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Prefrontal injection of the #alpha#_(2)-adrenergic antagonist yohimbine impairs performance of a delayed GO/NO-GO task in monkeys

Li Baoming, Hu Xintian, Mei Zhentong

Shanghai Institute of Physiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Shanghai；China(650223)

Abstract

Two rhesus monkeys were trained to perform a delayed GO/NO-GO task, which was initiated by the monkey^s pressing a lever. At 0.5 s after the lever-pressing, a white square(1.5cm×1.5cm)was displayed on the right or the left of a computer screen and lasted 0.5s as a cue. After a delay of 0.0—4.0s, a red square(1.5cm×1.5cm)appeared between the left-cue and right-cue positions as a signal for response chioce. The monkey released the lever within 0.8 s if the cue had been on the right(GO trial), or kept on the lever-pressing for 1.2s if the cue had been on the left (NO-GO trial). Short-term working memory during the delay was a non-spatially representational one. Local injection of the #alpha#_(2)-adrenergic antagonist yohimbine(10#mu#g)into the prefrontal cortex(Walker^s areas 46.9) contralateral to the performing hand decreased the correct rate of performance. The longer the delay period was, the more serious the impairment was. The performing error after injection of yohimbine was expressed mainly as “commissural”response(the monkey made GO response in NO-GO trial or NO-GO response in GO trial). Injection of the #alpha#_(1)-adrenergic antagohist prazosin(10#mu#g)or the .....

Key words: Yohimbine;#alpha#_(2)-adrenoceptor;Delayed GO/NO-GO task;Prefrontal cortex; Monkey

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Citing This Article：

Li Baoming, Hu Xintian, Mei Zhentong. Prefrontal injection of the #alpha#_(2)-adrenergic antagonist yohimbine impairs performance of a delayed GO/NO-GO task in monkeys. Acta Physiol Sin 1994; 46 (3): (in Chinese with English abstract).