An assessment of the spontaneous activity of rats administered morphine, phencyclidine, or nicotine using automated and observational methods.

The effects of morphine, phencyclidine, and nicotine on motor activity in rats were characterized using both observational and automated methods. Activity was scored observationally using a time-sampling method that tabulates discrete response categories (still, locomotion, rearing, sniffing, licking, gnawing, head down, swaying, grooming, falling). Behavior was assessed automatically using an activity monitor that records both the time and activity counts spent in large and small (less than 3 cm) movements, rearing, and resting. The following results using male Sprague-Dawley rats represent significant differences from saline-treated controls. Morphine (1-4 mg/kg SC) increased the incidence of locomotion, sniffing, swaying, and grooming depending on the time after drug injection. These changes corresponded to an increase in large and small movement counts and time as measured by the activity monitor. Phencyclidine (1.25-5 mg/kg SC) caused dose-related increases in the incidence of locomotion, sniffing, swaying, and falling, and induced greater large and small activity movement counts and time especially after the 5 mg/kg dose. Nicotine (0.033-0.33 mg/kg SC) decreased the incidence of rearing and increased the frequency of sniffing and grooming. These changes corresponded to a decrease of rearing activity and to a slight increase in small activity. The present data indicate that morphine, phencyclidine, and nicotine exert dose-related and time-related appearances of various categories of behavior in the rat, and that the data from the automated method complement the findings of the direct observational method.