Identical "feeding" and "rewarding" systems in the lateral hypothalamus of rats.

Electrodes were implanted in the lateral hypothalamic feeding system; animals were subjected to both feeding and motivational tests. All animals that demonstrated stimulus-bound feeding behavior also showed high self-stimulation rates. As it was impossible to produce the feeding response without simultaneously producing the rewarding effect of hypothalamic stimulation, it was concluded that the feeding system of the lateral hypothalamus is one among a larger group of places where stimulation causes primary rewarding effects. With electrodes in these same areas, food deprivation often caused a major increment in the self-stimulation rate.