Early Genital Stimulation of Rats Lowers Limbic Seizure Latencies for Females but Increases Latencies for Males

Abstract

The genitals of male and female rats were tactilely stimulated (glass rod) for 10 successive days beginning on postnatal Days 5, 15, or 35; handled but nonstimulated litter mates served as the reference groups. Limbic seizures were induced by a single systemic injection of lithium and pilocarpine when the rats were adults. The genitally stimulated female rats displayed a lower seizure threshold (as inferred from shorter seizure-onset times) relative to their cage mates. The single largest effect occurred for those females which had been stimulated after the vagina had opened (postnatal 35–45 days).