also dementia. Here we studied the effect of an enriched environment combined with voluntary exercise (EE/VE) on the olfactory bulbectomized (OBX) rat.

Simvastatin improves learning and memory in control but not in olfactory bulbectomized rats.

Rationale: Olfactory bulbectomy (OBX) in a laboratory rodent leads to numerous behavioral deficits and involves cognitive and motor changes that are used to model major depression, but may also be a valuable tool in the study of neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease.

Objectives: This experiment evaluated the effects of simvastatin, a cholesterol-lowering drug with putative neuroprotective properties, on OBX-induced behavioral changes.

Results: Chronic administration of simvastatin, starting 48 h after surgery, did not have any behavioral effect in OBX rats, as tested in open field, passive avoidance and object-recognition paradigms.