Drinking by senescent and adult rats in response to regulatory challenges.

The regulation of water and electrolyte balance was elevated in senescent (greater than 31 months) and adult (5-10 months) rats of several strains. Weekly food and water intake, drinking induced by 24-hr water deprivation and drinking induced by injection of hypertonic saline were roughly the same in old and adult rats. However, senescent rats drank less after injection of the beta-adrenergic agonist isoprenaline than adult rats. There were no appreciable strain differences in drinking in response to these regulatory challenges although baselines sometimes differed between strains.