Pre-Irradiation Saccharin Habituation: A Factor in Avoidance Behavior

Abstract

Seven groups each with eight albino rats were habituated to a 0.1% sodium saccharin solution for either 8, 4, 2, 1, or 0 days prior to x-irradiation or sham-irradiation. The saccharin habituated groups showed a significant decrease in the degree of conditioned saccharin avoidance response as compared with the non-habituated group, but the degree of avoidance response was still significantly different from that of the sham-irradiated group. A group given water to drink prior to irradiation showed no significant difference in post-irradiation saccharin avoidance from the group given saccharin to drink. The results support previous evidence that prior experience with the CS (saccharin solution) significantly affects the intensity of the conditioned saccharin avoidance response in the trace conditioning paradigm using x-irradiation as the US, and also support previous work indicating that avoidance behavior to a preferred solution can be obtained without presentation of this solution prior to or during the radiation exposure.