Rats can learn a temporal task in a single session

Author(s)

Reyes, Marcelo Bussotti ^[1] ; de Miranda, Diego Henrique ^[1] ; Tunes, Gabriela Chiuffa ^[1] ; Cravo, Andre Mascioli ^[1] ; Caetano, Marcelo Salvador ^{[2, 1]}

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Fed ABC, Ctr Math Comp & Cognit, Sao Bernardo Do Campo - Brazil

^[2] Inst Nacl Ciencia & Tecnol Comportamento Cognicao, Sao Carlos, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Behavioural Processes; v. 170, JAN 2020.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Fixed interval, peak interval, and temporal bisection procedures have been used to assess cognitive functions and address questions such as how animals perceive, represent, and reproduce time intervals. They have also been extensively used to test the effects of drugs on behavior, and to describe the neural correlates of interval timing. However, those procedures usually require several weeks of training for behavior to stabilize. Here, we investigated a variation of the Differential Reinforcement of Response Duration (DRRD) task with a target time of 1.2 s. We compared three types of training protocols and reported a procedure in which performance by the end of the very first session nearly matches the performance of long-term training. We also showed that the initial distribution of the responses is uni-modal and, as training evolves (and rats improve their performance), a second peak emerges and progressively shifts toward longer times. This one-day training protocol can be used to investigate temporal learning and may be especially useful to electrophysiological and neuropharmacological studies. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 17/25161-8 - The representation of temporal information in neural activity
• Grantee: André Mascioli Cravo
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 16/18914-7 - Eletrofisiologic registers and manipulation on the neural activity in the prefrontal cortex of rats during the temporal learning
• Grantee: Gabriela Chiuffa Tunes
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• FAPESP's process: 14/50909-8 - INCT 2014: Behavior, Cognition and Teaching (INCT-ECCE): relational learning and symbolic functioning
• Grantee: Deisy das Graças de Souza
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants