Sensitization of the perioral biting reflex by intranigral GABA agonist after detelencephalization.

Unilateral injection of 160 ng (0.4 microliter) of muscimol into the substantia nigra pars reticulata of rats elicits contraversive turning and simultaneously sensitizes the perioral biting reflex on the side of the face contralateral to the injected substantia nigra. Bilateral removal of the telencephalon eliminated neither the muscimol-induced behavior nor the peroral biting reflex.