Exploration of a novel object in late adolescence predicts sensation/novelty-seeking behavior in adulthood

CARMEN TORRES; LUCAS CUENYA; MARTA SABARIEGO; ROCÍO DONAIRE; JOSÉ ENRIQUE CALLEJAS AGUILERA; ALBERTO FERNÁNDEZ TERUEL

Sevilla

Congreso; XXVII CONGRESO INTERNACIONAL DE LA SOCIEDAD ESPAÑOLA DE PSICOLOGÍA COMPARADA; 2015

Sociedad Española de Psicología Comparada

The sensation/novelty seeking (SS) behavioral trait refers to the exploration/preference for a novel environment. SS increases during late adolescence and is associated with neurobehavioral disorders. Roman High- and Low-Avoidance (RHA-I, RLA-I) rats were selected for good/poor avoidance performance, respectively, but also show differences in SS (RHA-I>RLA-I) in adulthood. We hypothesize that these differences are already present in late adolescence and that they predicts adult SS. To test these hypotheses, 36 male RHA-I and 36 RLA-I adolescent rats (52-59 days old) were exposed to a novel object exploration test (D.V.: contact latency, contact time, contact frequency). Strain differences were observed in this test (RHA-I>RLA-I) and were in agreement with those observed in SS indexes registered in adulthood (83-105 days of age): Head-dipping (Hole-Board), time and visits to a novel-arm (Y-maze), and latency to emerge (Light-Dark box). Factor analysis (RHA+RLA) revealed two clusters: (1) Contact latency, novel-arm visits, and emergence latency; and (2) Contact time, novel-arm visits and time. Contact time predicted novel arm time (RHA+RLA-I, RHA-I only), whereas contact latency, latency to emerge and head-dipping jointly predicted novel arm visits (RLA-I only). Therefore, strain SS differences are already present in adolescence, and adolescent SS predicts adult SS, as expected for a genetically-influenced temperamental trait.